.png)
The Singing Lark
by Jensen Lee (United States)
April 2022
Audio: "The Singing Lark," read by Christopher Feeney
Once under the light of dawn
there sat a singing lark.
The lark sang of the night before
and of the day to come.
It sang under the rays of the morning sun
and will sing again when the day is done.
When the day is done,
the lark will sing again of dawn,
waiting and anticipating the rising sun.
Upon the rising sun, there will sit a singing lark,
singing again of the day to come,
and repeat the cycle from the day before.
Just as before,
when the day is done,
the lark will come
and sing to the light of dawn.
Then flies the lark
into the morning sun.
The passing cycles of the sun
come & go as they have before,
and night after night, comes singing the lark.
The lark is soon spent and done,
but another one will come like the sun at dawn,
and it too, will come and come.
This new lark too will come,
and like the first, will sing to the sun.
It will stay, like the first, from dusk to dawn,
and like before
its life will be open and done,
and there will be a new signing lark.
We people, like the lark,
will come and come and come,
and we will live until our life is done.
Each one of us will again face the sun,
and like each one of us before,
we will again see the dawn.
Out of the sun,
like the one before,
we face the dawn.
Jensen Lee, 15, is a high school sophomore living in San Francisco. His piece “The Singing Lark” was originally written for a poetics class, in response to a challenge to write a poem in sestina form.
Are you a young writer who wants to be published in Write the World Review, or is there a young writer in your life (relative, friend) who should be published in Write the World Review? Learn how here!
Clare
5/26/23, 6:23 AM
Congratulations Claire - this is a powerful piece - this feeling of a yearning for a home that may not even exist anymore will be something that everyone who lives outside of their original homeland will resonate with. Well done.
Quin Tesa
5/25/23, 9:27 PM
Quin Tesa
5/25/23, 9:27 PM
Quin Tesa
5/25/23, 9:27 PM
Quin Tesa
5/25/23, 9:27 PM
Love the words I mean the way you coin the letters bravo! And also a fellow Nigerian as well good luck
Quin Tesa
5/25/23, 9:27 PM
Love the words I mean the way you coin the letters bravo! And also a fellow Nigerian as well good luck
Akinlose Emmanuel
5/24/23, 11:04 AM
An amazing piece, quite figurative and exciting to read.
Adin Underwood
5/6/23, 12:18 AM
It's staggering just how many topics this poem can apply to. Very eye opening. 10/10
Adin Underwood
5/6/23, 12:14 AM
Although it may seem simple on the surface it is quite charming to see just how much thought and effort was put into understanding how a cat acts and thinks.
Adin Underwood
5/6/23, 12:10 AM
I liked how even though each line was different it always came back to the central theme.
Sarah Parker
4/28/23, 3:01 PM
This was a wonderful piece to read. I can't imagine haven't been told about periods and sex. I was in fifth grade when I took a class. And even then, there were things they left out. This was a really important topic to write about. Great job!!
Sarah Parker
4/28/23, 3:01 PM
This was a wonderful piece to read. I can't imagine haven't been told about periods and sex. I was in fifth grade when I took a class. And even then, there were things they left out. This was a really important topic to write about. Great job!!