The Essence Of Life and other Poems. Verna Ernestine Penn. Tortola:1976
(out-of-print)
A selection from hundreds of poems spanning a ten-year period, some of which have appeared in three publications.
Here’s a sampling:
THE ESSENCE OF LIFE
To glide along the blades
Of silvery grass;
To listen to the tunes
Which pitch proximity
Between the natural
And the supernatural
Is life divine.
To float upon the seas
Of a topsy-turvy world
And man the boat
When the moon has lost
Control of the tide
Is life conquering.
To rise above the pangs
Of one’s own self;
And answer in full harmony
Every soul in need
Is life indeed!
Reviews
The voice of the British Virgin Islands may be heard in these poems. In communicating her deep feelings for the Islands, Verna Penn not only utilizes the great Romantic tradition but also the contemporary local idiom, bringing together both the British Virgin Islands history and their aspirations for the future (Pyke Johnson, Jr., Editor Doubleday & Co. NYC)
…her poems capture the ambiance of those little known but beloved British Virgin Islands… her poems have validity as well as beauty… she reflects that special combination of mood, time and place which makes the West Indies unique… her vision is the special one of an islander whose eyes reach across the Caribbean… (Florence Lewisohn, author-historian, USVI)
Other Poetry Books by Verna