Just start

The Sestina is all about the words at the end of each line, and has only 6 of these end-words, for the whole 39 lines. There are 6 stanzas of 6 lines, followed by a 3 line stanza.  The end-words repeat in a strict order:

Stanza 1:  1 2 3 4 5 6
Stanza 2:  6 1 5 2 4 3
Stanza 3:  3 6 4 1 2 5
Stanza 4:  5 3 2 6 1 4
Stanza 5:  4 5 1 3 6 2
Stanza 6:  2 4 6 5 3 1
Stanza 7:  1+2, 3+4, 5+6.

The title for today's offering is exactly what I told myself to do.  When faced with another complicated verse form it's the only thing to do!



There is a special kind of happiness
When the band begins to drum
When your feet pick up the rhythm,
And your body wants to dance.
Throw caution to the wind, my love,
We can let our party start.

In truth, it may now take quite a time before I want to start
Dancing, sometimes I need a little liquid happiness
Before remembering this is what I used to love
More than anything.  But when the beat of the drum 
Sets my body reverberating, and the floor begs me to dance,
I stuff down my inhibitions, embrace the rhythm. 

Far more insistent than the lyrics, the rhythm
Calls to the beat of the heart, the feet start
To move, arms wave in time, hips sway in a dance
That brings an innocent type of happiness.
How astounding that the beat of a drum
Can lead to something so many of us love.

Dancing the night away led me to fall in love
With a man who danced to a Northern Soul rythm
With the beat of a syncopated, synthesised drum.
We never dreamt this would be the start
Of a second half of life, full of happiness,
Begining with that end of summer school dance.

We had arrived far too early at the Disco Dance
Hung around until a track we both love
Was chosen by the DJ. Faces shining with happiness
We began to dance, giving ourselves over to the rhythm,
Each track lead to another - once we started
We could not stop, our hearts banging like a drum.

When we went Zimbabwe, and were given a drum
To pound while local dancers danced their dance
The reverberation's memory hit me with a start -
In place of initial embarrassment grew a love
Of echoing the lead drummer, copying each rhythm
He challenged us with. Success was pure happiness.

Its easy to find happiness when a drum
Provides life with a rhythm.  Dance
Like your life is made of love. Just start.

© Copyright 2024. Chris Auger. All Rights Reserved

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