Sand bucket on the beach of Punta del Este, Uruguay (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
A phrase came to me today, as I was brushing my hair. Thought Buckets. No, I had never heard it before. I made it up. I ran with it, or rather my fingers ran across the keyboard to write this poem today.
On a related note, thank-you to Jeff of Reveling In the Overflowing Grace of God for reminding me that today is Poetry Day. Then again, every day is poetic in my world. Won’t you come a little closer to the poetic lines today?
Thought Buckets
Your thought buckets line with worries of
The falling sun, your number of days left, and
Whether your glass slipper will fall off on
The stairs you still have to climb.
The buckets mold to the shapes of your
Past, with stargazed lining and kisses
That took first place after midnight.
Your thoughts run free like
The river that he showed you before
He took his last breath, when he
Put his arms around you and led you
Into one more dance, free as the clouds.
He took your spirit with him.
What is left is your wonder about
Holes in fragile buckets, and
The dripping moments when
You wonder about new waters.
Gently, you pull the handle of today.
Gently, you carry on your back the
Moon of that day spent at the river as
You brace yourself for the stairs to come.
©2013 Christy Birmingham
~This is christyb, wondering about buckets and such.
Poetic Parfait 
Happy Poetry Day and seriously love the ending of this one, which left me so inspired of what is to come now!! 🙂
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Thank-you!! Have a lovely weekend ahead, J!
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Happy Poetry Day! Seems this day was made for you! 🙂
Another nice piece of writing.
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Aw! Thank-you, Phil!
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…”Up through spiral staircase/ To the higher ground”… (U2 “Promenade”)
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Hello Christy
I didn´t know exactly what the expression “Bucket thoughts” means.. That´s why I have done a little research in order to figure out the meaning. (I still don´t know what it means but I got an overall sense of its meaning )
I am adding briefly the search results, because they may help us readers to catch up the hidden connotative sense here:
“The bucket represents your mental and emotional self”.
When your bucket is full, you feel more confident, secure. Your thoughts are positive and you expect positive results…When your bucket is empty, it contains few, if any, positive thoughts or feelings”. Also according to the same site: “You can fill or dip buckets, depending on the possitive or negative effect of your actions in other people ´s buckets”…
Well then, regarding dipping buckets, I can notice here that those “Holes in fragile buckets, that he has left you when he took your spirit with him” are not directly implied with “Bucket dipping”…
And that´s because the dripping moments remind you of that moment in the past when you began to wonder “about new waters”; as “your thoughts run free like a river”.
I like how you match the first and the second stanza, respectively, with the last stanza.
Meaning in two different ways:
►Through the poetic image of the stairs:
In the first stanza; “you still have to climb the stairs”.
And in the last stanza “You brace yourself for the stairs to come”.
►And through the image of the moon:
In the second stanza, you talk about a past moment a first encounter “That took first place after midnight”.
And in the last stanza you talk about that same moon (the one of that day spent at the river) which you carry it on your backs ; as “you brace yourself for the stairs to come”
I think that it is marvelous that “the stairs to come” (Last Stanza) refer back to those same stairs you “still had to climb” (First Stanza)…
In this sense, the poetic effect here is powerful because it turns the poem into a circular one, as the shape of the circumference is “guided by the moon above and the movement through the ascending and descending stairs”
Sending you Hugs & Happy Poetry Day to you my poetic friend;
Aquileana 😉
Link: “General Questions About Bucket Filling”:
http://www.bucketfillers101.com/faqs.php
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Ahhhh, I love the way you found the little hints I left in this poem… the repetition of the stairs and the moon… there are actually more sky references here to find too.
I conceived the “thought buckets” phrase myself and enjoy how you liken it to the self … it is indeed how I had intended. There are buckets full of wisdom within you, as I wish you a lovely evening.
That U2 song with lyrics about the staircase are a great match to the poem – glad you shared that here for me! The “Bucket Fillers” link you provide above is a cute one to share!
🙂
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Yes your poem is loaded with little symbolic raindrops..
I´ve notice there are more sky references ( i.e the sun: “The falling sun” and the clouds: “free as the clouds”)…
But the stairs and the moon are the poetic images that appears twice and that provides to the metaphors a repetitive sound and rhythmic structure (like a circular poem)
Now that I came back for a new reading I would also like to highlight the dialectic game of rise and fall, which appears particularly in the first stanza (through the opposite verbs-to climb # to fall)
…With worries of the falling sun…/
And Whether your glass slipper will fall off on…/
The stairs you still have to climb/…
I noticed as well the references to both Shapes and Time (Past/Days) which are indeed connected: “line with worries” ; “number of days left”; “Buckets mold to the shapes of your Past”; “day spent at the river”…
FInally, regarding Time, I would say that the flowing and the dripping water could be related to the Present, and the Stairs with the Future.
“The flowing river”, “the thoughts that run free like that river”, “the new waters about whom he wonders”…
And well, going further: “the stairs you have already climbed and the ones which are still ahead”…
It is great read your verses again, more over considering that there are always “little hints” and hidden meanings to discover in your poems, Christy;
Sending you love; my friend!
Aquileana 🙂
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I’m always pleased when you pick up on the ‘hints’ and metaphors in the poetry. Rise and fall, dusk and dawn, buckets with holes… Thank-you for taking the time to thoroughly read the lines and enjoy them with me. xx
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You are right; Christy; it was a kind of thorough read ..
Anyway; I only wish that the essence of the poem had survived that double analytical dissection..
“May the Lord watch between it …(and thee)”
Aquileana 😉
✽✿✽ Have a great day! ✽✿✽
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The double error is no more… All is well again in blog land 🙂 You’re welcome for the share of your post – always happy to help friends and I know you are the same way. It was lovely to see my photo share on the side of your blog as a permanent feature- I am honored!
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Interesting play here “What is left is your wonder about” with the expected ‘as you wander about’ well done
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Wondering and wandering… they often go hand in hand (which is better than foot in mouth, I suppose). Thanks, Carl.
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DEAR CHRISTY,I DO HOPE THE MOONLIGHT WILL SOON LIGHTEN UP THE STAIRS ENOUGH TO MAKE ME DARE TO CLIMB UP…TO FIND ME A NEW SPRING …WHERE I CAN REFILL MY EMPTY BUCKETS WITH FRESH WATER….
FRESH WATER TO WASH OF THE LAST DIRTY VESTIGES OF THE PAST AND TO CLEAR UP MY MIND…
SO I CAN WALK INTO THE FUTURE WITHOUT FEAR AND GRIEF..BECAUSE THEN MY BUCKETS WILL ONLY BE FILLED WITH TRUST AND HOPE ..
LOVE AND HUGS! ♥♥♥
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Oh dear Corrie, I am so glad you stopped in to read this poem… Yes, your days will get better and those stairs will be easier to climb. Give it time and be patient, dear friend. I love you! xx
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“Thought buckets. . .” what an interesting concept. Love the poem!
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Thank-you 🙂 I hope you have a wonderful weekend ahead, Jeff!
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Christy,
You say so much in amazing style.
Holes in fragile buckets reminds me of destructive thoughts that corrode my entire being.
Your line you wonder about new waters reminds me that in quiet times what thoughts will capture my attention as they certainly seem to direct my mood.
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Yes, Valerie, it is those quiet moments when thoughts come to us that perhaps we have been avoiding.. while other times they seem random (are they really though) … It is the ‘new waters’ that we ride on, even though the tide can turn…
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Christy this is a wonderful post. My mother had an invisible worry basket, at the end of each day she picked up her worry basket sat it at the feet of God and ask that he carry the load for her. She said, it made room for the next batch of worries and that she knew God would take care of the ones she left. In one of my “troubling” times I said to her, I tried your basket theory mother and my load was not lighter. She looked at me, the embodiment of what a southern lady was and said, “Well Darling, the difference in my and you is that I talk to God about my worries, leave them with him.” I said well so do I, she said, “No Hon, you put them back into the basket and bring them back with you, God cannot help if you insist on carrying that basket full of problems back home with you”. I find that she was right, I did tend to bring them all back with me. Sorry about the long comment, but she was a very wise, very elegant lady that believed in God. Have a great weekend. Ann
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Oh, Ann… Never apologize for your comment, dear friend. I love that the poem brought back this memory for you and that you shared it here. It is lovely to hear her wise words through you and to know the many layers they add to this poem. Thank-YOU.
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Happy Poetry Day Christy. I’ve only come across your site today and like the analogy you use of buckets. It is great that you share your talent on a web site.
I look forward to reading your future poems.
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Thank-you for the support and I always enjoy seeing a new face here! Buckets, holes in buckets, thoughts that are heavy… there is so much to explore with poetry…
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I love this Christy. Your words speak volumes! 🙂
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Thanks, Charlene! I hope you have been having a lovely weekend.
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What a lovely poem and written with such spontaneity too.
You’re one talented person, ChristyB 🙂
Peace and blessings,
Eric
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Oh thank-you, dear Eric! Peace, blessings and smiles 🙂
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Christyb, this is so elegant and unique. “Gently, you carry on your back the
Moon of that day ” says so much. Beautiful. You NEVER cease to amaze.
“Christyb is plugging the holes in thought buckets” ….. “:)
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Thank-you, Ray. Your words continue to encourage me and build my confidence in my work.
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There is brilliance to your phrase ‘thought bucket’. So full of imagery on living life through all its sides, really beautiful Christy!
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Oh, I really hoped you would like this poem Shain! Thanks for the comment, from one poet to another
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What a lovely poem, Christy, written brilliantly with your amazing metaphors, as always, and I love the idea of “thought buckets.” Happy belated Poetry Day and I hope you had a great Monday. xx
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Awe, Lauren! Thanks my poetry sister ❤ I hope you're having a nice week too xx
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you are so talented and imaginative Christy…love to read your poems…and I definitely loved to read this one
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Oh, thank-you! It certainly was a little out of the ordinary 🙂 I’m glad you enjoyed it, Kavita.
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Now there is an original concept ‘thought buckets’. I will now use that phrase to explain life. Great poem Christy 😀
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So pleased you like it! Yes, “thought buckets” can get full some days!
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I have just found this picture on Pinterest and couldn´t avoid linking it here, honey…
Wishing you a great tuesday !; Aquileana 🙂
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Adorable! Thanks for the link to Twitter and for showing me the image 🙂
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You are welcome Awww/Gal…
Aquileana 😉
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Awe shucks! 🙂
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Very cool.
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What a coincidence with our duplicate comments!
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Loved this poem. There seemed to be so much softness, tenderness and quiet as I thought out all the beautiful lines as they flowed together so well. At the end, I felt it tugged at my heart…as if you had reached out and given me a warm hug. Beautiful!
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I’m so happy you enjoyed the creativity of this poem, Tessa. Much love xoxo
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