Fraiku: Night Sounds

Posted on 2022/08/12 by Bartholomew Barker

An orchestra of raspy wings
almost covers the faint scrape
of paws padding nearby.

Why bother opening eyes
in the primeval dark?

(A Fraiku with two bonus lines to make it a Franka, maybe.)

About Bartholomew Barker

Bartholomew Barker is one of the organizers of Living Poetry, a collection of poets and poetry lovers in the Triangle region of North Carolina. His first poetry collection, Wednesday Night Regular, written in and about strip clubs, was published in 2013. His second, Milkshakes and Chilidogs, a chapbook of food inspired poetry was served in 2017. He was nominated for a Pushcart Prize in 2021. Born and raised in Ohio, studied in Chicago, he worked in Connecticut for nearly twenty years before moving to Hillsborough where he makes money as a computer programmer to fund his poetry habit.
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20 Responses to Fraiku: Night Sounds

  2. JeanMarie says:
    2022/08/12 at 22:10

    I will open my eye as long as I have a beloved to hold onto.

    Liked by 1 person

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  3. pensivepoetblog says:
    2022/08/12 at 23:17

    Spooky? But Sans grave?

    Liked by 1 person

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  4. pensivepoetblog says:
    2022/08/13 at 00:00

    Grave of our choice then. I’ll take the headless horseman’s grave. What could be more poetic?

    Liked by 1 person

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  5. berniebell1955 says:
    2022/08/13 at 04:12

    I’m going to send this to Jackie Morris…. https://twitter.com/JackieMorrisArt?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor
    …and Robert MacFarlane (you can connect to Mr Mac’s Twitter via Jackie’s ) as they will appreciate it.

    How you produce such a strong effect with so few words will always be a mystery to me.

    I don’t get the idea of it being spooky? To me, it’s what you name it – night sounds – and you catch them perfectly.

    I think it’s wonder-full and full of life and the night and ….critters.

    In ‘Dune’ Frank Herbert writes that fear is a mind killer – and it is……it takes away your reasoning.

    “I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain.” – Frank Herbert, Dune

    And here’s my tuppenceworth…….

    Ghosts!
    You don’t know what you’re talking about.
    Just because we’re not in bodies,
    Doesn’t mean we’re DEAD you know;
    We’re still part of LIFE.
    You’re the shadow,
    We’re the substance.
    Spirit isn’t in the body,
    The body moves in spirit.
    Ghosts, indeed!

    Bernie Bell

    When there’s a noise in the night – it’s always best to look – then you can sleep peacefully.

    You’re right though – it does harken back to a fear of the critters in the dark that might eat you.

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  6. berniebell1955 says:
    2022/08/13 at 12:42

    On Being Spooked

    “You knew where to find that –
    That’s spooky” she said

    “No, it’s just how it is.” I said
    “But it is spooky” she said

    “No, it just happens – part of LIFE
    How is it spooky?

    What’s to be afraid of?
    The un-known?” I said

    Do we fear the unknown?
    Or do we wonder at it?

    ‘Spooks’ aren’t spooky
    They’re just people

    What they do can seem spooky
    Until we ask them why –
    Same as anyone.

    BB

    Not sure if that counts as a poem, Bart.

    The Orkney Housewives Farmhouse Broth

    An Extra-ordinary Orkney Holiday – Part Two

    An Extra-ordinary Orkney Holiday – Part Three

    An Extra-ordinary Orkney Holiday – Part Four

    I’ll stop now!

    Liked by 1 person

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  7. Susi Bocks says:
    2022/08/21 at 16:00

    If I close my eyes, I can be there. :)

    Liked by 1 person

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