A Slender Sliver Of Light Poem by Lillian Susan Thomas

A Slender Sliver Of Light

Rating: 3.2


Just before the dark moon,
A slender sliver of light -
Like a piece of onion skin -
Rises into the sky near sunrise.
The next lunar phase,
Like a gaping empty mouth
Of a Black Hole,
Swallows that crumb and starts over,
Adding layer upon layer of meaning each night
Until a globose onion gleaming
Inside its translucent sheath
Hangs like a Japanese lantern
Shining through its parchment,
Voluminous as the Book of Life -
My deeds, both good and bad,
Are scribed on every page.
Does the ink bleed through
So that today's transgressions
Leak into tomorrow
Staining it with lesser motives,
Obliterating the light within?
As a dark growth of black mold
pollutes the purer inner skin of childhood,
I begin to peel this moon
And tears flow freely
As I cut out the spoiled patches of sin -
The offensive slime that feeds on the sweetness -
And soon I have cut all but a thin crust,
That slender sliver
just before the new moon.

Monday, August 17, 2009
Topic(s) of this poem: moon
COMMENTS OF THE POEM
Susan Jarvis 18 August 2009

The delicious title gives way to a superb poem. The figurative language enriches every adeptly crafted line. Your poetic eye always gives life and its rigours a fresh perspective, and this poem is no exception. The moon 'adding layer upon layer of meaning each night, then the 'globose onion' (fantastic term) of emotions with 'the spoiled patches of sin'. An innovative and truly magnificent work of art! S :)

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Sonya Florentino 22 August 2009

ha! , and I thought I had written a good poem about the onion! but to write about the moon and the onion and to relate them? now that's a feat! ! i echo everything Susan says below....

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Anjali Sinha 29 August 2009

wow peel this slender silvery moon and eyes filled with tears-- wonderful comparison to an onion on the kitchen platform surely a tenner from me anjali

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Varanasi Ramabrahmam 29 August 2009

When every things seems lost, this slender silver of light illumines heart and rejuvenates it.

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Anand Madhukar 22 September 2009

A hauntingly beautiful write, richly textured with wonderful imagery.

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Ray Schreiber 27 July 2015

A meditation on the crescent moon revealing so much more than the Earth's shadow blocking out the sun. Nicely written.

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Romeo Della Valle 31 October 2011

Powerful, deep and spiritually touching poem that is rich in imagery and fine texture. Tonight I have the privilege of reading one of your great reservoir of poetry! With great pleasure I enjoyed this first one but not my last, that is for sure! 10+++ Well deserved for this masterpiece. Thank you for sharing! Keep inspiring the World with more of such talented writes! God Bless You, dear Lillian! Love and Peace for always! Romeo from New York City! ...

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Adeline Foster 22 October 2011

Loved it. Reminded me of poem by Vachel Lindsay: The Moon's the North Wind's Cooky. Read mine - Night Creeps - Adeline

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Kazi Ahmed 28 September 2011

Very well written. There is a flow and rhythm of words allover the body of the poetry. Thanks. Please read my poems also.

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Fred Babbin 04 February 2010

This poem really touches. I think it even has a little bit of me in it.

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