Comment from jlsavell

Exceptional

tfawcus,

I have been so absent on this site I have forgotten how many great poets post regularly and with perfection. You are absolutely and undeniably one of them. This work is stunning and it isn't any wonder it was recognized.. beautiful work...


jimi..

 Comment Written 16-Apr-2019

---

reply by the author on 18-Apr-2019

Thanks so much for dropping by to review this one, Jimi. Honoured that you thought it worth a sixth star. As always, it's great to hear from you. Happy Easter to you. Best wishes, Tony

Comment from Aiona

Excellent

I love this poem too. I am one of those that would rather choose the winding road. There's a country road near Conway, WA that I much prefer over driving Interstate-5. So many accidents on I-5, especially close to a bridge that collapsed in 2007. So, when I am not pressed for time, I take that route. It's longer, but it keeps my blood pressure down.

 Comment Written 12-Mar-2019

---

reply by the author on 12-Mar-2019

Many thanks for digging back in my Portfolio to find this one. I know just what you mean about the difference between highways and byways. I always used to prefer the narrow country lanes when I lived in England. I tend to stick to the main roads more now that I'm in Australia - fewer potholes and encounters with kangaroos! LOL

Comment from sunnilicious

Excellent

I hate every aspect of death, but it is part of the natural lifecycle. People are living longer these days. It could be food. It could be lifestyles. I still have to get married, make a child, and put it through college before I can go goodbye. So I'm not going to pay much mind to this wonderfully written story in poem. Lovely work :)

 Comment Written 09-Oct-2018

---

reply by the author on 10-Oct-2018

Thanks so much for stopping by to review this one. As you say, there's a full life lying ahead of you! No need to dwell on macabre thoughts!

Comment from Pearl Edwards

Excellent

A lovely rhyming poem.I too hope I'm on the winding road, for no one should be too eager to get to this destination. I love the Wicket Gate etching.Very nice Tony,
cheers,
valda

 Comment Written 12-Aug-2018

---

reply by the author on 12-Aug-2018

Thanks, Valda. That is a lovely etching, isn't it? It was done by someone who lived quite close to me when I was based in Wiltshire, in the south-west of England.

Comment from Wabigoon

Excellent

Hi Tony--
I feel your "archaic" tone here is a means by which to avoid, oh, I don't know, the oven door of Plath. By which I mean I feel you use it to avoid the really perilous concerns of poetry. I feel that a lot about your poetry. I think it is a strategy and one that works to avoid the...issues.

Which is not to say this is not excellent, which, of course, it is. You are probably the master of this sort of verse on this site -- Gloria comes close and because she posts so much maybe gets to be "first."

Tangle with that "feared destination," please.

Best
Jeff

 Comment Written 07-Aug-2018

---

reply by the author on 08-Aug-2018

Thanks for dropping by to review, Jeff. I appreciate it. You are probably right in your assessment of the self-imposed limits of my poetic voice. I have only been writing poetry for three years, and am still learning the basics of the craft. Perhaps one day I shall widen my horizons and tangle with deeper questions.

reply by Wabigoon on 08-Aug-2018

Tony--
I wouldn't have guessed your poetic career to have been so short. Proves you have lots of talent. Use it to free us all.

Best
Jeff

Comment from estory

Excellent

A nice whimsical, musical celebration of the joys of travelling. here, its the travelling itself, and not the destination, that makes for the celebration. Nice mysterious images beckon us to leave home and follow you on this journey...to nowhere. And hey, who doesn't mind getting lost sometimes? estory

 Comment Written 06-Aug-2018

---

reply by the author on 07-Aug-2018

Thanks, estory. Often the byroads of our lives are the most precious. All the best, Tony

Comment from Mark Valentine

Exceptional

The language, the POV, the more traditional rhyme and meter, and the theme of this one, all evoke Robert Frost. I like that the perspective is of one who is perhaps a bit older, and who has enough perspective on life to be able to separate the wheat from the chaff, and knows that it's the journey and not the destination that matters.

This makes me want to re-read "Walden" and take a walk in the woods.

 Comment Written 06-Aug-2018

---

reply by the author on 07-Aug-2018

Thanks very much for your review, Mark, and for the six stars. I have a great liking for Robert Frost's poetry and Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening has always been one of my favorites. I've never read Thoreau's book, but you have prompted me to do so. His sojourn in the woods sounds fascinating and I feel sure that I shall find much in Walden to ponder over. It's a book that seems to have had a mixed reception over the years.

Comment from CD Richards

Excellent

I guess none of us particularly wants to "arrive", Tony -- though the one thing we can rely on is that eventually, we all do.

This winding road theme is quite popular, I immediately thought of The Beatles, and The Long and Winding Road, and the Hollies - "The road is long, with many a winding turn..." Nevertheless, you have added your own unique "twist", by making the journey, rather than the destination the thing of ultimate importance.

Very nice.

 Comment Written 05-Aug-2018

---

reply by the author on 06-Aug-2018

Thanks, Craig. I appreciate your review and comments. Yes, the choice of path is a familiar theme, but as you note, the thrust of my poem is the journey itself rather than the destination. Best wishes, Tony.

Comment from lyenochka

Excellent

A thoughtful and philosophical poem, Tony! I like how you express that the journey or the "road" of life is more important than the actual destination, to live well and fully.

 Comment Written 05-Aug-2018

---

reply by the author on 06-Aug-2018

That's exactly what I was trying to communicate in this poem. Many reviewers maintained a more literal interpretation. Thanks! All the best, Tony

Comment from damommy

Excellent

My sentiments exactly. I always prefer traveling the old roads. So much more interesting. 'For me, the road's what matters.'

I think you have a winner here.

 Comment Written 05-Aug-2018

---

reply by the author on 06-Aug-2018

Thanks again, Yvonne. I guess that if I don't win, I'll just have to go for a long walk in the country to shake off the disappointment! LOL