Dawnings

The lamp

By Nicholas Hooper

Curved in dark below,
the lamp shows softer browns,
and with its gentle light,
reveals my keyboard letters
that struggled in the dark before.

It is an elegant shape
and probably adorns many a lounge.
And I imagine corner sofas and coffee tables
with just the right magazine
and a super hi fi just in reach
to turn on the Chopin.

This lamp is silent
but sound fills my head,
as yet unfocussed
and finding a melody round its curves
takes me back to the baroque churches
of Santiago de Compostela.

The battalias fade
as the trumpeting organs drift
into the distance of time,
and I am looking at the grain of elm
picked out by the lamp.

Now is good,
surrounded by simple beauty
and I thank the lamp
and all that gives light
to the charm of this world.

—————

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About Dawnings:
“Every morning at around 5am I get up and go down to my studio. After a short meditation I write down whatever is in my head, giving myself fifteen minutes to do so. Then moving over to the piano (or a more portable instrument like my Ukulele when I'm away), I improvise and record a piece of music inspired by whatever words I just wrote. It is a great way of keeping both my writing and my composing going and I call these small creations Dawnings. They are mostly unedited, like sketches, so that they keep that fresh feeling of an early morning discovery.”

— Nick Hooper