Shawn L. Bird

Original poetry, commentary, and fiction. All copyrights reserved.

#Outlander poetry- Jamais etre pris vivant October 8, 2015

Filed under: Poetry — Shawn L. Bird @ 8:54 am
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Jamais être pris vivant,

for to be martyred to a great cause

is man’s greatest achievement;

a sacrifice of love,

so say the rolls of honour,

and the government never lies.

Jamais être pris vivant,

for to return from horror

is to revisit it in dreams,

to sacrifice freedom of mind

and peaceful sleep.

Jamais être pris vivant,

for the love waiting for you

will not tolerate your absence,

will battle with the darkness

will pull you into light.

Jamais être oublié vivant,

for a life embracing love

triumphs despite nightmares,

for hope defeats death.

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I just finished viewing the whole 2nd half of Outlander season one today, and then flipped back to “The Watch.”  The French army toast “Never be taken alive!” seemed particularly poignant in light of Claire’s efforts to pull Jamie back from the brink, hence this poem.

 

poem-with alacrity May 30, 2015

Filed under: fun,Literature,OUTLANDERishness,Poetry — Shawn L. Bird @ 3:56 pm
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(for DG)  🙂

In whatever capacity

you deal with animousity,

develop a good strategy

to sort out dreaded calumny,

then avoid falling into laxity

and resolve it with alacrity!

.

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Another poem dedicated (with tongue in cheek) to Outlander author, Diana Gabaldon.  The phrase ‘with alacrity’ appears frequently in Outlander, and whenever it does I shout enthusiastically “WITH ALACRITY!” and chuckle.  (Alacrity means haste, FYI).  It’s silly, but it is not much different than throwing boxes of KD at a Barenaked Ladies concert or toast during Rocky Horror Picture Show. (Neither of which I’ve done, unfortunately, so I have to settle with shouting to a book.  Kind of sad, really.)  😉

 

poem- for Brian #Outlander April 27, 2015

Filed under: OUTLANDERishness,Poetry — Shawn L. Bird @ 12:08 am
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Brian Dubh

They miss you.

Shredded hearts pile blame

Lash out from pain

They’ve lain you in your grave,

Brian Dubh,

but while they grieve

still you live

in them.

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A little Outlander poem today, in honour of ep 112 Lallybroch.  Dubh is pronounced “Doo”. It means ‘black’. Jamie Fraser’s father was known as “Black Brian” for his colouring. If you’re only meeting these character through the TV series, you may not know this.  

 

poem- Outlander summer April 22, 2015

Filed under: OUTLANDERishness,Poetry — Shawn L. Bird @ 12:58 am
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Once upon a time

Just a few of us at this party

Laughing across time zones.

Now, sometimes it feels

like drunks have crashed it.

I miss then

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So many fond memories of Outlander life on Twitter in summer of 2013.  Feeling nostalgic this week after discovering all those old tweets doing my Sam Heughan post the other day. 

 

poem-turn back time January 7, 2015

Filed under: Poetry — Shawn L. Bird @ 12:46 am
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In Outlander,

Jamie, the good husband, is always giving his wife, Claire,  good advice.

He gives advice to keep her safe.

Stay here in this clearing, away from the soldiers.

Sage advice.

Stay here in the hold, away from the pirates.

Good counsel.

Claire, a modern woman with a mind of her own, makes her own decisions.

Her decisions often run counter to Jamie’s.

Invariably, Jamie has to bail her out of the trouble she’s landed in,

because she didn’t listen to him.

Today,

my good husband came home for lunch and said,

“Don’t go out there.  It’s treacherous!  I had to put down salt,

to melt the ice on the driveway!”

When he returned to work,

I saw the mail lady come.

I’m expecting a parcel.

There’s salt down.

What’s the worst that could happen?

I stepped on islands made by salt pellets

down our steep drive,

crossed the slippery road, and was within a meter of the mailbox

when I was splayed out on the edge of the road like a frog.

Ah!  So that’s the worse that could happen.

Stay here in the house, away from the ice, he’d said

And after, my good husband didn’t even say,

“I told you so.”

Oh, if I could turn back time!

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DSCN1452  5 hours in Emergency because I have a spiral fracture in my ankle, and apparently orthopaedic surgeon will screw in a plate tomorrow, but at least I don’t have to pay anything for this adventure thanks to Canadian MediCare!

🙂

Outlander is written by Diana Gabaldon.  It’s an amazing historical, time-travel, adventure, romance, amazing novel that you should read.  My husband adores it, and tried to get everyone he knows to read it, as do I.

 

poem-searches October 9, 2014

Filed under: OUTLANDERishness,Poetry — Shawn L. Bird @ 12:26 am
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WordPress says, seekers came to my blog wondering

‘how tall is Sam Heughan?’

They were looking for ‘Sam heughan butt’

‘Sam Heughan’

and ‘Outlander vocabulary.’

Sam is 6’3″

His butt is not here.

He is not here either

But I once passed him on the highway

and didn’t pick him up.

He was stranded four hours.

I’ll bet he used some colourful

Outlander vocabulary then!

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Seriously, I have written a popular poem about Sam, back when he was first cast as Jamie Fraser in the Outlander series.  You may enjoy it!  Diana did when she read it.

I also have a frequently visited blog post about Diana’s vocabulary in the Outlander series.  

While Sam definitely has a very nice butt, there are no visuals here, but you may find some relief in assorted Outlander poems and other writings.

About the passing him on the highway, that’s true, too!  August 2013 Sam came to BC to visit a relative near where I live.  Read the details here.

 

poem- simmering October 3, 2014

Filed under: OUTLANDERishness,Poetry — Shawn L. Bird @ 2:26 pm
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Wake with the head ache.

Set willow bark shavings

simmering on the stove

fifteen minutes to a rich russet hue.

Steep for an hour, salicin leeching.

Sip all day the natural medicine.

Heal the head.

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While I am a terrible gardener (I have no patience, and forget to water) I am intrigued with botanical medicines.  In Outlander, the character of Claire is an expert in this area, and author Diana Gabaldon has studied thoroughly to make her books accurate.  One of Claire’s stand-by medicines is willow bark tea, so when I saw willow bark for sale at the local health food store, I had to give it a try.  It’s not bad tasting (just like willow smells, if that makes sense) and it does sooth a head ache, as well as keeping you hydrated.

 

poem- looking (an #Outlander poem) September 29, 2014

Filed under: Literature,OUTLANDERishness,Poetry,Reading — Shawn L. Bird @ 5:10 pm
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“I want to look,”

she says.

Finger outlining

the focus of

her attention,

she walks

a slow, studious circle

of analysis

and inevitable

appreciation.

.

“Fair’s fair,”

he says,

stepping back

with a glint in his eye,

joyfully

thankful for circumstance

that made her

his.

.

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Another poem based on Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander;  this one based on Ron Moore’s TV series, specifically episode 107, “The Wedding.”

 

poem-considerations September 20, 2014

Filed under: OUTLANDERishness,Poetry — Shawn L. Bird @ 10:27 pm
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Between you and me,

there is respect,

and respect has room

for secrets.

But let there be

no lies

between you and me,

for what lies

between us

is going to be

growing

timelessly.

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Another #Outlander poem.

Re: ch 15

(I confess, I missed this speech in ep 107.  I trust it will show up eventually).

 

poem-tynchal (an #Outlander poem) September 16, 2014

Filed under: Literature,OUTLANDERishness,Poetry — Shawn L. Bird @ 1:43 am
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“Score one for the pig,” she said,

but a hunter limping, partially gored

not prudent from the perspective

of a boar.

A roar marks the victory:

Geordie’s blood stains the earth

entrails pour onto leaves

at what is the more satisfying score

for the boar.

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An Outlander poem, based on TV show ep 104 “The Gathering”