GLITTER IN OUR EYES
You know how it happens
Once in a while
Caught in glances
Struck by a smile
You look a bit longer
Sure you are seen
Touched and tender
Blushed by a dream
You turn and you wonder
‘Is it for real?’
That look lingered
This is a deal
You wait and imagine
How it might go
Talking quickly
But dancing slow
You meet out of nowhere
Passions collide
Music lifting
To heartbeats’ glide
You dance then for England
And something more
Magic footwork
Opens a door
You lose all pretensions
Cast care aside
Dance away pleasure
Strip away pride
You find what you wanted
Eyes understand
Know with your body
Feel in your hand
You hold the excitement
New love inside
Enjoyed in abandon
Laughed ‘til we cried
*
That night we dreamed of dancing
Glitter in our eyes
Our bodies joined in movement
Our hearts caught by surprise
Tim Coburn
April, 2004
Copyright © Tim Coburn
All Rights Reserved
GLITTER IN OUR EYES
Notes
Encounters in a night club or disco begin with eye contact… and lead to the dance floor. I wanted to capture that experience – the excitement of attraction, the thrill of bodily contact and the joy of erotic pleasure. I grew up in the seventies when youth club discos and night club dances brought people together for the thrill of their first dance. I hope ‘Glitter in Our Eyes’ takes you back, as it does for me.
FIND YOUR VOICE
Writing a poem is an adventure into new territory. Poetic form has a different phraseology to conversational prose – it changes the boundaries of how we usually speak. For expressive clarity, poetry uses more imagery, metaphor and story. Words and meaning are more deliberately considered. As well as making sense in written words, poetry conveys its meaning in sound and how it makes us feel. To make a poem work, our vocabulary is stretched, our word hoard expanded and our vocal identity enriched.
The development of vocal identity extends to every aspect of your life – your voice is the medium by which you get things done. With communication and conversational skills so central to who we are as human beings, I have always been interested in the effect writing poetry has on the clarity, confidence and effectiveness with which we talk. I addition to sharing poetry and my reflections on it, I offer short talk and workshops for leaders, team members and technical specialists who want to improve the quality and impact of their voice.
If this appeals to you, please get in touch.
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