Today is Quadrille Monday over at dVerse Poets Pub. The prompts are always interesting and a poem of exactly 44 words is win-win! Come join us for a variety of short short poems based on the word prompt “still”. the word “still” or stillness or other derivative of the word is one of the required 44 words. http://dversepoets.com/2017/04/24/quadrille-31/
Chiaroscuro
the flower moon is waning –
sleepless I drift through the rooms
in my house like a ghost.
shadows from the curtains
throw dappled patterns on the floor –
a puzzle I cannot read.
the stillness is a dull roar in my ears.
the flower moon is waning.
kanzen sakura 
Apr 24, 2017 @ 15:40:11
I love the contrasts in this. We don’t usually think of the moon in terms of loud or soft. It creates a tension I like.
Apr 24, 2017 @ 15:41:17
Thank you Jane!
Apr 24, 2017 @ 15:46:19
This brings to mind the phrase “deafening silence.” A well penned Q, Toni.
Apr 24, 2017 @ 15:47:54
Thank you Dr. Howe!
Apr 24, 2017 @ 15:56:57
There is a sense of restlessness in this poem…it is like when we are waiting… knowing that something is going to happen… a very beautiful poem.
Apr 24, 2017 @ 16:05:10
Thank you Alison. and yes, I frequently don’t sleep waiting for my phone to ring with bad news of my mother.
Apr 24, 2017 @ 16:19:18
Much love to you.
Apr 24, 2017 @ 15:58:44
Indeed stillness IS a dull roar when one cannot sleep. I love the patterns on the floor. Well drawn words!
Apr 24, 2017 @ 16:04:19
Thank you Beverly!
Apr 24, 2017 @ 16:07:25
Oh, that flower moon. Lovely. It’s got that restlessness of an uneasy night.
Apr 24, 2017 @ 16:10:22
Yes it does. Thank you!
Apr 24, 2017 @ 16:07:36
A grand poetic, scoring high in 44 brevity. The older I get the more nights I am your ghost roaming the dark silence. I take a lot from your line /a puzzle I cannot read/.
Apr 24, 2017 @ 16:10:06
I kinow the feeling. I keep waiting for the other shoe to drop…
Apr 24, 2017 @ 16:40:17
The light patterns from the curtains as a puzzle — that’s a great way to put it.
Apr 24, 2017 @ 16:42:07
So much said with the 44 here. Restlessness and unanswered puzzles. Sleep hiding behind the waning moon. Hope it turns.
Apr 24, 2017 @ 16:59:25
I love the waning flower moon is waning and that wonderful oxymoron: ‘the stillness is a dull roar in my ears’ – I know that sound well! .
Apr 24, 2017 @ 17:04:23
Love this, especially:
“the stillness is a dull roar in my ears.”
And that waning flower. You always bring a little haiku zen to each of your poems, and I simply love it.
Apr 24, 2017 @ 17:05:27
I liked stillness being described as a dull roar in the ears. I looked up “flower moon”, the full moon in May. That seems to be an appropriate name for it.
Apr 24, 2017 @ 17:08:36
Waiting in the deafening stillness can be a difficult task. I feel the tension in your words. Blessings sent for good news.
Apr 24, 2017 @ 17:17:28
Sometimes that dull roar keeps us awake like ghosts in the night…such a poignant restlessness, Toni! When I choose it, prayer can settle me. Peace to you!
Apr 24, 2017 @ 17:25:03
stillness can unnerve as much as noise can and sometimes in a more frightening way. This makes me think how afraid I am to be still with myself some days, for fear my own mind makes my heart sad. I loved your words today. Much meaning to my current situation. thank you Toni!
Apr 24, 2017 @ 17:46:29
I like the tension of waiting and the refrain of the first line and the last line, tells indirectly of the time passing ~ Love your stillness poem ~
Apr 24, 2017 @ 17:52:07
The title works perfectly here. It conveys stillness and tension.
Apr 24, 2017 @ 18:45:28
This evokes strong feelings in me, Toni–that utter quite of nature that contrast with our own restlessness. Beautiful imagery.
Apr 24, 2017 @ 20:00:54
I could feel the mysteriousness of the night in this – and oh, that moon!
Apr 24, 2017 @ 21:22:39
You captured so stunningly the restlessness of the night!
Apr 24, 2017 @ 21:58:51
It does remind me of sleepless nights Toni. Rising up in the middle of the night here, I think it’s time to get up and look at the time to find it’s only 3 a.m. The light forming indistinguishable shapes on the floor. Sitting, trying to make out what they might be. Yup, another sleepless night.
Apr 24, 2017 @ 23:13:04
I could see that flower moon closing its petals for the night. Beautiful, Toni!
Apr 25, 2017 @ 05:03:59
This is lovely..the repetition of flower moon works nicely.
Apr 25, 2017 @ 07:10:30
A beautiful poem Toni, ‘shadows from the curtains throw dappled patterns on the floor – a puzzle I cannot read’ – times like these I turn to prayer and let go for the highest good. Sending you love across the miles xxx
Apr 25, 2017 @ 09:53:08
The stillness as a roar is a wonderful contrast.
Apr 25, 2017 @ 11:57:55
Beautiful imagery!
Apr 25, 2017 @ 13:58:27
‘The stillness is a dull roar’ and ‘dappled patterns on the floor. A pattern I cannot read’… love these lines…you really create a scene in this poem.
Apr 25, 2017 @ 15:37:42
Such vivid images, and so much said in a few words. Lovely!
Apr 25, 2017 @ 21:09:05
Stillness in the house can be mysteriously haunting!
Hank