Truth is in the sunlight;
its fingers touch each blade of the field,
its lips kiss each bough of the orchard.
Though some will build
walls,
parapets,
parliaments
to keep it out:
truth is in the sun light
and will not hide.
Truth is in the sunlight;
its caliper measures every man,
its level is set upon all our work.
Its chains may be heavy on the field-hands back,
its yoke may be cruel for the virgin lost in the brothels,
it is an iron mask to those who rise from shafts of coal to stand anew in the glare;
but their voices do not rise to contradict its witness!
Truth is in the sun light
and will not hide.
...and when we sleep
tip your telescope to the moon;
see how its stones are bathed
with daylight so pure and bright
that it slips in even to our dreams.
-But it is not with poetic flights of fancy
that Vaptsarov sings to us now!
He knew
that from the glimmers on the Black Sea
to the hills of Cydonia
truth is in the sun light
and will not hide.
Author notes
re:Vaptsarov;
this poem was written for the contest:"V is for Vaptsarov"
Nikola Vaptsarov was a Bulgarian machinist, activist for workers rights and poet.
He was only 32 years old when he was executed be the Fascists in 1942.
Some of his poetry can be read at: http://www.slovo.bg/old/f/en/vaptsarov/
NIKOLA VAPTSAROV
re:Cydonia;Cydonia was an ancient city-state
on the coast of the island of Crete
mentioned by Virgil in his epic-poem "The Aeneid".
in his poem "Faith", Vaptsarov says:
"For life there is nothing
I would not dare...
I'd climb in a roaring
rocket, exploring
alone
in space
distant
planets. "
Today a region of Mars where some
thought there was proof of extraterrestrial life
bares the name of Cydonia:
recent exploration by space probes has disproved
this mistaken idea.
Art:Bulgarian Peasant Girl
by Vladimir Dimitrov (1882-1960)
Poem by "Dogfish"
In a list
A contest entry
- V is for Vaptsarov - Nikola Vaptsarov (Contest) by just mercedes.
800 points, ended September 10, 2008, 6 entries
Gold trophy winner
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest - The Best of the Year by Bean Sidhe.
1350 points, ended January 3, 51 entries
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest
Comments
1 - 18 of 18
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Wow!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I was just swimming in line after line of incredible imagery. Your really covered the full scope here from small to vast and showed the interworkings and evidences of truth in all things. I was just so impressed by this and found myself commenting aloud throughout. Excellent stuff!!!
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First of all, thank you for following my simple rules! It is much appreciated, dear poet!
Secondly, I must commend your vocabulary skills. Your word usage creates such vivid pictures for your reader to enjoy.
I very much like the addition of the picture and your notes were a perfect addition to your piece.
You will certainly be one of the ones I review in more detail! Thank you for your entry & good luck in the contest -
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Thank's for the kind encouragement...
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Really a great write, and worthy of contemplation. Thank you for introducing me to Vaptsarov. We always need more heroes and more poets. Thank you.
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I love this! Your personification and metaphor are simple, straight-forward and absolutely brilliant. I like the use of imagery and the meaninful refrain. Truth is indeed in the sunlight and this poem shines.
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A beautiful poem where truth and sunlight go hand in hand...as always. This was an absolutely wonderful poem written for someone who unfortunately never got to see that truth come through. It's a sad tribute, but a great piece of work indeed. I cannot give you anything to change. It's wonderful as is.
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Well written, and well deserving of gold. Thank you for your educational notes. They really add depth to the poem.
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This is great poetry! You have responded to the prompt poem with a metaphor that is at once simple and profound. I like the repetition of 'will not hide' as this was the poet's response to the Fascist threat, and it cost him his life.
Your poem thinks its way to the same truths that shed light on lives spent in drudgery and servitude. Faith, and Hope, are very potent forces.
The artwork you used is again an expresiion of the most simple, and complex ideas, and the presentation of your poem does honour to the contest. Thank you so much. -
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Thanks very much, "pania",for your kind comments and judgement on my poem. Thanks also for this contest that introduces us to Nicola Vaptsarov, a man who's life and writing certainly merits our attention.
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*gasps*
You go ahead & mix as many metaphors as you like, Scribe.
You've done it marvelously here.
Good luck in pania's contest.Impressive. Quite so.
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This here is one of those long lasting, unique and meaningful writes. Each stanza clearly confirms and builds on the thought expressed in the previous. A very risky title- easily an excruciating cliche, but you've pulled it off in a very classic, but original way. Reminds me of east European folklore or something- But REALLY, thats just me.
A fitting image too.
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Thanks you! I thought the title a bit ambitious, too; but it relates more to the work of Vaptsarov, than mine: from his poems I read he seems to seek clear, simple language that deals with the truth of life that average people must deal with.
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i love this
here's why- because from the color to the picture to the wording- it explores and
thinks and allows the reader to do the same
i love that you took a chance with your image and your color
and stepped outside the box in both
and even more so
in the poem itself-
it allows the reader to see your vision- your truth- each stanza builds on the next-
truth is in the sunlight, you tell us
truth will not hide- i love that
i truly love it.
m
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Thank You very much,"Cat".
I think this is such a wonderful painting,too! It couldn't possibly detract from any writing.
I found "Pania's" contest subject very absorbing; I'd never heard of Nikola Vaptsarov, but have found him to be a very compelling individual.
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like this.
the second stanza while being very 'worker' themed as I read it also works as an excellent metaphor for the 'cave' section in Plato's republic, for me. ( my father was a coal miner for years )
I'd agree truth is - ubiquitous, of course that would mean it also had to exist in the dark, but then it does, it's just a bit more difficult to witness it without refraction.
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I love Woody Guthrie's coal miners' songs, they are one of the few things that truly move me to tears.
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Too many mixed metaphors.
it's not made clear what has all the attributes. Truth, sunlight? t It seems to me the truth that the sun light reveals is there, it may be hidden temporally by darkness, but not dismissed.
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Thanks for your thoughts, WW, I'm sad in a way that I've taken simple straight forward themes like light and truth and obscured them for you. Even more so in the context of this contest for Vaptsarov- not that I really know this poet; but on reading a few of his poems, one sees immediatly that simple clear language was his aim.
My point was that truth (whether we percieve it or accept it) is as ubiqitous as sunlight, as plain and unnuanced as the light in the sky that caresses everything and, even in the darkest places, truth penitrates and is unalterable.
...Univeral themes...someone will have another stab at it and do better!
Thanks again, for reading and comenting, "Writing Wretch"!
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