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There is an old Hindu fable about three blind men and an elephant. Three blind men were brought to an elephant. The first blind man was offered the elephant's trunk. He felt it and concluded: "this feels very much like a snake; an elephant must be like a snake." The second blind man was brought to the elephant's leg. He felt it and concluded: "Rough, round, sturdy. This feels very much like a tree. An elephant must be like a tree." The third blind man was brought to the tail of the elephant. He felt it and said: "Oh, this is very much like a rope. An elephant must be like a rope."Obviously, if you put all three observations together, you still don't have an elephant, but you do have an interesting observation on the nature of perceptions and perspectives. The Chinese philosopher/teacher/poet/priest Confucius has given us, too, this wisdom: "A picture is worth a thousand words." Actually, I think he was short changing the significance of a picture. Certainly, the words a picture can elicit are only limited by perceptions and perspectives we ourselves possess and can express. What we see in a picture, what it brings to our minds is a matter of who we are and what has shaped us. The expression of these things in verse, we call poetry. The purpose of the challenge poem is, however, not so esoteric as a road of self-discovery or a means to explore our fellow poets though it can be. Actually, it is again a means of kick-starting the artistic process, of priming the old pump to get and keep the poetic wells flowing. Plus, it's fun to see what others do with a picture. Below are three poems written by members of the CyberPoet's Niche brought forth from examination of this photo presented for March 1999.
 Peter Fry, Photographer; filename: river1.jpg; source: http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/Coffeehouse/3307 River Meillionen at Beddgelert Forest Campsite (Wales)
(463, 990313)
(464, 990313)
(471, 990314)
It is best viewed on a 800x600 screen set for True Color
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