A Goddess Arrives

A poem that encapsulates a moment frozen in time, where nature itself seems to honor the awakening of the goddess.

This poem is part of the NaPoWriMo 2025 challenge to write a poem a day in April. This is the prompt for April 27.

W.H. Auden’s “Musée des Beaux Arts” takes its inspiration from a very particular painting: Breughel’s “Landscape with the Fall of Icarus.” Today we’d like to challenge you to write your own poem that describes a detail in a painting, and that begins, like Auden’s poem, with a grand, declarative statement.

I chose Botticelli's painting of The Birth of Venus as my inspiration.

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Beauty arises from the sea's embrace,  
where Venus stands, radiant;

born from foam of ancient tides,  

her golden hair a cascade of sunlight,  
shimmering like dawn’s promise.  

The shell, a delicate vessel, cradles her form,  
floating gently upon the waves;

as winds unfurl their fingers,  

brushing against her skin,  
tender caresses from the world beyond.  

Sea breezes come alive around her;
Zephyr and his beloved,  

their breath a symphony of motion,  

inviting the goddess to step ashore,  
to grace the earth with her divine presence.  

Each stroke of color, a hymn to desire,  
as petals of roses fall like confessions;

while nymphs, in their soft reverence,  
watch the miracle of creation unfold;

time stands still, caught in that moment,  
and all of nature bows to beauty;

a silent witness to her awakening.  

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