COWS on the MOOVE : 48 Tales from a Paradelle Universe

Cows on the Moove is a collection of comic narratives, poetic editorials, alternative testimonials and tall tales - with some rhetorical prose thrown in for good measure. Cows on the Moove explores the power of the Paradelle; which is a new form of poetry, originally created as a joke. But no sooner did it learn to laugh than it took itself seriously. A Paradelle is essentially a prepositional call and response poetic performance. The 1st and 3rd lines of each verse are the prepositional call; the 5th and 6th lines are the response. But they also carry the story forwards into the following verse. And so it is for the first 3 verses. The 4th verse wraps it all up and ties each of the previous verses into a coherent narrative. Lines 1 and 3 make a provocative statement or proposition. Lines 2 and 4 repeat lines 1 and 3 exactly. Lines five and six dismantle these lines and reuse these words and their images in a way that expands, reflects and reveals what a word can say. Verse 4 can only use the words of the other 3; it's the summation of everything that has previously been stated, intimated or implied. It's where, despite uneven odds, the poem coheres itself as a story. The Paradelles in Cows on the Moove represent my progression in discovering their potential as a vehicle for creative expression. The limitations imposed by the form offer unending poetic possibilities. As you begin to explore what a Paradelle has the power to say, and the territory of a Paradelle Universe becomes more familiar; I invite you to write down your feelings and reactions in the book. And perhaps to find in these same words ... what you want to say.