Dance By The Sea

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Romare Bearden, Calm Sea (1987)

Jo is a dancer, and she views life with an eye that sees choreography in the movements of the world. When she reached the sea, she was still, taking in all the beauty, all the motion. What her eyes beheld, her body responded to, and spontaneous and graceful was her creation. The undulating waves became a rolling, swaying movement of her limbs. The sea grasses whipping in the wind became a twirling, turning movement of her body. The seagulls flying and dipping became leaps across the sand as her heart reached for the sky.

all life is movement
she sees all movement as dance
she drinks it all in
her body cannot be still
for her, life is dance

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I have attempted to create a Tanka Prose poem for Tanka Tuesday’s challenge

Copyright ©2026 Lisa Paul. All rights reserved.

Melissa’s challenge: For today’s challenge, I’d like us to write poetry inspired by Bearden’s art. You may choose whatever form you’d like to write. If you write a free verse poem, you must also include a syllabic form with it.

#TankaTuesday Poetry Challenge No. 62, Romare Bearden, 4/28/26
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Published by lisaapaul

I’m a paralegal, a widow, mother and grandmother.

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22 thoughts on “Dance By The Sea”

  7. can’t help but to wonder.. are you a dancer? enjoyed reading your story expressed so well the mind of a dancer who sees the movement of everything in life… it’s all still in the painting but saw it all in a new light of movement…

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    1. My daughter is a dancer and after watching her dance and create choreography over these years, I felt like I wanted to try to just jump inside her mind for a moment. As soon as I saw the painting it made me think of dance.. Thank you for your lovely comment!

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