St Audrey's Bay Waterfall
By marandina
- 3181 reads
Audio version at https://soundcloud.com/user-62051685/st-audreys-bay-waterfall-mp3
St Audrey’s Bay Waterfall
Blue skies harbour cumulous clouds,
water trails alongside a coastal path,
green railings, boundaries, meander to
archaic, rusting stairs above a beach.
Flat shelves of rocks shuffle
like playing cards dealt on baize,
outcrops of sedimentary, obsidian shale,
rock pools, saltwater and seaweed.
Dogs roam through pebbles and boulders,
bleached sand lying prostate beneath,
children forage for hidden fossils,
imprinted, preserved ammonites.
Water cascades to Earth from above,
falling in torrents down a cliff face,
trees perched atop, green thorns,
trunk split asunder by white lightning.
Millennia recorded in striated whispers,
geology forged over untold eons,
so many of our lifetimes witnessed,
sentinel of beatific sound undiminished.
*Image is my own
**Video of waterfall at link below. Location is in Somerset near Watchet
https://www.facebook.com/100000978754683/videos/a.7436982459677639/49516...
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Comments
'Flat shelves of rocks
'Flat shelves of rocks shuffle like playing cards dealt on baize' - that's an amazing image. Beautiful piece of writing.
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This is such an inspiring
This is such an inspiring poem Paul. You bring to life the photo and much more with your natural flair for words.
Very much enjoyed reading and thank you for sharing.
Jenny.
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I really likerd "striated
I really likerd "striated whispers" and the sense of the living, warm blooded present (children and dogs) within ancient much much more slowly changing shapes of stone,and also the more recent changes in Nature, with split trees and constantly moving (but in a way always the same) water
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That's very kind of you,
That's very kind of you, thankyou! Have just got back from a walk which involved going across a field with no path (in Scotland we are allowed to) and the reeds were up to my waist and the FLIES were AWEFUL!!! I felt so sorry for cows and horses not having arms that can get everywhere to brush them off and VERY RELIEVED to get to a gate and a more grassy field - did not feel affinity AT ALL :0) But the view of sparkling warm blue sea in the distance and waves of green sea round me was fab and saw a buzzard flying just above as walked beside the wood I usually walk through and only glimpse or hear calling :0)
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I hadn't thought of
I hadn't thought of waterfalls being uncommon in England, I suppose it is the kind of landscape. So many near here and in Wales. But this one looks quite unusual. The sound of waterfalls is very refreshing, and themore gentle burbling of rivers over stones.
I like the feeling of the observing eye painting up the scene.
I would have to disagree with the Millennia recorded in striated whispers, geology forged over untold eons though I know that is the generally stated assumption in this country at present. Unlike tree rings, the timescale for sedimentary rock formation is assumed as felt necessary, and yet, the very engulfing of creatures and their fossilisation indicates a sudden smothering in flood, and not idicative of a gradual burial eon by eon, but each layer formed quickly and different strata could quickly follow each other in flood and catastrophe conditions. As many fossils are now found to have soft tissue, the dating of the rocks is shown to be not particularly ancient. And this has been illustrated by the kinds of layered rocks formed at Mt St Helens recently, and chemical dating methods there gave false-old ages. (Chemical/radioactivity dating methods have to assume original constituents of samples, and constancy of rates etc).
That doesn't stop the wonder of seeing the strata faces exposed! Rhiannon
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striated whispers, that's a
striated whispers, that's a good way of seeing geology
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sounds - and looks wonderful.
sounds - and looks wonderful. I'm putting it on my list of places to visit. thank you!
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Hi Paul
Hi Paul
Beautiful imagery. You have a lovely way with words.
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chasing waterfalls
The words of your poem cascade like a waterfall I like the style of your poem, loose thoughts strings phrases together in lovely images. Very natural rhythm. Very interesting also all the geology. We can do with more of these!
North of us in Zimbabwe is the Victoria falls they say that is really spectacular they've fixed up some of the older hotels more recently, for tourists it's not in the dilapidated neglected state as once. My mother and them were there some while ago sounds fantastic. Sadly she's passed now. She said she went on a microlight flying carried over and back the waterfall. She's very brave I wouldn't risk it.
My grandparents were there longer ago made friends with a american couple "There's no stopping it is there?" On the mighty Zambezi river. Maputo these days is also again a big tourist destination especially the ocean and fishing and beaches and mostly quite safe, it sounds unbelievable your strong currency makes it all very affordable and certainly worthwhile.
I just love waterfalls you know you see little rainbows in sparkling sunshine all over in the mists.
Cheers Paul! Tom Brown
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Hi marandina,
Hi marandina,
Some very good descriptive writing in this. Much enjoyed !!!
hilary
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