Lit eZine Vol 2 | p-6 | VALENTINE READS – POETRY | And I Love Her… – Manic Sylph Writes… Poetry & Thoughts by Mona Soorma

AND I LOVE HER…
Short Poems by Arthur Turfa

A man holding a woman's hand — *Image by* *João Vítor Heinrichs*

REVERIE

As you step from deepest woods
may your gaze first fall upon me.
 
Take my hand and walk with me
across the grassy meadow. Let the
 
scent of wildflowers sweeten your
soul. Let the sun kiss your shoulders.
 
Should the meadow end and dark
forest face us, step carefully though it.
 
If our hands unclasp, I shall hear
your song through the branches
 
and will seek another glade in
eternally-extending fields on
 
which you stand shining and
opening your arms to me.

Portrait of Amanda (Muse for Arthur Turfa) by Rebecca Chamberlain — ***Portrait of Amanda*** – *Drawing by Rebecca Chamberlain*

THE MUSE WITH CLOSED EYES

This poem was inspired by the drawing Portrait of Amanda by Rebecca Chamberlain

She speaks to me without making a sound.
Elegance, nobility in profile:
such grace in repose have I never found.

At her could I gaze a very long while,
an image rendered by an artist’s hand.
Everything about her does me beguile.

Her dark locks cascade, restrained by no band,
spilling over shoulders, o mia cara,
sculpted from finest marble of our land,

from the fabled quarries of Carrara. 
Ev’ry line, ev’ry form, transferred with grace,
as rendered by masters of Ferrara. 

Longingly I behold her lovely face,
yearning, o yearning, my Muse to embrace.

Read a short story by Arthur Turfa- A Day in the life of an Adjunct Instructor

Connect with Arthur Turfa on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram

Living in the Midlands of South Carolina, Arthur Turfa ventures far and wide with his poetry and literary fiction. Published in many print and electronic journals, he has six published poetry books (most recent Saluda Reflections from Finishing Line Press) and a literary fiction novel, The Botleys of Beaumont County on Blurb. He was in the Top Ten for the Pangolin Review contest in 2019. Drawing some of his ideas from professional and personal experiences, he focuses on the concept of place and how it influences lives. He is a poetry reader for the South Carolina Writers Association’s Petigru Review and a fiction reader for the Northern Appalachia Review.

Connect with Rebecca Chamberlain on Instagram and Facebook

Buy Rebecca’s Artwork

Rebecca Chamberlain’s career as a fine artist and private art instructor began in 1995. She has taught workshops and classes in private studios, museums, libraries, arts organizations and educational cooperatives in Kentucky, Maryland, South Carolina, and Georgia. Rebecca’s subjects are primarily portraiture, figurative, and still life. She works in graphite, charcoal, Faber-Castell polychromos colored pencils, ink and oil. Her original works can be found in private collections throughout the United States. In 2010 five of her illustrations were published in the book, Bluegrass Drawing Society, and in 2014 she illustrated the children’s book, Jayden the Gentle, Tall and Gangly Giraffe, written by Lisa Farr Sharon. Rebecca wrote and illustrated the book, Maralee and the Turtles of the Sea, which was published in June of 2018