Poems

Nazca Lines

A Poem by Tom Shaw and Carolyn Jones

Text within this block will maintain its original spacing when publishedLabyrinthine history on Peruvian plains -
lifelines and lifetimes in ancient sands:
etched in blood, in sweat, in tears,
cast to the desert by dedicated hands.

Caricatures cradled by the sun’s glare,
shining trails of the soil inbuilt.
The wind’s triumphant overture
heralding this man-made quilt.

Imagine, in these alien times,
creating such a majestic feat,
where the will of men are sledgehammers,
and, for destruction, they compete.

In the fight for some recognition,
these geoglyphs would be fleeting flames
in the shadows of mental wastelands
scarred with privilege - claims to fame.

Yet, somewhere in the clamour,
a voice raises true:
What’s needed is a village
t d l
o r i
a n
w e
s
t
h a
e n
s e
e w.

Nazca Lines - A Poem by Tom Shaw and Words In Bloom

Music: Mark Wilson X - Cry of the Desert

I submitted an earlier version of this poem to a competition from the Bournemouth Writing Festival, with a theme of “Lines in the sand”, to no avail. Upon revisiting it, I enjoyed the message it was trying to put across, but I wasn’t fully happy with the execution.

Not seeing any routes to enhancing it, I knew this would be a great opportunity to collaborate with a fellow Substack poet Carolyn Jones immediately came to mind, seeing as we’d exchanged communications on travel and deserts (albeit not Nazca!), and I knew she’d be able to bring something wonderful to this poem.

Go give Words in Bloom a follow over on her Substack if you haven’t already, where she puts out some great poems, often accompanied by some excellent visuals from Duane Toops .

Words in Bloom Stories and PoemsMy personal Substack

I’ve also created an image version of this poem, which may prove easier to share with others given the formatting of the final line of the poem. Feel free to share with those who may benefit from it.