The Siren’s taloned toes grasp a driftwood limb
wedged among jagged rocks that loomed
like headstones tossed in the shallow hell
of Purgatory Point. Through his scope
Josiah witnesses her crimson hair tumble
a dazzling mask around her nakedness.
Dissipating clouds waft flecks through tangled
tendrils as she preens fresh salt from her wings.
Josiah casts angels to the wind as his heart
hurtles toward sparkling droplets of the Pacific
that nest on the Siren’s clear plumed skin.
Everything his world holds sacred wanes
as she feathers songs on her whalebone harp.
It’s flossy sinew strings strum mesmerizing
melodies that urge Josiah to turn his ship’s wheel
into the fading light of his last breathing day.
Reaching the Siren’s illusion, splintering
explodes, wood flies and Josiah draws his sword
to slice through sinew. Savoring the crew
of Josiah’s Good Fortune, thousands of piranhas
eat flesh to bone. The Siren keens a haunting dirge,
while she restrings her whalebone harp.
Brenda Warren 2011
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Visit one of my other blogs, The Sunday Whirl for more poems with this week’s wordle words. Construct a piece yourself, and post a link to it there so our community can celebrate your results.
undercaws 
This is like a prose poem; an interesting take on the myth and an engrossing narrative.
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Neatly blended.
Josiah’s such a hardshell name, and Purgatory Point. I like having a Pacific Coast siren,
and a siren with piranhas, yet.
I really like the denseness of language all the way through. And :
Everything his world holds sacred wanes
as she feathers songs on her whalebone harp.
That is such a beautifully worked pivot. “world” slows the sound, and “holds” almost stops it. Then you do have to stop to voice the “s” in “sacred”. All those hard d sounds, and then “wanes”. Then you follow with a lyric line. Wow.
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Impressive piece, Brenda. I find writing about anything connected to Greek mythology difficult. Your poem perfectly captures the Siren’s irresistibly alluring song.
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I enjoyed the alliteration–this is really nice read aloud!
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I’m a sucker for mythology too. Only the especially clever can escape the Siren’s song, so poor Josiah never had much of a chance. The descriptions of the Siren in the water are superb.
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I love myths and this is one of my favourites. All my favourite lines had to do with the siren. The imagery is particularly strong when you write about her, especially: ‘as she preens fresh salt from her wings’.
Have you read Margaret Atwood’s poem ‘The Siren Song’? If not here is a link: http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/siren-song/
margo
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Thank you for your comments and the link…I just read Atwood’s poem and LOVE it.
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Excellent read, Brenda. It was like the climactic scene in a fantasy novel or movie – except in those, Josiah would have won. I actually prefer your ending, hard as it was on the hero. It’s refreshing sometimes to have the dragon (or siren) win.
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I really enjoyed this and the transportation to another world it provided. Nicely done. 🙂
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A satisfying story that transported me out of reality, Brenda. I liked what you did with ‘flossing.’ Now THAT was a hard word. Slicing through sinew – a vivid image!
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Thank you Mary. It’s satisfying to me to know I took you away somewhere for a few minutes. 🙂
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Gosh, you took me straight into the story with this one, Brenda. I’d hoped Joshua might reverse the myth and conquer the siren, but your exciting words gave a satisfying ending.
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Thanks Viv, I shared your hopes for Joshua, but couldn’t pull it off, that siren was too darn powerful. I’m glad you liked the ending.
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Mesmerizing mythos to this one Brenda. Really like it and the poem reads like a siren’s song, pulling the reader ever deeper into her music and her story. Love the whalebone harp.
Elizabeth
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Thank you Elizabeth. I tried to focus on the siren’s birdlike qualities, and found her to be fascinating.
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I went a lot more real-life with my wordle…but thoroughly enjoyed the departure from the everyday as I read your poem. ~Paula
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Thanks Paula. I like your yellow smile.
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I love the mythical quality to this piece, Brenda. You have painted a wonderful picture with the wordle words. It brought Ulysses to my mind while reading. Good stuff here.
Pamela
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Thank you, Pamela. I read the (for shame) Wikipedia entry on sirens before I read it, to head myself in the right direction.
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an intriguing write with the sirens as a strong picture..the whalebone harp – their singing…and no one was able to withstand..
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Thank you Claudia. I’m glad you stopped to read.
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