November 15, 2009-- Prose Poem

December 10, 2006. I was waiting for my bus to take me to school when I got a chilling call from my best friend. Her name was Sydney and she was hysterical. I could almost feel her tears through the phone and when she finally told me what had happened my heart skipped not only one but two beats. She told me that he had passed in his sleep and told me what an aneurysm was. I knew she would never be the Sydney I knew for seven years knowing her dad was gone. I couldn't understand her misery or pain nor did I want to. But I tried to understand. I never thought that would happen to a friend. Let alone me. November 15, 2009. My worst nightmare. I received the same chilling call only it was my father who had passed. Time stopped, and everything went black. Coming back to reality I see red, blue and white lights flashing and people crying hysterically and the dog barking. I'm trying bust through the door but being held back by two men dressed in navy blue. They were telling me to calm down and stand back. The medics were my enemies that day. I just wanted to see him for one last time. Although now looking back I'm so glad I didn't. The last image of my fathers face is him saying "I'll see ya Bay" The keyword in that is smiling. I know now that if I would have gone in that house to see my father it would have haunted me for life. Now, he is my best friend in my rem and he is the built in heater in my body that keeps me warm. He is the gleaming flames in the sky at night fall and he is the hot ball of gas in the day time that lives in the sky. He is wind that makes me cold but whispers "hello's" to me. I know he is always around because I can feel his love swarm my body. November 15, 2009 is the day I will never forget.

Community Blog-- The Best Of Blake

After reading "Little boy Lost" and after "Little Boy Found" by William Blake, From Pang Thao's response I thought it was really insightful. The way they explained their thoughts and feelings on the poems made it a lot more simple to understanding what Blake was trying to convey to all readers. In my opinion Pang did a great job with what he wrote. Not only because he put his feelings in the response but what he thought Blake's feelings were about his amazing writing. I personally found the poems very inspirational because it seems like the young boy had to posses a very strong will and want to be happy and he had to be very positive for himself to keep holding on and hoping that god will answer his prayers. I liked the way William Blake wrote the poems. He did almost like a "cliff hanger" in "Little Lost Boy Lost", he made the readers believe that the young boy didn't make it out okay. It makes us have this feeling of sadness and almost a mad feeling because we just wanted the little boy to be okay and happy with his mother. But then when you read "Little Boy Found" you realise that everything panned out okay for the young boy and god answered his prayers by leading him to his mother. I love poems, song, books, and movies that do that to you. Give you a feeling, any feeling at all. It almost makes you feel like you can relate to the poem, song, book or movie. Now that I am older I have a good understanding of poems and I realise that writing can give you a feeling. I find it fascinating. I think my favorite part about reading Pang's response to the poems is how he linked the song "Amazing Grace" to the poem. Like I said previously it is great that people can relate songs to poems and that is exactly what he did in his response.
If you are interested in reading this poem and Pang's response for yourself then click here,  http://www.theworksofwb.blogspot.com/

Dear Doctor, I Have Read Your Play

 My first reaction when I saw this poem was that it was going to relate to the medical field in a way because it has the word “doctor” in it. But to my utter surprise that is not the case at all. Even though this poem does not relate to us medical students at CAL I have decided to deepen our understanding on this short poem by Lord Byron.
This poem was actually a response that John Murray, Byron’s publisher, asked him to write for a "tragedy submitted by Byron's erstwhile friend, Dr. J. W. Polidori”. While I was still researched this poem I stumbled across another blog that made me understand the context of the poem even more. The blog explained the background information of how this poem became what it is and I will share it.
The whole poem is actually a rejection to Dr. J. W. Polidori, who is in reality Lord Byron’s personal doctor. John Murray goes to Byron and urgently asked him to write this rejection letter to the doctor, this whole thing is awkward for Byron, but he does it anyway and writes the rejection in verse. Long story short, this poem explains the rejection, where Byron refers to some unsuccessful play previous to the letter and does a really good job of writing a poem.
Dear Doctor, I Have Read Your Play was written on August 21^st, 1817 and was first published in 1830 by Moore in Letters and Journals of Lord Byron. This poem only takes like 5 minutes to read and I recommend that you read it fully so that you understand it better.
Once you know that this poem is a rejection to the doctor, written by Byron, from John Murray it is easier to understand. 

              1 Dear Doctor, I have read your play,

              2 Which is a good one in its way,

              3 Purges the eyes, and moves the bowels,

              4 And drenches handkerchiefs like towels

              5 With tears that, in a flux of grief,

              6 Afford hysterical relief

              7 To shatter'd nerves and quicken'd pulses,

              8 Which your catastrophe convulses.
These are the first lines of the poem that introduce the rejection. I understand that John Murray (who is the one that gave the rejection the actual thoughts) is telling Dr. Polidori that he has read the play and that the play is good in its own way, that it is gruesome, gut wrenching, it makes one come suddenly with emotion, it affords funny release to nervous bodies, because of those are the causes that his catastrophe gives off (referring to the feeling the play convokes). 
This is the way the whole poem goes, a funny rhyming thing going on. Toward the middle is when Byron writes how the play has been a failure and is compared to other plays including a play written by Byron himself (Manfred).
At first it seemed to me like there was no significance to this poem, but upon further readings and with help of the two websites I visited I was able to understand the meaning below all of the rhymes and, in reality, funny words. I really recommend that you read this because it's a better way to understand some of the things Lord Byron did for his friends when asked. It shows his strong character because it was awkward to reject his personal doctor but he did it. And thanks to that rejection on behalf of Byron we have this poem that you really should read.

Community Blog Assignment

The blog “ The Life of John Keats: A Romantic Poet” By Darian Washington, , , , it’s set up is very easy to navigate, and posts are clearly labeled. Each post that I have read is well written, and clearly descriptive.  Authors of each blog have a good picture to go along with their text, my favorite post probably has to be “ The Rose”. From line one I was stunned, my breath almost taken away literally. Most poetry that I have read makes me think to even come close to comprehension, when this prose poem paints a solid clear picture in my head. Instantly I am connected into the writer’s thoughts and feelings, as if the author was in this very room. The simile usage is absolutely spectacular, from a brown bear to something as personal as one’s heart or feelings.  Each thought is connected to a meaning, the theme stays consistent with the desert of cacti and crazed rattle snake. Using the analogy of a prisoner worked wonderful to show the want a prisoner would have, just like one might have for a loved one out of reach from their limits.  What I like most about this specific post was how at the start you think that it will only be about happiness and love, by the time you reach the end of the stanza you have reached a phase of despair. Hopelessness was another key point at the end. The blog was put together in a very organized and fashionable manner that really fits together that made me want to continue browsing through it. Each picture is very important because they themselves include so much symbolism that goes with the poem. This blog is greatly detailed and informational, even if you only read one post, you will learn at least one interesting thing. John Keats makes some more sense after reading just a few posts on this blog. Many helpful links are included such as a link to most popular poems, to sites of knowledge of Keats, all the way to a link to none other but my blog itself. Overall the Keats Blog by these four was a great piece of work that deserves credibility.

Ode to Mr.Turner

Dear Mr.Turner, thanks for being such a cool guy. You deserve that billboard.

Makin' Magic

Meet Don "Magic" Juan. A well known guy in the music industry. Known most famously for being a hip-hop artist, he was first introduced to the public by Snoop Dogg as Snoop's very own "spiritual adviser". Secondly, he is known for being a fashion designer starring in various rap music videos for his high class taste in style. Lastly he is popular for being a retired high end pimp from Chicago. Don "Magic" Juan's birth name is actually Donald Campbell but decided to change it for the publicity I suppose. What better name for an x-pimp than Don Juan? The name is now slang for "womanizer" in Spanish. The story of D.J. was written by romantic poet Lord Byron which wasn't too far from the life Byron actually lived. If you haven't already read the previous post by Baily on the poem I'll give you a little background information. Basically Don Juan was a player, and in the end is punished for the despair he had left to every woman in his path. That's about it. Just kidding read the poem yourself to find out what happens and the full story, there’s much more to it than that. So the statement Don "Magic" Juan is making with his "new" name is probably accurate for Magic's old lifestyle. Here are some of the song's Don guest stars in, adding a little bit of his own magic to each, "Pimpin Ain't Easy", "P.I.M.P Remix”, "Pimp on" and a classical favorite "A Pimp's Christmas song". It may seem like Don's life is all work and no play but he fits in the fun when he can, that is when Don's not too busy serving as a bishop for his church. Christianity is the reason Don no longer works in the explicit business. Church turned his whole life around making him realize the person he could be, and that he didn’t have to stick with such a shady business. It also must have converted him to read fine literature. Unlike Don Juan the fictional character, Don "Magic" Juan will be going to heaven.

Creating a Community

Another great Poetic site is The Marriage of Heaven and Hell: A Tribute to William Blake. Melissa Bolinger, Andy Abelein and other Romanticism fanatics pick apart one of Blake's best known poems, and most controversial. They do this by using videos, reviews, articles and their own thoughts and interpretations on the poem. There are several different interpretations of The Marriage of Heaven and Hell poem expressed on the website from other people too. Each including the views of the romantic man who made it, William Blake.To visit it for yourself go to http://heavenandhell-maa.blogspot.com/.The site looks professional, yet light and easy to read. The colors are not too harsh for the eyes and the clouds as the background are very embracing. May I add the natural view of the sky is very poetic as well. Ultimately my favorite part of the blog is the post entitled "Awesome Video On William Blake's The Marriage of Heaven and Hell" posted by Andy Abelein. The intense music made my arm hair stand on end. The paintings made the video interesting. The context made me think of how we're just people on Earth and the imagery from the text kinda freaked me out (it could have also been the music along with the pictures). I like the fact that this blog is made to interpret a single poem, instead of being so broad like many others. The truth is, I had no idea what this poem was saying before I visited this blog. The attention spent line by line really shows understanding and helps others comprehend what the romantics were trying to get across. Another excellent post is "Nature and the Soul" posted by Melissa Bolinger. A prose poem about the connection between humans and the outdoors. Just like in previous poems by the romantics I think Melissa is right about people becoming too selfish to think about other living beings. Blogs like this is what keeps Romanticism alive, and I'm sure if William Blake (along with others) saw today the impact he had on the future he would be proud.