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This is my entry for the LJ Idol miniseason, Week 10. This week's topic is "Synesthesia," which is a phenomenon that causes sensory crossovers, such as tasting colors or feeling sounds.
While not a synesthete myself, I have long been fascinated by the phenomenon. In one of my earliest poems, "The Writer's Quest," I long:
For exploding colors,
as audible as memory,
that shout mountains,
swallow time,
echo sensation
across valleys
and wide ocean
In the many years since then, I have often attempted, in my poetry, to splice words and concepts together to achieve a sort of synesthetic effect. And in doing so, I've become aware that certain colors register wider meanings within my verse. To write the following poem, I contemplated various colors and wrote down my associations with them.
Color Coded
Begin with brown: earthy sponge, sparrows
fluttering, the snap of sticks. Brown is a deep knocking,
a resonant and strong foundation.
Yellow brings bright sunlight, optimism,
hope, with children's laughter, the hum of bees,
a flight out of darkness.
Blue charges forward, with bold, oceanic spray,
the sky's expanse, sweeping air, carrying
us forward to discovery.
Pink, effervescent with flirtation, a fantasy,
blowing bubbles, giggling through
festive fields of exhilaration.
Red shuts it all down: halted movement,
surprise, brute strength, charged breath, but then
the rising above.
Black whispers of charcoal dreams, cold,
burned-out soul, mysterious,
unknowable rejection.
Green recovers with the twinkle of elusive spirits,
deep carpets, dancing through summer,
lush freedom returning.
Purple contemplates it all: the richness,
miracles, satin and velvet, a carpet of violets,
attuned to my vibration.
Brown mushrooms, yellow daisies, blue sky, pink flower, red fire hydrant, green trees, purple grape hyacinths
While not a synesthete myself, I have long been fascinated by the phenomenon. In one of my earliest poems, "The Writer's Quest," I long:
For exploding colors,
as audible as memory,
that shout mountains,
swallow time,
echo sensation
across valleys
and wide ocean
In the many years since then, I have often attempted, in my poetry, to splice words and concepts together to achieve a sort of synesthetic effect. And in doing so, I've become aware that certain colors register wider meanings within my verse. To write the following poem, I contemplated various colors and wrote down my associations with them.
Color Coded
Begin with brown: earthy sponge, sparrows
fluttering, the snap of sticks. Brown is a deep knocking,
a resonant and strong foundation.
Yellow brings bright sunlight, optimism,
hope, with children's laughter, the hum of bees,
a flight out of darkness.
Blue charges forward, with bold, oceanic spray,
the sky's expanse, sweeping air, carrying
us forward to discovery.
Pink, effervescent with flirtation, a fantasy,
blowing bubbles, giggling through
festive fields of exhilaration.
Red shuts it all down: halted movement,
surprise, brute strength, charged breath, but then
the rising above.
Black whispers of charcoal dreams, cold,
burned-out soul, mysterious,
unknowable rejection.
Green recovers with the twinkle of elusive spirits,
deep carpets, dancing through summer,
lush freedom returning.
Purple contemplates it all: the richness,
miracles, satin and velvet, a carpet of violets,
attuned to my vibration.
Brown mushrooms, yellow daisies, blue sky, pink flower, red fire hydrant, green trees, purple grape hyacinths
