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Fun with Forms #4: The Quatern (level 2)
A QUATERN is a sixteen line French form composed of four quatrains. It is similar to the kyrielle and the retourne poetic forms, in that it has a refrain (repeated line). The refrain line is in a different place in each quatrain. The first line of stanza one is also the second line of stanza two, the third line of stanza three, and the fourth line of stanza four. A classic quatern has eight syllables per line, and it does not have to have any set meter or rhyme scheme. You can however adapt either of these, as long as the refrain cascades down through the four quatrains (stanzas). — Example here: https://theprose.com/post/739999/not-quite-sleeping — (Please tag me in the comments of your entry)
Cover image for post summer rain., by minou
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minou in Poetry & Free Verse

summer rain.

The heat of summer days dies fast

Dew lingers here as sticky sweat

I watch the little boats sail past

The saccharine heat suffocates

Ravens haste by the prided sun

The heat of summer days dies fast

The frigid rain crashes and runs

Why didn’t I see the storms brew

My hands don't hold me as yours cast

The rain is choking down my throat

The heat of summer days dies fast

I miss the warmth of smiles now lost

There are new hues the rains revealed

I’ve learned to breathe without heats breath

The sweet smell of fresh pavement pealed

The heat of summer days dies fast