ABPA - Australian Bush Poets Association

Three Wishes

© David Campbell 31/01/18

Three wishes in a darkened room,
a murmured final prayer
that hovers in the shadowed gloom,
an echo in the air
recalling nutmeg’s spicy tang,
the house where she was born,
her mother’s perfume as she sang
to greet a brand new dawn.

She takes my hand and turns away,
surrendering the fight
with one last glimpse of life at play,
the city lights at night,
reflections on a window pane,
with all that they might mean
no more than silent tears in rain,
the ghosts of what had been.

So very poignant, David - love those two final lines

Totally agree with Catherine - those last 2 lines nail it David - I love the use you have made of the prompts, weaving them together seamlessly to tell this wonderful story. Your words took me there with you. Well done.

Thanks, Catherine and Maureen, although I can't claim credit for the "tears in rain" image. It's taken from the original Blade Runner movie in which the dying replicant, Roy Batty, utters these final words: "All those moments will be lost in time, like tears in rain. Time to die."

The lines are all the more effective as they're spoken in pouring rain, and (for the movie trivia buffs) they weren't in the original script. Rutger Hauer, the actor who played Batty, improvised them without Director Ridley Scott's knowledge. It has since become widely recognised as one of the most famous, and moving, death scenes in cinematic history. Well worth checking out on YouTube if you're not familiar with it.

Cheers
David

A fascinating piece of movie trivia, David. I am reminded of another famous death scene featuring rain ... in Hemingway’s classic “A Farewell to Arms”. Earlier in the story Catherine has told Frederick that she hates the rain because she fancies herself lying dead in it. Later when she is dying in childbirth she simply asks him, “Is it raining?” It is.

A lovely poem, made all the more poignant by its simplicity.

Cheers
Shelley

Thank you, Shelley. Rain has been used for dramatic effect in quite a few films. It can't be much fun for the actors involved. And then, of course, there's one of the greatest films of all time..."Singin' in the Rain"...where it reportedly took three days to film that famous dance sequence while Gene Kelly was suffering from a fever.

Cheers
David

Excellent David,

Always a pleasure to read one of yours.

I have been unable to get onto the forum for awhile so I'm a bit late posting.

Also only remembered that one prompt 'Three wishes' looks like we all used that one as well.

Terry

Thanks, Terry.

Cheers
David