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The Unattended Field Premiere Contest Winner

“Close to the western summit there is the dried and frozen carcass of a leopard. No one has explained what the leopard was seeking at that altitude.” — Ernest Hemingway, The Snows of Kilimanjaro Close, but close to what, he asks himself to God, or to the end of things? the question looms, an icy wind that stings western sun belies the deathly chill within his bones summit slain, an unread book upon the shelf there is this urge that drives a man, is hard to grasp and harder to expound - the constant forward press that leaves each dried, unquenched, though verdant green surrounds, and yet, to feel within one’s core, the source just out of reach frozen by fear of somehow missing out, his carcass now grows cold, a mind adrift, in search of times of youth and days of old - a man possessed will rid these thoughts no sooner than a leopard sheds his spots No real concern is given to the one who comes behind, who likewise seeks - has he a thought of how his end will be explained? to whom? they either understand or know not what lies just ahead beyond this snowy peak the sadness of the unattended field such sown - the leopard lives and dies alone, but for the joys of spring was this Creator’s plan for us? i don’t think so - seeking, He’s found in places pressed and low, at heights, without, does but exhaustion bring that one might scale the highs, seek out, explore - altitude, we find, a perfect metaphor

Copyright © | Year Posted 2022




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Date: 3/6/2023 9:18:00 PM
Life is intriguing and equally bewildering like an unsolved puzzle. You have well exemplified this conundrum in your poem where you have melded Hemingway's quote like sugar to water. I hail your creativity and congratulate you as having penned this gem of a poem. Also Congratulations Jeff on your prestigious win in the Marathon contest. It has been a pleasure racing with poets like you.
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Date: 3/5/2023 9:20:00 PM
Dear Jeff, congratulations for your excellent final placement in Mark's Marathon contest. It's such a pleasure to partake in the artistic intricate beauty of this masterwork once again and a great honor to share the podium with you. Indeed, this race was quite a poetic adventure! I enjoyed running the many miles with you. Warmest wishes.. ~Susan
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Date: 3/5/2023 6:28:00 AM
Jeff, in the time you've been on the site, I've come to admire your wit and you poetic talent. Congratulations for doing so well in the Marathon. I enjoyed the comradery.
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Jeff Kyser
Date: 3/5/2023 6:38:00 AM
Thanks! I feel like I've pulled back a bit of late, but I think we all go through seasons. The marathon was really quite a contest - continually amazed, week after week, at what people pulled out.
Date: 3/4/2023 1:19:00 PM
Jeff, congratulations on your Seventh Place, overall win in my 2022 Poetry Marathon! Thank you so much for contributing to the success of the contest. The poems of the 28 qualifiers can be accessed from my current "Finish Line" blog post, along with the top 15 placements and their overall stats. Write on!
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Jeff Kyser
Date: 3/4/2023 3:42:00 PM
Mark, thanks so much for hosting the marathon - it must have been an incredible amount of work. You executed very well as a race director! And it really challenged me to try and write some good ones along with the junk!
Date: 12/13/2022 7:02:00 AM
Fantastic poem Jeff, I love this form and that it stems from a quote. So clever and meaningful, looks like you blew everyone away with this one and deservedly so. What would you call this form specifically using a famous quote? Kyserostic... hmm
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Jeff Kyser
Date: 12/13/2022 12:32:00 PM
Oh, thanks so much Hat - I'm glad you enjoyed it! I think it has to start with a meaningful quote!
Date: 11/8/2022 10:38:00 AM
Dear Jeff, the thought-provoking beauty, imagery and emotional depth and breadth of this superb poem is breathtaking! And I enjoyed the subtle rhymes between the lines too, so enhancing the captivating magic of this piece. Your brilliant artistry shines in the way Hemingway's quote is wedded within the masterwork you've created. Congratulations for your excellent trophy win in Mark's contest and for POTD! Warmest wishes.. ~Susan
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Jeff Kyser
Date: 11/8/2022 2:38:00 PM
Susan, thanks so much for your read and words of encouragement! I'm glad you enjoyed this one!
Date: 11/4/2022 10:35:00 AM
I love reading your poetry because I know each one will contain a part of your heart! You simply never pen mediocre. This poem took my breath away!
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Jeff Kyser
Date: 11/8/2022 2:37:00 PM
Thanks so much for your kind comments, Ann!
Date: 11/3/2022 2:14:00 PM
I'm loving your poem Jeff and smiling in admiration as to how John's comments below succinctly sum up beautifully your work. I note you have used the term 'other' to describe the poetic form used. Can I suggest 'Kyser' may be a great name for this form that I have never come across before? Clever, not easy; you have obviously put much time and thought into this great work. Cheers - Gary
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Jeff Kyser
Date: 11/3/2022 3:13:00 PM
Thanks so much for your kind words of encouragement, Gary. Yes, it took a while. I'm working on another, but I don't know - that one clicked nicely.
Date: 11/2/2022 10:45:00 PM
Jeff, a myriad of middle-age existential musings, to be sure. Grappling with our inner drive to accomplish something of significance, yet feeling the cold of disappointment, meditating on the shortening of our timeline on earth and searching for where we fit within the Creator’s blueprint... all intriguing thoughts, making for an engaging read. Congrats for your POTD and marathon trophy. Warmly ~ John
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Jeff Kyser
Date: 11/3/2022 2:38:00 AM
Thanks so much for your read and kind words of encouragement, John.
Date: 11/2/2022 5:53:00 PM
Wow Jeff, poetry that just blows me away, so clever the structure, so intriguing the story. Congratulation on first place, so well deserved. Harry
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Jeff Kyser
Date: 11/2/2022 6:27:00 PM
Thanks so much, Harry
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Harry Horsman
Date: 11/2/2022 5:55:00 PM
Oh i see POTD. Excellent.
Date: 11/2/2022 12:46:00 PM
Jeff, you're intrigued by Ernest Hemingway's quote; I'm intrigued by how you were able to interweave it into your poem. "Somewhat like the Golden Shovel form ..." As you mentioned, this is way beyond the Golden Shovel! You created a gem of a poem without sounding forced or affectatious. Not only is this a Fav, but the form is exciting to me. Congratulations on your first-place finish on Mile 18 of my 2022 Poetry Marathon Contest. Keep your running shoes on, because Mile 19 has already started.
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Jeff Kyser
Date: 11/2/2022 2:49:00 PM
Thanks so much, Mark. I am glad you enjoyed this one. And having only run a few contests, I continue to appreciate the effort you’re putting for all of this!
Date: 10/25/2022 3:23:00 AM
What a brilliant form, Jeff. Akin to an acrostic but with entire words forming, in this case, a quotation. The mind boggles at the fun we could have with concealed sentences. Congrats on POTD with this splendid write. Terry
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Jeff Kyser
Date: 10/25/2022 6:03:00 AM
Thanks so much, Terry - I really enjoyed working on this one, but it did take me a while!
Date: 10/21/2022 2:18:00 PM
Congratulations, Jeff! Interesting subject matter!
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Jeff Kyser
Date: 10/21/2022 2:31:00 PM
This was an interesting write, Kim. Took me a lot longer than normal. Thanks for the read and comments!
Date: 10/21/2022 7:33:00 AM
Back with big congrats on POTD Jeff! :)
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Jeff Kyser
Date: 10/21/2022 2:29:00 PM
Many thanks, Linda!
Date: 10/19/2022 4:29:00 PM
Congratulations Jeff sorry I was late to read this one. An incredible form used in each word detailing a personal message gathered from the quote. Love the cleverness you brought to Hemingway's quote. The imaginative and creative mind of yours has brought us a well thought interpretation to read, imagine, and take in. Amazing are your thoughts...
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Jeff Kyser
Date: 10/19/2022 4:33:00 PM
Thanks so much, Michael, I appreciate how much time you spend reviewing and commenting, in fact have been trying to improve my reviews / comments as a result! It is noticed!
Date: 10/18/2022 11:32:00 PM
Congratulations on a wonderful poem Jeff…… Debx
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Jeff Kyser
Date: 10/19/2022 4:35:00 PM
Thanks, Deb, for the read and comment!
Date: 10/18/2022 6:40:00 PM
Jeff, many moments and emotions tangle around this quote acrostic. So deep and powerful are your words. You have created a masterpiece, and I can see why it was chosen for Poem of the Day. Congratulations my dear friend. Many wonderful blessings to you. Hugs, Brandy
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Jeff Kyser
Date: 10/18/2022 7:27:00 PM
Thanks so much for your kind words of encouragement, Brandy.
Date: 10/18/2022 6:32:00 PM
A superb vigorous, description and take on Hemingway's comment. Mount Kilimanjaro maybe Africa's most astonishing topographical feature! Congratulations on P.O.T.D. Jeff! Robert
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Jeff Kyser
Date: 10/18/2022 7:27:00 PM
Thanks, Robert, I greatly appreciate your read and comments!
Date: 10/18/2022 3:29:00 PM
Congratulations on your POTD. An excellent innovative poem in a form you created! Genius!
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Jeff Kyser
Date: 10/18/2022 3:34:00 PM
Thanks so much for your read and your comments - I don't know that it is an original form - similar to a contest we did and similar (a little different) to a form I found on writer's digest. My main objective was to try to tie the quote to my own thoughts in a tangible way. I hoped I did that. Thanks!
Date: 10/18/2022 2:28:00 PM
Jeff, a wonderfully penned and creative poem, congratulations on POTD!
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Jeff Kyser
Date: 10/18/2022 3:20:00 PM
Thanks, Tania, thanks so much for the read and the encouragement
Date: 10/18/2022 11:27:00 AM
Hemingway, of course, was known for his "terse" writing. You have so brilliantly filled in the spaces in this piece, Jeff. And I echo Milton's comment re its selection for POTD.
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Jeff Kyser
Date: 10/18/2022 12:09:00 PM
thanks so much Jim, for the read and the gracious comments - have a blessed day!
Date: 10/18/2022 9:22:00 AM
I remember that contest...we did that contest a while back where you embedded a quote in another poem, hope you find a name for your ingenious new form Jeff. Congratulations this poem of yours I can understand! ~Anaya
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I Am Anaya
Date: 10/18/2022 10:10:00 AM
The effort you put into these forms alone is an achievement by itself, amazing, Jeff!
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Jeff Kyser
Date: 10/18/2022 9:27:00 AM
lol, I think I'm guilty of failing the perspicuity test from time to time - thanks for the read and the comments, Anaya!
Date: 10/18/2022 8:44:00 AM
Such an ingenious writing that needs special recognition for the simple reason that this form is not everyone's cup of tea. Awesome... Jeff! Kudos on your POTD
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Jeff Kyser
Date: 10/18/2022 8:52:00 AM
Hello, Valsa, yes, it is challenging I suppose, but when we read the works of others, ideas spring forth, and I liked the idea of trying to bridge Hemingway's epitath for the leopard to my own... Thanks so much for the read and comments!
Date: 10/18/2022 8:43:00 AM
Jeff, what an interesting form you have created, I love it and your poem is deep and profound and congratulations on receiving POEM OF THE DAY honor, blessings Constance
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Jeff Kyser
Date: 10/18/2022 8:50:00 AM
thanks so much, Constance, i sincerely appreciate your read and comments!
Date: 10/18/2022 8:08:00 AM
Jeff, I just heard Hemingway clear his throat and whisper to the mountains...BRAVO my friend BRAVO. Beautifully done...
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Jeff Kyser
Date: 10/18/2022 8:27:00 AM
John, that means a lot, coming from you. It's a delight to get to write and read in this company of poets, and I always look forward to your latest.
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