A quiet notice V2Melody closes at midnight on , Spanish time.

Closes

A note from Richard

V2Melody will close at midnight on 20 January 2028

This site has been a retirement project in musical poetry: poems chosen with care and set to music, offered freely for as long as it felt right to keep the garden open.

The work no longer holds the place it once did in my life. I have gone as far with it as I wish to go. Like a sand mandala, it was made to be completed and then released. I am not attached to its permanence, and I do not believe any of it needs to last beyond the time it was given. The poems were already here before I arrived and began to experiment with them. They will still be here when these musical experiments, and indeed myself, have been swept away, like the sand of a mandala. Nothing has been lost.

I want a simpler end to my life, days of simple love and enjoyment with my wonderful wife of 20 years. The work of maintaining a server, the monitoring, and the residual obligations that come with keeping a site alive no longer fit that life.

From 4 November 2026 I will not be adding new poems or musical poems to the site.

The experimental music I am making now is on my Suno profile. Those pieces stay there, and are not added to this site.

Until midnight on 20 January 2028, Spanish time, everything remains available exactly as it is. That is when my VPS server contract comes to an end, and it will not be renewed. After that, the server will be switched off and the site will disappear.

The Mandala Is Finished explains this more fully.

Thank you to anyone who found a poem, a track, or a quiet moment here.

The pleasure was in the making.

Richard

Home › Glossary › Letter S

Sallow

Flora
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

Want to hear it? Click the Listen button to hear the browser speak the word using text-to-speech!

The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

A type of willow with early catkins that provide important food for insects emerging from winter.

Detailed Definition
Sallow appears in poetry representing early spring, pale color (sallow complexion), and plants serving ecological roles. The early flowering catkins make sallow important for pollinators and symbol of nature's careful timing. In poetry, sallow may represent pallor, willow family characteristics, or wetland trees. Its ecological importance—providing food when little else flowers—makes it represent service and supporting roles. Poets use sallow to explore early stirrings, wetland ecosystems, and plants whose value lies in relationships rather than spectacular display.
Example
Example in poetry:
Sallow (pussy willow species) with early catkins represents spring's first stirrings; In English poetry, sallow beside streams evokes damp woodlands and liminal spaces; The golden pollen on male catkins creates imagery of dusty abundance; Sallow as food source for early bees appears in poems about ecological timing; In Shakespeare, Ophelia's garlands include sallow, connecting to tragedy and water; The wood's traditional uses add practical dimensions to willow poetry
Additional Notes
Sallow, a willow relative, produces early catkins known as “pussy willows,” crucial for bees emerging from winter. Thus it signifies early hope and seasonal transition. Its presence in damp woodland margins supports themes of renewal. In rural poetry, sallow often marks the subtle beginnings of spring before more flamboyant blossoms appear.
Also Known As
Goat Willow Sallow Willow Yellow Saugh
Skip to main content