I stare down the barrel
swab it out clean
I pull out a cartridge
lock and load
I aimlessly ponder
random objectives
while my fingers itch
I grip the metal
it is comfortably cold
a muse unto itself
it’s a means to an end
mightier than the sword
my fountain pen
Waterman
29 Aug17 Responses to “Waterman”
Please let me know what you think of this poem. I love comments!
Lupita Eyde-Tucker
Lupita holds an MFA in Creative Writing - Poetry from the University of Florida, and has served as a staff scholar at Bread Loaf Translators Conference since 2021. She is a Vermont Studio Center Fellow and has received generous institutional support from Bread Loaf Writers Conferences, the Kentucky Women Writers Conference, and New York State Summer Writing Institute.
Lupita translates poetry from Spanish and is currently translating Venezuelan poet Oriette D'Angelo. She loves visiting the beach with her children, volleyball, word games, black and white film photography, dancing, darkrooms, road trips, and trains.
Not Enough Poetry 
nice… i love a good fountain pen… and sometimes i write or paint even the old fashioned way with a jar of ink.. wonderfully messy..ha… and yep… those fountain pens are mightier than the sword….
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To use a fountain pen.. I recall I once had a Mont-Blanc…so much fun. Now I write everything on a keyboard.. I don’t think I can ever write a poem on paper… but if I could I would do like Bruce Chatwin and write everything in numbered moleskin books… hmmm
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That’s what I use Bjorn, moleskine books are my go to for pen and paper inspiration. I bought my first fountain pen when I turned 18, it was a blue enameled Waterman with blue ink. I always wanted a Mont Blanc.
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Oh, I agree. Swords ARE highly over-rated. There IS power in a fountain pen!!
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ha. nice unveil there in the end…you had me a little scared there wondering what you were loading and who you were gunning for…smiles….oo i love my moleskins!!!!! and a good pen…is a good thing…smiles.
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Yeah, I hear you, it starts out a little edgy … glad to hear that the suspense building worked 🙂
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I owned several Watermans and one Mont Blanc and quite liked them at the time. But now I use my iPad or even my iPhone.
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Nice one…the title is what caught me at first…how elegant it can be to write letters in longhand with a fountain pen…a dying art, but I also like the moleskins 😉
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A fountain pen mightier than the sword, It feels like a sword of craft, fro gold and steel forged. A lot here and powerfully crafted.
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I do like a fountain pen though I think its too elegant to use for my musings & drabbles, smiles ~ For my quick writing, I still go for paper and pen or pencil ~ Otherwise, everything is saved in my chrome book ~
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This is fantastic! The pen is our sword – a mighty weapon and a gentle friend. Your poem made me smile because the fountain pen at the end was a lovely surprise!!
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Very clever. You had me fooled.
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Well, you had me going right to the end…I never mastered the fountain pen.
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Such a clever write – quite brilliant!
Anna :o[
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I’m so jealous…it’s been so long since I had a Waterman. There is something about the process of loading the thing, or doing whatever to prepare for writing that is so exciting. Your verb choices made it quite sensual, even.
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I especially liked the twist at the end, and the parallels to the power of a gun.
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great detail
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