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Poem 1000
by Chris Sorrenti
a photo in a yearbook
that’s how I’ll always remember you
forever sixteen
the face of a goddess
if not launching ships
then at least a thousand poems
and whenever I want to see you
just leaf through the pages
find your homeroom
eyes of perfection
still gazing into the camera
pigtails tied neatly on the sides
I had tried talking
but those eyes were looking elsewhere
at a picture in a yearbook
from a different high school
I still wonder who you are
whatever became of you
something telling me
a thousand poems from a photograph
isn’t a total loss
so I’ll keep writing
from the boy on the following page
you never got to know
© 1996
793 hits as of January 2025
04/02/2014 Author's Note: The face that launched a thousand ships: a reference to the mythological figure Helen of Troy. Her abduction by Paris was said to be the reason for a fleet of a thousand ships to be launched into battle, initiating the Trojan War. In response to Jody’s comment, although I have written a thousand poems, as he suggested, writing them to a single woman would indeed be obsessive. That having been said, the real girl...woman who inspired this piece, along with a few experiences I shared with her, essentially threw gasoline on the fire, helping me to become the writer I am today. As a result, on a higher level, I have come to believe that there are no coincidences, and everything happens for a reason. Published in The Ontario Poetry Society (T.O.P.S.) chap book We Are T.O.P.S. Vol. 5 No.3 Sept. to Dec. 2004, Toronto, ON. I.B. Iskov Editor/Publisher. I.S.S.N. 1708-2552.
Posted on 04/02/2014
Copyright © 2025 Chris Sorrenti
| Member Comments on this Poem |
| Posted by Laura Doom on 04/02/14 at 02:44 PM I wonder about the poem the other picture might have written, or whether it was merely one of a thousand ships passing in the prom night festival of reveries...inevitably, your poem made more sense and offered more entertainment than my comment... |
| Posted by Jody Pratt on 04/04/14 at 01:51 AM Chris, this one seems a bit obsessive. Haha :) |
| Posted by Gail Wolper on 04/05/14 at 12:30 AM I felt this one exquisite in that it could probably resonate with just about anybody. First love, unrequited, does anybody truely ever get over that? |
| Posted by Quentin S Clingerman on 04/07/14 at 06:54 PM Memories that tantalize! Writing about them helps put them in perspective as noted in your nostalgic poem. |
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