There are moments when nature itself feels less like a fact and more like a fable. In these instances, the river forgets its banks, the leaves forget their stems, and existence steps into a waltz of wonder. This poem is an attempt to capture that fleeting miracle….. a dance of elements beyond logic, where playfulness and profundity meet. It invites the reader to surrender their solemnities and drift into a realm where every ripple harbors a thought, and every thought swells into eternity.
The river wore a gown of light,
Spun not from cloth but liquid streams,
She whirled about in wild delight,
A sovereign stitched from wayward dreams.
The leaves that once had clung to trees
Now pirouette with secret glee,
As waters laugh with capering breeze,
And Time forgets its tyranny.
The stars lean low to touch her hair,
Their ancient fires a trembling crown,
Yet she, in gambol debonair,
Doth neither kneel nor layeth down.
Her feet….. no feet! – they kiss no land,
Her arms unburdened by the shore,
She is the mirth that Fate had planned
When gods themselves could laugh no more.
The world looks on with aught but awe,
For here no mortal rule holds sway,
The river, freed from Nature’s law,
Hath found her eldritch holiday.
O would that we could once partake,
In dances where no borders seam,
And shake the soul until it wakes,
When rivers, too, are free to dream.
In the labyrinth of existence, it is often easy to forget that we, too, are made of restless rivers and dreaming skies. This poem is a reminder…… that beneath the weight of structure and purpose, there lies a deeper call to marvel and to meander. Perhaps the truest wisdom is not in knowing where we must go, but in allowing ourselves, even briefly, to become a part of something gloriously unmoored.
Glossary of Uncommon and Archaic Words
Profundity (noun)
- Meaning: Great depth of insight, knowledge, or feeling; something that is very deep — emotionally, intellectually, or spiritually.
- Example: The profundity of her gaze silenced even the most eloquent.
Gambol (verb)
- Meaning: To skip, leap, or frolic playfully; a joyful, carefree movement often full of life.
- Example: The lambs gambolled across the meadow without a care in the world.
Eldritch (adjective)
- Meaning: Strange or eerie in a way that inspires wonder or fear; otherworldly and ghostly.
- Example: An eldritch glow illuminated the forest, neither moonlight nor firelight.
Debonair (adjective)
- Meaning: Suave, charming, and carefree; having a sophisticated yet easy grace.
- Example: He entered the room with a debonair smile, as though carrying sunlight in his pocket.
Aught (noun)
- Meaning: Anything at all; in archaic English, it also meant “zero” or “nothing,” but often poetically used for “everything” or “any part.”
- Example: She feared aught that lurked in the misty woods.
Sovereign (noun/adjective)
- Meaning: A supreme ruler, especially a monarch; or something supreme, absolute, and independent.
- Example: The sovereign stars governed the fates of dreamers below.
Meander (verb)
- Meaning: To wander at a slow, leisurely pace without a fixed direction; often used for rivers, thoughts, or walks.
- Example: The old river meandered through valleys like a silver ribbon tossed by a child.
Addy's Verse 
Leave a comment