Smell of Death

by Yankee4youSt. Albans, Vermont, USA

Oct 2011 891 Views 8 comments

The Smell of Death

Feeling the biting cold north wind blow
I stand on a precipice of a shale cliff
Overlooking the dull choppy waters below
The smells of decaying life is all I sniff
Behind me I glance dim lights of my chateaux
Then swirling high a white form makes as if
A sudden dive into frigid waters it might go
A form of a seagull turning into a hieroglyph
That smell really is the smell of death I whiff

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Posted: Oct 2011

About this poem:

The smell of the lake in late fall.....when the waters turn cold...is very putrid.....as many organisms die....and decay before the ice comes...

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Comments (8)

Odette67Penrith, Cumbria, England UKOct 20, 2011

Feeling the biting cold north wind blow
I stand on a precipice of a shale cliff
Overlooking the dull choppy waters below
The smells of decaying life is all I sniff
Behind me I glance dim lights of my chateaux
Then swirling high a white forms make as if
A sudden dive into frigid waters it might go
A form of a seagull turning into a hieroglyph
That smell really is a smell of death I whiff

What a picture you paint...I feel like I was there...I love choppy waters...lovely poem Yankee.

AyhraAdelaide, South Australia AustraliaOct 21, 2011

Very descriptive, I almost could smell it

swade777Grants Pass Area, Oregon USAOct 22, 2011

Yankee, I'm glad it was your poem that I was smelling.... for a moment I thought that cafe had taken his shoes off!!! Whew!! EXCELLENT descript writing of something so very real!!!

niah9Auckland, New ZealandOct 22, 2011

I admit Yankee4you....the title scared me off...didn't want any down side....but I had a peek...and I love the sea....seagulls the works....and loved it, could feel the salt stinging my skin and eyes....great write...I admit...I feel refreshed by that breeze....LOL....

Some_DudeWagga Wagga, New South Wales AustraliaOct 24, 2011

cool, keep up the awesome writing

cafetwo2010Harford county, Maryland USAOct 24, 2011

Never had that experience except for the smell of dead fish in the water..but 'A form of a seagull turning into a hieroglyph' captured my imagination. Very interesting Yank.