Coming toward an answer from a vagrant
point of view, setting free the saddled sheep
of woolly thoughts to graze by inconstant
streams and thunderheads may not achieve deep
inroads into popularity, which,
given that I don’t know how to manage
what you think, appeals. And although I twitch,
unaccustomed to the free and savage,
I remind myself I’ve navigated
by means of rearview mirrors all my life.
A bit of forward thinking, belated
though it is, may be the sweet anti-strife
my mirrored self has yearned for all these years—
a clear reflection blurred with happy tears.
~~~
I had a bit of fun this morning, revisiting the mirror writing favoured by Leonardo da Vinci in his notebooks. Some years back, when I journaled without the slightest notion of writing poetry, I would mirror-write on the left page, and use my non-dominant hand on the right. I loved the feeling of how it slowed my thinking down—or that thing we call thinking, which I’m not convinced it is.
I opted to use fountain pen and ink to write this sonnet (Shakespearean, in rhyme scheme) on heavy vellum. What you see in the image is the one and only draft. Freed from technology, I did all the editing in my head, which I have to say, felt fabulous! My only props were ababcdcdefefgg, written nearby, and a mirror, which I used now and again to check that the writing was legible.
The trickiest part, oddly enough, happened at the computer. I couldn’t type from my own backward writing. I had to trascribe it from a mirror. Also glad I don’t have to drive anywhere today!
© Elaine Stirling, 2014
Oceantics 
Talk about circumventing the left-brain needle-groove! I had this quick animation in my head show me a needle on flat record suddenly jumping off to climb a spherical world – excitedly discovering sheep clouds and rivers in places the needle didnt even know existed.
Oddly too – I looked at the rhyming scheme letters and thought about that picture you had up of the musical note reading. It got me to thinking you could take some favorite music piece and create verse based on the scheme of notes there. While lately I have been feeling for words that create a sound to move subtle energy – this new approach would be a turnaround-reflection. In all your piece here fed something unexpected in how I am compelled by the idea of cross pollinating sound and word, as well as collaborating with a favored creator-composer.
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A rhyme scheme based on notes, whoa…that is an excellent idea for cross-pollination, Bridge! There must have been decisions far beyond arbitrary when the first Levantine “alphabeticians” put name to sounds: Aleph, Beth, etc. The whole science of gematria may have gotten sidelined by politics. That doesn’t mean it’s lost its creative power, only that we’ve misplaced ours.
Thank you for giving my vinyl an extra spin with your comments. 😉
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Some times I think you two are just some kind of mythological Spokesmuses for a whole esoteric coterie of creativity that convenes in a covenery on some hidden sphere! The best I can do is keep wiring my jaw as it drops in hopes of commensurate clacking someday issuing “a clear reflection blurred with happy tears.”
Oh and speaking of reflections Elaine, I think this is what you were looking for:
tnargav a morf rewsna na drawot gnimoC
peehs delddas eht eerf gnittes ,weiv fo tniop
tnatsnocni yb ezarg ot sthguoht ylloow fo
peed eveihca ton yam sdaehrednuht dna smaerts
,hcihw ,ytiralupop otni sdaorni
eganam ot woh wonk t’nod I taht nevig
,hctiwt I hguohtla dnA .slaeppa ,kniht uoy tahw
,egavas dna eerf eht ot demotsuccanu
detagivan ev’I flesym dnimer I
.efil ym lla srorrim weivraer fo snaem yb
detaleb ,gnikniht drawrof fo tib A
efirts-itna teews eht eb yam ,si ti hguoht
—sraey eseht lla rof denraey sah fles derorrim ym
.sraet yppah htiw derrulb noitcelfer raelc a
or was it this?
.sraet yppah htiw derrulb noitcelfer raelc a
—sraey eseht lla rof denraey sah fles derorrim ym
efirts-itna teews eht eb yam ,si ti hguoht
detaleb ,gnikniht drawrof fo tib A
.efil ym lla srorrim weivraer fo snaem yb
detagivan ev’I flesym dnimer I
,egavas dna eerf eht ot demotsuccanu
,hctiwt I hguohtla dnA .slaeppa ,kniht uoy tahw
eganam ot woh wonk t’nod I taht nevig
,hcihw ,ytiralupop otni sdaorni
peed eveihca ton yam sdaehrednuht dna smaerts
tnatsnocni yb ezarg ot sthguoht ylloow fo
peehs delddas eht eerf gnittes ,weiv fo tniop
tnargav a morf rewsna na drawot gnimoC
Or?
.tears happy with blurred reflection clear a
—years these all for yearned has self mirrored my
strife-anti sweet the be may ,is it though
belated ,thinking forward of bit A
.life my all mirrors rearview of means by
navigated ve’I myself remind I
,savage and free the to unaccustomed
,twitch I although And .appeals ,think you what
manage to how know t’don I that given
,which ,popularity into inroads
deep achieve not may thunderheads and streams
inconstant by graze to thoughts woolly of
sheep saddled the free setting ,view of point
vagrant a from answer an toward Coming
Or perhaps?
vagrant a from answer an toward Coming
sheep saddled the free setting ,view of point
inconstant by graze to thoughts woolly of
deep achieve not may thunderheads and streams
,which ,popularity into inroads
manage to how know t’don I that given
,twitch I although And .appeals ,think you what
,savage and free the to unaccustomed
navigated ve’I myself remind I
.life my all mirrors rearview of means by
belated ,thinking forward of bit A
strife-anti sweet the be may ,is it though
—years these all for yearned has self mirrored my
.tears happy with blurred reflection clear a
Or the even more gematrial
Gnimoc drawot na rewsna morf a tnargav
tniop fo weiv, gnittes eerf eht delddas peehs
fo ylloow sthguoht ot ezarg yb tnatsnocni
smaerts dna sdaehrednuht yam ton eveihca peed
sdaorni otni ytiralupop, hcihw,
nevig taht I nod’t wonk woh ot eganam
tahw uoy kniht, slaeppa. Dna hguohtla I hctiwt,
demotsuccanu ot eht eerf dna egavas,
I dnimer flesym I’ev detagivan
yb snaem fo weivraer srorrim lla ym efil.
A tib fo drawrof gnikniht, detaleb
hguoht ti si, yam eb eht teews itna-efirts
ym derorrim fles sah denraey rof lla eseht sraey—
a raelc noitcelfer derrulb htiw yppah sraet.
Or, coming full hemispherically,
˙sɹɐǝʇ ʎddɐɥ ɥʇıʍ pǝɹɹnןq uoıʇɔǝןɟǝɹ ɹɐǝןɔ ɐ
—sɹɐǝʎ ǝsǝɥʇ ןןɐ ɹoɟ pǝuɹɐǝʎ sɐɥ ɟןǝs pǝɹoɹɹıɯ ʎɯ
ǝɟıɹʇs-ıʇuɐ ʇǝǝʍs ǝɥʇ ǝq ʎɐɯ ‘sı ʇı ɥƃnoɥʇ
pǝʇɐןǝq ‘ƃuıʞuıɥʇ pɹɐʍɹoɟ ɟo ʇıq ɐ
˙ǝɟıן ʎɯ ןןɐ sɹoɹɹıɯ ʍǝıʌɹɐǝɹ ɟo suɐǝɯ ʎq
pǝʇɐƃıʌɐu ǝʌ’ı ɟןǝsʎɯ puıɯǝɹ ı
‘ǝƃɐʌɐs puɐ ǝǝɹɟ ǝɥʇ oʇ pǝɯoʇsnɔɔɐun
‘ɥɔʇıʍʇ ı ɥƃnoɥʇןɐ puɐ ˙sןɐǝddɐ ‘ʞuıɥʇ noʎ ʇɐɥʍ
ǝƃɐuɐɯ oʇ ʍoɥ ʍouʞ ʇ’uop ı ʇɐɥʇ uǝʌıƃ
‘ɥɔıɥʍ ‘ʎʇıɹɐןndod oʇuı spɐoɹuı
dǝǝp ǝʌǝıɥɔɐ ʇou ʎɐɯ spɐǝɥɹǝpunɥʇ puɐ sɯɐǝɹʇs
ʇuɐʇsuoɔuı ʎq ǝzɐɹƃ oʇ sʇɥƃnoɥʇ ʎןןooʍ ɟo
dǝǝɥs pǝןppɐs ǝɥʇ ǝǝɹɟ ƃuıʇʇǝs ‘ʍǝıʌ ɟo ʇuıod
ʇuɐɹƃɐʌ ɐ ɯoɹɟ ɹǝʍsuɐ uɐ pɹɐʍoʇ ƃuıɯoɔ
Yours, with all due jest,
Leo
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Hahaha, that is riotously, insanely, funny, Russel! Thank the Muse-bosses there was a lag of a few hours before you posted, or I’d have had to run for Gravol. I believe you may have channeled Leo’s ghost in your reply, as everything I’ve read about the auto-didact suggests he had little or no interest in half-measures. The “gematrial version” is my favourite, It could even be one of those Levantine code-tongues. 😉
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Ok, seriously Russel, how DID you get upside down mirrored typing into the comments?!
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ʍǝןן ɥǝɹǝ ıs ʇɥǝ nɹן
qnʇ ı ʍıןן ɯɐʞǝ ʎon ʍoɹʞ
ɟoɹ ıʇ ɾnsʇ ɐ qıʇ
ʍıןן sǝǝ ıɟ nɹןs ʍoɹʞ
qɐɔʞʍɐɹps ɐs ʍǝןן
ı ɥɐp ʇo ƃooƃןǝ ʇɥıs
ıʇ ıs ɹǝɐןןʎ ɟnu
ɥʇʇd://ʇǝxʇɯǝɔɥɐuıɔ˙ɔoɯ/ɹǝʌǝɹsǝ-ʇǝxʇ-ƃǝuǝɹɐʇoɹ˙ɥʇɯן
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That’s hilarious! Thanks for the URL. 🙂
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[you’re all mad]
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hahaha, Mike, I wouldn’t argue with you there. 😉 I hope all is well with you.
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