The Bally Lumpkin

2 Comments

Poem Commentary

This poem was inspired by a photograph of the baby of some friends. In the photograph, the baby was swaddled in his mother's orange silk scarf, in the manner of a Tibetan Lama. The name, The Bally Lumpkin, was a pet name given him by his parents.

The Bally Lumpkin

The Bally Lumpkin,
laying prostrate to the light.
Living in the Tao,
no need for wrong or right.
Yet untamed by convention,
subtle wisdoms still hold sway.
Love expressed through action,
mother’s milk, father’s play.
Rhythms of the cosmos,
from day to night to day.
This is the way of the Tao,
this is the life of the Bally Lumpkin.
He knows not the reasons,
he cares not the why,
the wind blows all the same.
Living in the moment,
not wondering when he’ll die,
nor how he’ll come to fame.
Intuition now guides his hand,
unfettered by yoke of reason.
But soon the yin gives way to yang,
a cosmic course of seasons.
The yin the yang in harmony,
one gives and takes forever.
This is the way of the Tao,
this is the life of the Bally Lumpkin.

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Bettysrainbow48 commented on The Bally Lumpkin

01-18-2010

This poem sounds like something out of Mark Twains time, Billy Bumkin Hummmmmmmmmm Good Job.

gogant commented on The Bally Lumpkin

01-17-2010

The question is..."Who is Bally Lumpkin ?" ...No matter, you have a diversified bit of poetry here, my friend......quite good............g

pittoddman

01/18/2010

Thanks for your kind comments! "The Bally Lumpkin" was just a pet name (given by his parents) for the child of some friends. The way the name rolled off the tongue (Bally Lumpkin sounds similar to "Dalai Lama"), combined with the baby's being swaddled in his mother's burnt-orange, silk scarf in the fashion of a Lama, gave me the idea for the poem. I guess my interest in Eastern philosophy helped a bit, too.

pittoddman

01/18/2010

I just tried to upload the photo that inspired this poem, but was informed that I can't edit the poem once it is in the contest. SO, I'm thinking of taking the poem out of the contest, uploading the photo, then re-entering it in the contest. I'm not sure if this is allowed, though...

Poetry is what gets lost in translation.

Robert Frost (1875-1963) American Poet.

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