Elrond to Maglor by Himring

Elrond to Maglor

Read Elrond to Maglor

What grew between us little might
be thought, after the first sight
we had of you, black, the fire bright

behind your back, the bitter taste
of smoke, fear and tears, the haste
as you bore us away out of the waste
you had made. You lost that fight,

not those buried under grim grass.
But out of that darkening, as in a glass,
I still carry, distilled, as the years pass—
unforeseen spoils—a light.

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Chapter End Notes

Originally written for the formal challenge for May at tolkienshortfanworks on Dreamwidth.

The rhyme scheme is that of a zejel (also written zéjel, zajal), an old metre used in the Cantigas de Santa Maria and the Libro de buen amor, medieval works from the Spanish peninsula: AAA BBBA CCCA (and so on).
The traditional form has more regular line length (usually eight syllables, sometimes with a shorter refrain) and less enjambement than my poem here does.
The origin of the form has been linked to Arabic influence and it is sometimes associated with the French virelai.

Edwin Morgan's poem can be found here at the Carcanet website under the tab "Excerpt": "The Glass"