Greetings, I am one of the Earth Day Review Challengers and offer here my comments to your poem, "Cleansing Tears."

Both the title and image complement the poem, as does the selected form. Reading aloud, the words flow naturally and evoke both joy as "the earth is reborn as a colored bouquet." and deep sadness for "the unthinking harm that we [mortals] perpetrate."

The flow of the poem tells a story, showing rain as cleansing and healing tears, renewing Earth and healing over and again the damage done by mortal hands. First stanza opens to describe the beauty of Earth renewed at Springtime yet bearing a sense of decay due to mortal disdain. The second stanza continues with Earth's tearful struggle to heal the continuous damage, to end with a call to mortals, one by one, to step forward and do something to help Earth heal the damage.

Reading aloud, the form complements the images, the words resonate with both subtle and overt action, engaging the senses with images, sounds, action. The end-rhymes are natural, not forced. Very little repetition of words, but for 4th line, "I feel a sadness..." and fifth line "a subtle feeling...." Consider for a moment instead of close repetition, something like "a subtle sense of death and decay" ??

Once again, thank you for offering this provocative and beautiful poem, which remains with me after readingk, and good luck in the contest

Write On
Kate
Kate - Writing & Reading





My review has been submitted for consideration in "Good Deeds Get CASH!" .