Onda Mel Verse Form

This is a verse form invented by Renelda Nielsen Gibson (Feb 2 1903 - Sept 26 2000), but other than that there is very little information about it. I did discover Renelda had over 2000 poems published in various magazines, and published eight poetic booklets, but nothing about the Onda Mel verse.

This poem is an octastich, which means it has eight lines. One site claims it’s written in two quatrains (four line verses), but every example I found showed it all in one verse.

One site has the syllable count as 8, 4, 4, 8, 8, 4, 4, 8 while a second site has the syllable count as 8, 4, 6, 8, 8, 4, 6, 8. Both sites, however, agree that the rhyme scheme is a, b, b, a, c, d, d, c.

Schematic:

xxxxxxxa
xxxb
xxxb
xxxxxxxa
xxxxxxxc
xxxd
xxxd
xxxxxxxc

OR

xxxxxxxa
xxxb
xxxxxb
xxxxxxxa
xxxxxxxc
xxxd
xxxxxd
xxxxxxxc

I found this form surprisingly easy to work with, despite the varying line lengths. I don’t know if the original verse was meant to be written in more than one stanza, but all the examples were just singles. However, I decided to give a two-stanza Onda Mel a try. The first verse uses the first rhyme scheme, and the second verse uses the second rhyme scheme.


Second Sight

There are things unseen all around –
the spirit realm
can overwhelm
those of us who are still earthbound.
Just take a step into elsewhere
with open eyes
and realize
how very much there is to share.

Just look into this other world
and then you’ll see
the possibilities
as one by one they are unfurled.
What wonders are in store for you
but have a care
do not get trapped in there
or you’ll become a spirit too.