Grex Poetry Conference

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Grex Poetry Item 67: One of an incomplete set *jessi*
Entered by faile on Thu Mar 25 05:05:12 UTC 1999:

Ceclia's Daughters

Ambiguity.

Reach for it, 
because only though it 
can you be free, 
Alive.  

It tases of fire,
things long burnt, cooled.
A mistly burned ruin,
hinting at glories past,
and a future hosting paradise.

Be above this--
the perfect muse,
graceful in the mist.

They will call you 
Cecilia's daughter.

--Jessica Moore, March 1999--
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This is likely the second, maybe third in a set I want to call 
"Reclaiming Ceclia" about women in music.  I've been reading a lot of 
feminist musical critisism lately, and often articles and such refer to 
St. Cecilia, the patron saint of music, who likely never sung a note.  
She was martyred (naturally) and the legend goes that she began to sing 
when they began to burn her, and it brought her peace.  There is an 
incredible W.H. Auden poem devoted to her that Benjamin Britten turned 
into a great peice. (Part of this background would be in the first poem 
of the set, which I have roughed in, but I don't like yet.)

Basically, the set as a whole would have three major parts: #1) 
Establishing the Cecilia myth #2) The women of the past and their music 
#3) Identity as a woman in music, Cecilia Reclaimed, if you will. 

So this poem is the middle, or part of the middle of this set.  I'm not 
sure how I feel about it yet.  

I submit it to the group. I've babbled enough.

8 responses total.

#1 of 8 by toking on Thu Mar 25 11:43:23 1999:

hmmmm...seems like a slick idea, but there's not really enough here to
get a very good feel for it

#2 of 8 by orinoco on Fri Mar 26 02:11:40 1999:

Yeah, the idea sounds great, but...if I'd read this poem, I wouldn't have said
"hmm, this must be about women of the past and their music" :)
 
But I'd love to see more!  Write the other 2!  That is an order....

#3 of 8 by faile on Fri Mar 26 02:26:58 1999:

Yes sir!
<jessi wonders if there is an offical poetry conf salute>

#4 of 8 by arianna on Fri Mar 26 05:57:26 1999:

jessi, I fucking LOVED this piece.
('scuse my french. (; )

#5 of 8 by orinoco on Sat Mar 27 16:37:10 1999:

No, we don't have a salute, that I know of.  
We don't even have a secret handshake.
SOmething is wrong with this picture... :)

#6 of 8 by cloud on Mon Mar 29 02:26:17 1999:

We should have a secret ear-wiggle...  Or maybe "the nose-flare of
recognition"... or am I drifting again.

#7 of 8 by arianna on Mon Mar 29 03:51:42 1999:

chortle*  the nose flare of recognition!  hee hee!

#8 of 8 by orinoco on Mon Mar 29 04:09:04 1999:

<dan flares his nose in an ominous, significant, subversive sort of way>

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