Free verse, free verse, getcher free verse! Tomorrow it'll cost ye! Straight outta the oven! Yes, Ma'am! 'ere ye go, Ma'am! Oh, yes, Sir! We've been in the guild fer fi... no... make it six generations in consonance with our family's standards... Th-the vow, Sir? O-of course, Sir, b-by 'eart, Sir! I do solemnly vow, ill or 'ealthy, to uphold the standards of the Bakers' Guild, to purchase only the best... the b... S- Sorry? What's that, Sir? The boy? Oh, 'e's my ward, Sir; 'e was sent 'enced by the royal baker, Sir... jus' fer stealin' a fresh verse, Sir, but 'e's a good boy, a-a quiet boy... now, n- never ye mind that, Sir! A fine boy, I tell ye! J-just made a m-mistake, is all! And I still remember the first thing 'e said to me, v-ver-verbatim, Sir! I'd jus' taken some fresh verses outta th... wh-what, Sir? Oh, rye - I'm sure of it, Sir... a-anyway, this waif, I see 'im eyeing the rye - I'm thinking 'e's gonna grab one and run, but instead 'e says t'me, wouldn' ye give me a warm verse, Mister, if I writes ye a poem, Mister? I writes good, Mister! And then 'e jus' collapses right there, an' he's lyin' flat on the ground, an' I near... I... near... It was horrid, Sir! Din't know what to do! But then, real slowly like, the boy pulls 'imself up, an' 'e stands a-an', oh, oh heck, 'e didn't owe me anything - it was just a free verse like this one
A note
I wrote this almost one year ago as an experiment with Free Verse…
Nothing new, but I’m still struggling to figure out what poetry is… even though I do write a lot of it, supposedly…
d’Verse
‘Open Link Night’ #300
For OLN 300, I’d like to share the above free verse experiment of mine… I still find myself coming back to this every so often with the very same questions…
The skeptic's kaddish 
I love this David! Your Rye/wry sense of humor is delightful!
Dwight
💜 Thanks, Dwight 💜
This was great fun to read. So inventive.
💞 Marion 💞
There’s definitely a touch of Dickens about this one, David! It also reminded me of the musical, Sweeney Todd. Have you seen the film? There are some great lines in the songs, e.g.:
‘The trouble with Poet
is how do you know it’s
deceased?’ 😂😂😂
I haven’t seen it, but I intend to – and I know the basics of the plot already 😀
Fun poem, David. 🤣
Please sir, I want some more. . .free verse?
‘For MORE! Compose yourself, Merril, and answer me distinctly. Do I understand that you asked for more, after you have eaten the supper allotted by the dietary?’
Just getting into the Dickens’ theme, and now I’ll stand behind the Artful Dodger. 😏
kaykuala
Love the wry humour bit, David! A very innovative way of extending the message across, Cleverly done!
Hank
💚 Hank 💚 – thank you very much.
Absolutely charming!
😍 Dolly 😍
Very Oliver Twistian. I can tell you had fun writing it.
🙂 Yes, I did! 🙂
Thanks, Lisa ❤
You’re welcome 🙂
Now young David,doff yer cap and tug yer forelock and mind yer station,see and obtw I owes you for the verse yer sold me….🐒
*chuckling*
Clever stuff Ben – I enjoyed the vivid narrative and the way you tied it up at the end.
❤ Thanks so much, Scott! ❤
BTW, please feel free to call me ‘David’, which is my first name!
The word ‘ben’ in Hebrew just means ‘son of’ in Hebrew, and my father’s name was ‘Alexander’ – I created this blog in his memory…
I know my pen name is confusing – I’m sorry 🙂
Sincerely,
David
Hi Mac how’s yer goin,same difference see, mac son of clan of,except the Nevis is Jewish. Have fun,nice to read you,this Australian is full of the devil this 🌄
Poetry can be silly shallow sing-songing, rhyming with boy and crow. it can be unfathomable gobblygook, or disjointed unrelated ramblings. Your free verse was pure fun, Poetics can be tennis with the net down.
I’m familiar with that quote! 😀
❤ thanks, Glenn! ❤
I don’t think any of us know what poetry is. I liked your free verse. It reminded me of something I’d read omDickens.
❤ Molly ❤ – that was exactly what I was going for!
Thanks!
David
What is poetry?? This is akin to asking “what is happiness?” Poetry is one soul speaking to the universe and hoping that the stars hear. Poetry is emotion woven in words. Poetry is words wrapped around dreams. Poetry is the vulgar made presentable and the presentable made profane. Poetry is an individual definition influenced by experience, observation and temperament. Or it is just random words in hopes that another can make sense of them.
❤ Muri ❤
This may be the best answer I’ve ever read to the question!
You’re the best 🙂
-David
An amazing answer.
I love that!!! I could never figure it out but I think I was trying to hard!! Love that!