April 20, 2017

Poetry Friday--Saint George

The feast of Saint George is celebrated on April 23, this coming Sunday. (April 23, 303 is the reported date of his death.) Saint George, is the patron saint of England, Portugal, Romania, and several other countries, and the story of his slaying the dragon has been told and retold over the centuries. Saint George and the Dragon: A Golden Legend adapted by Margaret Hodges from Edmund Spenser's Faerie Queene and illustrated by Trina Schart Hyman, is a modern children's classic. It was awarded the Caldecott Medal in 1985.

My poem for today references the sainted man, but is not directly related to his story. It was really written as a woodcut project poem.

So as not to distract you by the vocabulary, let me explain that borborymus is a stomach/intestinal noise (plural = borborygmi). A great word, isn't it? (I believe I originally was introduced to it by Janet B.)

© Diane Mayr, all rights reserved.

Text:
Dragons

A baleful growl at the edge
your consciousness? Or,
simply the borborygmus
of your also-dozing cat?

The air warm, rising,
quivering, with the energy
of a dragon's breath?
Or a fever of your brow?

A swamp crawling with
reptilian creatures hideous
and noisome? Or officious
expressions of power?

We are all of us St. George
daily faced with the task
of curing the imagined and
slaying the borborygmi.

Learn more about Saint George in this book published 110 years ago; click here.

I wrote another Saint George poem two years ago, see it here.

The lovely Tabatha is hosting the Round-Up at The Opposite of Indifference.
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28 comments:

  1. Alice NineApril 21, 2017 at 1:13 AM

    Love your second stanza, Diane. Have a wonderful weekend.

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    1. Diane MayrApril 22, 2017 at 9:05 AM

      Thanks, Alice! I'm marching for science, so I hope the weather cooperates.

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  2. Mrs. WymanApril 21, 2017 at 8:25 AM

    I love that you included plain text as well, Diane. To me the poem, which I love, reads differently with and without the illustration. Fascinating! -- Christie @ https://wonderingandwondering.wordpress.com/blog/

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    1. Diane MayrApril 22, 2017 at 9:08 AM

      Brenda Harsham told me that software for people with vision problems can't "read" text within an illustration, so, I've been trying to remember to include plain text with any illustrated poems I post.

      Delete
  3. TabathaApril 21, 2017 at 9:04 AM

    Terrific word, Diane! I am saving this poem for re-reading. Nicely done.

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    1. Diane MayrApril 22, 2017 at 9:09 AM

      Do you keep a list of "interesting" words like I do?

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  4. KayApril 21, 2017 at 9:14 AM

    Oohhh....I learn a new word. It is a great one. Now how can I work it into conversation later today? I love the ending: We are all of us St. George/daily faced with the task/of curing the imagined and/slaying the borborygmi.

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    1. Diane MayrApril 22, 2017 at 9:10 AM

      Let me know how that working it into conversation goes!

      Delete
  5. Brenda at FriendlyFairyTalesApril 21, 2017 at 9:48 AM

    I love that you owned the words, used it twice and slay it in the end. Lovely tribute to the dragon slayer.

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    1. Diane MayrApril 22, 2017 at 9:11 AM

      I'm a pacifist, so any slaying I do is only through words.

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  6. Irene LathamApril 21, 2017 at 9:50 AM

    We are all of us St. George. Yes! Thank you, Diane! And who wouldn't love a poem with borborygmi in it?! xo

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    1. Diane MayrApril 22, 2017 at 9:13 AM

      Like St. George, we who are marching for science this weekend, must work to slay the mighty dragon of ignorance.

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  7. Linda BApril 21, 2017 at 10:29 AM

    New word, useful today. I find this quite what is happening to me that "fever of your brow". Beautifully done, Diane.

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    1. Diane MayrApril 22, 2017 at 9:14 AM

      Fever is a protective mechanism, so don't dismiss it!

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  8. TaraApril 21, 2017 at 11:09 AM

    I love this new word...I shall have to find a way to use it with my students this afternoon!

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  9. michelle koganApril 21, 2017 at 12:36 PM

    Borborygmus, that is a fun word and it works so well in your poem. St. George and the Dragon is such a rich topic both in visual art and writing. The one that comes to my mind is Gustave Moreau's. Your image and words all work handsomely together! Wonderful post; here's a link to Moreau's: https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/gustave-moreau-saint-george-and-the-dragon

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    1. Diane MayrApril 22, 2017 at 9:18 AM

      Thanks for the link! Moreau's St. George is a rather feminine looking character, which I find appealing. The feminine is not something to mess with!

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  10. Jane @ www.raincitylibrarian.caApril 21, 2017 at 12:43 PM

    Oh my goodness, borborymus is my new favourite word, I shall use it on my husband tonight... ;-)

    But I love the sentiment, that we are facing our own battles with our own dragons, whatever form they might take.

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    1. Diane MayrApril 22, 2017 at 9:20 AM

      Dragons big and small. My dragon for 2017 (besides the obvious political one) is contact dermatitis. A real beast!

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  11. jamaApril 21, 2017 at 12:47 PM

    Never has such a fine poem been written about stomach noises. Cleverly done!!

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    1. Diane MayrApril 22, 2017 at 9:21 AM

      Thank you, Jama! What noise should I celebrate next? ;-)

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  12. Carol VarsalonaApril 21, 2017 at 2:18 PM

    Your opening is strong, Diane and I love the new word you introduced. Jama's remark has both truth and a bit of humor. Thanks for sharing the exploit of mighty St. George. I grew up with stories of the saints told by the nuns.

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    1. Diane MayrApril 22, 2017 at 9:22 AM

      St. George is always portrayed with a dragon. I wonder about George on his own. What kind of man/saint was he?

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  13. AnonymousApril 21, 2017 at 7:57 PM

    Another new word from my PoetryFriday reading. Perfect for this poem. It puts me in mind of the ceratodus - Burnett Bunyip - that we grew up with. Though it wasn't the intestinal sounds, but rather, the lungfish gasping for breath on the surface of the water.

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    1. Diane MayrApril 22, 2017 at 9:24 AM

      "Lungfish gasping for breath"? Sounds gross. I've heard the term Bunyip, but know nothing about it. Looks like I have some reading to do.

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  14. Mary LeeApril 22, 2017 at 6:49 AM

    Thanks for the new word...and the new way to describe that which we must battle with all our energy!

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    1. Diane MayrApril 22, 2017 at 9:25 AM

      Better that we battle with all our wits! Surely smarts/logic/truth will win out in the end.

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