Author Topic: A Sample of Poetry (and Song) by Arsène  (Read 419 times)

Wu Tang Dan

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A Sample of Poetry (and Song) by Arsène
« on: December 18, 2022, 05:31:21 PM »
VOLUME 1

[A collection of writings by Monsieur Arsène de l'Hôpital. The first volume includes the poems "Un Morceau de Moi", a mature meditation on living on with loss, the poem "Anxiété", a creative use of the written medium and format itself to convey the titular feeling of anxiety, and the lyrics to "La Chanson de l'Hiver" alongside the notes for a lute accompaniment; a song of ruinous desire, longing, and melancholy.]

Quote
Foreword

These books are dedicated to my dear friend and fellow poetry enthusiast, the Vicomtesse de Roissy.

May your flame shine bright and never dwindle.

Quote
Un Morceau de Moi

A piece of me has been misplaced.
It disappeared without a trace.
I know not where it hides from me.
It rests nowhere which I can see.

Without warning or any clue,
it peeled from me one afternoon.
I took a stroll around the Baie,
and as I walked it flaked away.

Panic drowned away all my thoughts
as I tried to locate its spot.
Not one event could break my trance,
save but finding it in my glance.

I began to search through the sand
but nothing fell into my hands.
I thought to check the gentle breeze,
and even climb the tops of trees.
But even as I searched the roads,
not one trace of it ever showed.

Posters were put on every wall,
"Payment to whoever saw:
A piece of me which now is lost,
which I seek regardless of cost."
And though many visited me
to show me junk that claimed to be
that which I once possessed with mirth
none could match my lost piece's worth.

And as my search continued still,
I began to feel very ill.
No fire's warmth dared touch my skin;
A pain echoed from deep within.
And food began to lose its taste,
and all my efforts turned to waste .
I lied in bed without the heart
to rise up, lest I fall apart.
And while I looked around my room,
colour drained from a flower's bloom.
The light began to fade away
as my world became cold and gray.

For as long as I miss a piece,
my life's troubles dare not to cease.
I wallow in my grim defeat;
I remain hollow, incomplete.

FIN

Quote
La Chanson de l'Hiver

[Simpler sheet music is provided alongside the lyrics to this song. It is clearly meant to be played on a lute.]

On crystal wings she courses near, her whispers whisked by flowing wind.
A hand extends to feel my hair and brush against my softened skin.

Such gentle words doth I receive; a promise forged on frosted lips.
Neath a sun setting hastily, she begs to grasp me by my hips.

Yet at her touch my body reels, my pounding heart does skip a beat.
Her fingers hold a bitter pain; my spirit orders me retreat.

And as I flee her shadow casts across the land and through the breeze.
The wolves withdraw unto their dens, and at her bidding kneel the trees.

Through silver beams of moonlight cast, her form at last is plain to see.
A creature made of finest glass. A crystal muse hath been set free.

And though her form is frail and soft, her presence makes the lands submit.
A visage pleasing to my gaze but one whose touch I ne'er permit.

I flee at last to lodgings fair and cast her presence off of me.
In the glow of a raging hearth, my frost-chilled bones are at least eased.

Through pitch-black nights in winter's midst I hope her form is mine to see.
Through windowpanes I peer beyond, to marvel at her majesty.

Quote
Anxiété

The curtain rises, revealing my form,
and as I step forward I nearly trip.
A timid mouse, unable to perform,
for I have been provided with no script

And yet I find an abandoned stage.
No decor is prepared for my show.
To my confusion, my utter rage,
this actor now finds himself alone

O how my body writhes and shakes!
O how my soul now yearns to roar!
O to make these empty seats quake,
and rattle this void to its core!

But cruel is this hollow shell,
which I once thought of as dear!
My cries bounce throughout this hell
and are thrown back at my ears!

The walls crack and bend now.
They move of their own will.
They constrict without sound.
They close in for the kill.

Blocking my escape,
closing around me;
sealed has been my fate,
too late to be free.

The price is paid,
the poison drank,
the pages fade,
until they're blank.

Body fails
mind denies
skin so pale
eyes so white.

red gwin
dripping
foul men
sipping

last
breath
fast
death

FIN



"For when lenity and cruelty play for a kingdom, the gentler gamester is the soonest winner."

Wu Tang Dan

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Volume 2
« Reply #1 on: December 18, 2022, 05:40:37 PM »
VOLUME 2

[A collection of writings by Monsieur Arsène de l'Hôpital. This second volume includes the lyrics to "Avant Tu" and its sheet music intended for a lute- a song about the uplifting power of love. "Pelot de Pernault Bay" alongside the sheet music for two instruments- a guitar and a lute. The song itself is styled as a "call-and-response" with the audience intended to repeat the lyrics back to the singer. The instrumentals, the lute especially, appear to be "folksy" in manner. The lyrics speak of a young Gendarme as he is promoted, returning as a veteran of a great war. He receives great honors but in the end remembers his humble origins. The last in this anthology is the poem "Où Notre Gardienne a Caché, a sonnet about the author's personal experiences with religion, his love for nature, and his discomfort with urbanity.]

Quote
Foreword

These books are dedicated to my dear friend and fellow poetry enthusiast, the Vicomtesse de Roissy.

May your flame shine bright and never dwindle.

Quote
Avant Tu

[Another song, accompanied by sheet music. This one is also intended to be accompanied by a lute.]

I walked the roads with naught a care;
no course charted to guide my way,
until at last I caught your stare
and could not be made to run away.

Restless were once my lonesome nights
and dreary were my lengthy days,
until you came and shone your light
And cast my weariness away.

And once my world was grey and bleak,
once all my joys were short and few.
No colour in the plants and trees,
before my heart belonged to you.

My shoulders bore a heavy weight-
a pain I felt within my soul;
A hunger that I could not sate,
until your love had made me whole.

Quote
Où Notre Gardienne a Caché

In verdant forests, cloaked in branches green.
Through fields of wheat which sway before the breeze.
Her beauty shined though She remains unseen.
Her whispers traveled from across the seas.

By pools of flowing water, bubbling blue.
In beds of flowers, carried on their scent.
On wings of birds above her spirit flew.
A flock of faithful witnessed her ascent.

I find no peace inside this city gray,
her warmth replaced by cold machine.
Where she absconded to, I cannot say.
Her graceful beauty yet remains unseen.

From within, my heart cannot help but yearn,
to leave this place, with rightful haste return.

Quote
Pelot de Pernault Bay

[The song is call-and-response, intended for the audience to repeat the lyrics back to the singer, or for the singer's entourage to fulfill the roll. Sheet music is provided for two instruments. A guitar provides the main, overlying melody while a lute accompanies. Peculiarly, the sheet music for the lutist is more rustic and "folksy" than most other songs provided in Arsène's works.]

To my mamam within Mistree:
I write now from Port-a-Lucine.
To my mamam within Mistree:
I write now from Port-a-Lucine.


I have been made a Caporal,
And one day I'll make General.
I have been made a Caporal,
And one day I'll make General.


In a great war I now have fought
against a savage, bloody hawk.
In a great war I now have fought
against a savage, bloody hawk.


And with a saber in my hand,
I spilt their blood across the land.
And with a saber in my hand,
I spilt their blood across the land.


The Lady-Governor Desuis
calls me "The Lion of the Seas".
The Lady-Governor Desuis
calls me "The Lion of the Seas".


"But that is not my name," I say-
"I am Pelot of Pernault Bay."
"But that is not my name," I say-
"I am Pelot of Pernault Bay."


A ribbon was given to me,
worn when I fight my enemies.
A ribbon was given to me,
worn when I fight my enemies.


But it is not merely for show
for the soldiers salute Pelot.
But it is not merely for show
for the soldiers salute Pelot.


Should I find that my fate be sealed
upon a rugged battlefield,
Should I find that my fate be sealed
upon a rugged battlefield,


I leave to my beloved mère
the ribbon I now proudly bear.
I leave to my beloved mère
the ribbon I now proudly bear.


To my father, send him my love.
As well to those who share our blood.
To my father, send him my love.
As well to those who share our blood.


Tell to them I remember home
and remain their humble Pelot.
Tell to them I remember home
and remain their humble Pelot.



"For when lenity and cruelty play for a kingdom, the gentler gamester is the soonest winner."

Wu Tang Dan

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Volume 3
« Reply #2 on: April 04, 2023, 11:28:06 PM »
VOLUME 3

[A collection of writings by Monsieur Arsène de l'Hôpital. The third volume contains two poems and a song. The first is "Ma Page Nouvelle", a poem originally published in the January edition of the former fashion magazine La Marguerite Dessinée. The poem seems to center on past regrets or mistakes and how they ruin the prospect of a fresh beginning. The second poem is the previously-unpublished "La Fontaine de la Mémoire", which explores the bitter pain that seeps into a happy memory when someone feels alone and isolated. Finally, the song included in this volume is titled "L'Été et L'Hiver", a duet sang with the accompaniment of a harp. Two polar opposites are initially repelled to one another, but eventually find love as their distinct differences cause them to feel complete. The spirits of summer and winter come together, and through their bond create spring as proof of their union. This song made its debut at the Orchid and Willow's "La Valse Finale" event in the Governor's Hotel Ballroom.]

Quote
Foreword

These books are dedicated to my dear friend and fellow poetry enthusiast, the Vicomtesse de Roissy.

May your flame shine bright and never dwindle.

Quote
Ma Page Nouvelle

The page is turned. A sheet of white anew,
its crispness felt between my pale, soft hands.
A promise forged by absence, yet to be.

A vow made sour from blotches black, which bleed
on fresh, white parchment; sullied oath this be.
From pages turned long since seeps ichor dark.

A stain upon this sheet of white anew.
Quote
La Fontaine de la Mémoire

No meek fisherman whom rests atop hills of sand stops to ponder what grains slip beyond his idle grasp,
nor do birds which spread wing and ascend to great heights stop to think of what rests deep beneath their unmatched gaze.
Does that which  finds itself in excess find its being within a dulled, slumbering mind contemplated?

For in days of unwavering dark, dimmed and lightless midnights, my mind wanders to moments long since past,
to dear faces of cherished and loved, friends and kin whose warm smiles chill my soul. Times of joy now yield great pain.
Yet this tonic I dare not forsake. Font of memory-no other opiate stronger than it lives.

Quote
L'Été et L'Hiver

[The song is a duet, intended to be accompanied by a harp. At first, the characters of Winter and Summer, intended to be portrayed as a man and woman, have alternating verses. Yet as the song progresses, the two sing closer and closer together until it is at last in unison. As with all of Arsène's songs, sheet music is provided along with the lyrics.]

Within a realm of ice and snow,
a castle white as silken sheet.
I look upon my perfect realm
where gentle snow and crystals meet.

Yet as my gaze trails further on
to horizons past mortal sight,
my flawless land begins to fade;
demesne undone by searing light.


Amidst the trees and growing vines,
life flourishes without a care.
Across my realm my splendour shines
spreading warmth to all who draw near.

Yet as life reaches far beyond
the spanses filled with my bright grace,
a biting chill grasps leaf and frond
the flowers wilt and lose their hue.


And what takes hold of flowing life?
And what unshapes my perfect land?
For why does he meet growth with strife?
And she wield chaos in her hand?

I know not where this spirit came,
his nature strange, unlike my own.
In spite the fact we're none the same,
I feel a love I've never known.

For though we are as day and night,
I feel great joy when we may meet.
Your love for me is like a light,
a blessing that makes me complete.

An isolated fate escaped,
our freedom forged from love so true.
Our lands conjoin and take new shape,
and through our love be born anew.

« Last Edit: April 04, 2023, 11:53:43 PM by Wu Tang Dan »

"For when lenity and cruelty play for a kingdom, the gentler gamester is the soonest winner."