Oulipost #19: Sestina. A sestina is a poetic form of six six-line stanzas. The end-words of the lines of each stanza repeat those of the first, but in a differing order that in each successive stanza follows the permutation: 615243. The entire sequence of end words is thus: 123456; 615243; 364125; 532614; 451362; 246531. All words and phrases must be sourced from your newspaper text.
(I went through the newspaper and collected 27 phrases that spoke to me for one reason or another. I arranged and rearranged just those words and phrases to create my first ever, and likely last, sestina!)
And in the End…
Living legacies of flesh, blood and passion
Tributes found in concrete and bronze
An enduring symbol of the selfless
Keep your course steady, reach the sustaining shores
Against the chill of the night
Keep steady on the roiling sea of life
Exploring and embracing roiling life
With reckless abandon and passion
A typical, swaggering symbol of night
Making the ultimate sacrifice in bronze
Keep your course steady, embrace the legendary shores
With grace sustaining desire, selfless
Stand by your convictions, stay selfless
Embrace the motif and rhythm of life
Keep your course steady, transform the empty shores
Lead with grace, creating places of passion
A desire for monuments made of bronze
Flesh and blood legends give life to the night
Monuments to his legacy stand steady tonight
Embracing the service of the selfless
The sweeping scope of legends in bronze
Sustaining the rhythm of life
Tributes found in legendary, lasting passion
Keep your course steady, abandon the swaggering shores
Keep your course steady, create legendary shores
Abandon the roiling, reckless night
That swaggering symbol of passion
Create monuments of sacrifice, life lived selfless
The ultimate tribute to the ultimate life
A strong sense of service created in bronze
Lead with grace, stand by convictions made in bronze
Keep your course steady, embrace rocky shores
The ultimate sacrifice staggers, explores the last sprint of life
With reckless abandon, accept the ultimate season of night
Things that give life, a matter of sustaining selfless
Love, a lifetime of love, love born of flesh, blood and passion
A living legacy, trying to reach the shores
The ultimate sacrifice, against the chill of the night
Love’s lasting legacy, enduring the roiling sea of life
Sourced from The Contra Costa Times, Bay Area News Group, April 19, 2014
KateMcCarrollMoore 
Oh, very nice, Kate. I will try your method. I’m determined to write a ‘proper’ sestina before saying goodbye to the form.
your best poem yet.. I am going to have to go back and read the instructions again…. seemed very challenging but beautiful poetry is the result…
Robert C. Moore RSVP Publications bob@RSVPBayArea.com Office-925-416-7787 cell-925-200-4002
Date: Sat, 19 Apr 2014 19:13:42 +0000 To: bobmoore33@msn.com