The Ekphrastic Review
  • The Ekphrastic Review
  • The Ekphrastic Challenges
    • Challenge Archives
  • Ebooks
  • Prizes
  • Book Shelf
    • Ekphrastic Book Shelf
    • Contributors' Book Shelf
    • TERcets Podcast
  • Workshops
  • Give
  • Submit
  • Contact
  • About/Masthead

Disengagement, by Ronnie Smith

10/6/2019

2 Comments

 
Picture
The Port of Marseille, by Albert Marquet (France) 1918.

Disengagement 

Before the grotesque blocks of flats

docked at their reclaimed berths, 
mocking the banlieu with their eager,
selfing, cargo of the briefly curious.

Before Starbucks, retail, le petit train
and authentic seafood restaurants.
Before the glass and steel of le Musee
de Civilisations de l'Europe... 
and other ground-breaking initiatives.

Before the sea's romance was packed
into steel boxes and express-loaded 
onto bigger, uglier, IT'd boxes on time.

Before the football club was taken, unseen
and repackaged by far-off TV executives.

The old port, before it was old, emerged
mysteriosly from the sooty fog each morning.

Every looming bow and deck derrick clearing
amid a thousand deep tobacco'd conversations.

Every tug and pilot cutter phutting and spluttering
through the water to push and guide the steamers.

Every tonne of cargo circulating in the smoke. Little
pieces of the imagined world, shared accross France.

And Notre Dame de la Garde, cleaned and polished now,
new then, watching the change from her hill, aloof.

Ronnie Smith

Ronnie Smith was born and grew up in the west of Scotland where he eventually discovered that people didn't laugh at his efforts at writing short stories. He contributed fiction and commentary to a number of magazines and got involved in editing. In his day job Ronnie worked in international education administration, allowing him to travel widely at various companies' expense, and lived in Romania for eight years before moving to south west France. In truth, Ronnie has become somewhat rootless but he considers this to be a good thing as it relieves him of the usual tribal duties associated with modern nationalism. These days, Ronnie teaches History at a French High School, contributes to the weekly Scottish Review and writes whatever comes into his head at any given time. There will be a novel at some point...

2 Comments
Carole Mertz
10/7/2019 10:25:43 am

Ronnie Smith, I enjoy your descriptions is "Disengagement." So much telling of "then and now" - wonderful! I particularly enjoyed the idea of the tonnes of cargo representing "little pieces of the imagined world,"and shared across France.

A question, does your "IT'd boxes" refer to 'Internationally Traded' or is it a Corporation, or name I've missed?
Thank you again, for your poem.

Reply
Ronnie Smith
10/9/2019 03:19:27 am

Hi Carole. Thank you very much for your positive comment. "IT'd boxes" refers to the advanced technology now used in the transport of goods around the world, in contrast to the way things were done in the past.

Very best wishes.

Ronnie

Reply

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    The Ekphrastic Review
    Picture
    Current Prompt
    COOKIES/PRIVACY
    This site uses cookies to deliver your best navigation experience this time and next. Continuing here means you consent to cookies. Thank you.
    Join us on Facebook:
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture



    ​
    ​Archives
    ​

    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015

    Lorette C. Luzajic theekphrasticreview@gmail.com 

  • The Ekphrastic Review
  • The Ekphrastic Challenges
    • Challenge Archives
  • Ebooks
  • Prizes
  • Book Shelf
    • Ekphrastic Book Shelf
    • Contributors' Book Shelf
    • TERcets Podcast
  • Workshops
  • Give
  • Submit
  • Contact
  • About/Masthead