“And someone entered death
with his eyes open.”
– A. PIZARNIK
Walking the streets looking for someone
Someone not afraid to enter death
Who strives to live life with eyes open
For such ones the path is always open
The question is: Can we be this someone
With no fears, no masks entering death?
What living must we do before death?
How will we keep our options open?
Will others know that we are that someone
Someone entering death with eyes open?
– Oct. 21, 2009
* A Tritina is a ten-line poetry form invented in the 20th centry and shorter than the Sestina. It has three tercets and one single concluding line which incorporates the three recurring words of the tercets’ end lines. The pattern for the end lines is:
Tercet #1: A B C
Tercet #2: C A B
Tercet #3: B C A
The final line contains the words A, B and C within it and in that order.
The easiest way to write a Tritina is to choose the final line first, then decide which three words you are going to use. On a blank sheet of paper, write in the end words for all the lines and go from there. Meter is not a necessity. Iambic pentameter is a popular meter used for this poem. Tetrameter or even shorter lines could be used. Whatever you choose, try to be consistent. Stick with your idea but don’t force the words. Make changes accordingly. (This explanation and advice is by Andrea Dietrich and can be found in SP Quill, A Shadow Poetry Quarterly Magazine, Spring 2008, Volume 18.)
