by Frederick Leighton
Greek girls picking up pebbles on the beach
Their fingernails becoming brown from them
Sea breeze and under the sun their clothes bleached
Soldiers come back, saying a prayer each
Not to get wet holding on to their hems
Greek girls picking up pebbles on the beach
Their bodies covered with pink, white and peach
Waiting at the doors, they were such a gem
Sea breeze and under the sun their clothes bleached
They later found some papers at their reach
They want their soldiers back alive, these femmes
Greek girls picking up pebbles on the beach
They followed everything from what was preached
And of course, they don’t want to be condemned
Sea breeze and under the sun their clothes bleached
They want them back, alive, a soldier each
They lovingly dedicate this poem
Greek girls picking up pebbles on the beach
Sea breeze and under the sun their clothes bleached*
(c) ladyleemanila 2017
* A Villanelle is a nineteen-line poem consisting of a very specific rhyming scheme: aba aba aba aba aba abaa.
The first and the third lines in the first stanza are repeated in alternating order throughout the poem, and appear together in the last couplet (last two lines).
One of the most famous Villanelle is “Do not go Gentle into that Good Night” by Dylan Thomas.
For: Microfiction challenge: Looking for pebbles, Wordle 285 Feb 5 by Brenda Warren
