Day 17: Moon

 

Today's lovely prompt was none other than...the moon! My ultimate muse. 

Moon Haiku

Chandelier in sky

silver ballroom of romance

selenophile's dream.

Day 16: Skeltonic

 

Today's prompt was to do a silly rhyming verse otherwise known as a skeltonic verse!

Rhyme Rant

I can't do a poem with rhyme

it takes far too much time!

I think it's just fine

to take it line by line,

engage in blank verse

it's not near as terse

and much more exciting

than technical writing.

And if you can manage

a metaphor sandwich

the poem will be better

than any love letter.

Fly high little poem

to find your new home

in the heart of a reader

who doesn't care about meter!

Day 15: Quirks

 

Not feeling today's prompt so  going with what's outside my window at the moment...

April Moon

Crescent moon

crowns evening,

silvered light

a halo;

cool fingertip

placed to soothe

on the temple of sky

day's dilemmas;

a charm, a cypher

a luminous lullaby;

hammock

for a spent heart.

Day 14: Name

Today's prompt was to write a poem about our names...

Siobhán

Strawberries and cream -

or so, I used to think.

All red and white and bluster,

a mallow softness at its centre.

After-breath of wistful reverie.

An Irish name that’s hard to say,

‘Sio’, like sionnach or sioc *-

something subtle, sleek;

and ‘bhán’ like white. Settling

on the tongue like a snowflake.

Another form of Joan, from

Greek and French descent,

(I like to picture Joan of Arc).

And the name (I proudly beam)

of many a Celtic queen from Irish mythology.

Always a fluster and a stutter

for non-English speakers.

‘Si Bonne,’ my favourite so far,

taken as literal compliment.

'Shove on,' a handy hint.

And don’t forget the fada please

(my pet peeve!)

That acute accent

like a doff of the hat,

a diagonal salute or tease.

Meaning the ‘grace of God’

an eloquent etymology that's dear -

but I was not named

for that. I was named

the Irish sounding version

of ‘Susan’; my maternal grandmother,

who was all things gracious

and graceful and more. Whose name,

even though she's not here

echoes on in mine.

*sionnach - fox; sioc - ice

Day 13: News Article

 

Today's prompt is to write a poem in the form of a news article you wish would come out tomorrow. Easy.

Pandemic Is Over!

The end of Covid 19! 

Corona virus cure confirmed. 

Normal life can resume! 

The world breathes a sigh of relief. 

Experimental cure a phenomenal success

as scientists at NYU announce

100 per cent eradication rate. 

Historic announcement translates into

freedom for all. There were

scenes of jubilation and celebration 

from all over the world. 

From Bangkok to Cape Town, The West Indies

to the Scottish Highlands. 

People see  their loved ones again. 

People hug their loved ones again.

Lockdowns are over, locked up forever.

Humankind treads into a new dawn. 

Day 11: Letter

 

Today's prompt was to write a letter and a reply. 

***

Dear Future Self,

Are we there yet?

Present Self

Dear Present Self,

*Return to Sender*

Day 10: Junk Drawer Song

Today's prompt was to rifle through our junk drawers taking notes and then listen to a favourite song and take notes, and then combine the two to make a poem!

With thanks to Van Morrison, Nick Drake, Brandi Carlile. 

Harmonies

 

Amethyst avenue,

boulevard of broken dreams.

Meet me halfway

on the sunny side of the street.

 

Pink moon evening

into the mystic,

time unspooled

in a mother-of-pearl mirror.

 

Oh I wish we had

a waltz in a penny store;

elastic band of memory

stretching forevermore.

 

Harmony rising

hairbrush pining.

Taffeta skirts

and chandeliers shining.

 

Hopskotch on stars

chalk lines on tarmac,

you and me

ampersand elegant.

 

Papier-maché hearts

in a drawer, dying.

Trinkets, tarnished.

Gypsy soul, sold.

 

Love will find a way…

Moonglow afterparty.

We were born

to know the light.  

Day 9: To-Do List

 

Today's prompt was to write a to-do list from an unusual character. 

My first choice was a cat, then went for this!

The Poet’s To-Do List

 

Stare nonchalantly out window, trying

to describe the exact blue of the sky.

Contemplate oblivion.

Move a comma to and fro; replace with a semi-colon.

Backspace and delete. White page afterglow.

Reflect on the futileness of existence

juxtaposed with the beauty of a leaf.

Stagger muse-less to the kitchen,

consider anchovies on toast.

Shuffle through the 3pm doldrums,

do what you think poets should do at this time

and imbibe an espresso macchiato.

Shimmy when a word strikes the subconscious

like light hitting a sun catcher:

phantasmagoria, spectrum, heliotrope

bouncing rainbows across the room.

Delight in the quiddity of objects -

violet and elderflower gin bottle, floral china teacup,

verdigris watering can, smoothness of a spoon.

Wrestle thoughts onto page like a child

catching butterflies; grasp an idea like an eel

slippery and electric, crackling in an undercurrent whirlpool.

Colour-code emotions. Translate into wordy overflow.

Toast the dusk with a haiku kiss.

Worship at the silver light of a crescent moon.

Revel in the heightened feeling,

the fire-branding of words across a day

that blaze and blaze.

Day 8: Monologue

Today's prompt was to write a monologue from the point of view of someone who is deceased. 

I tried and couldn't! So, this instead:

Requiem for 2020

 

I was supposed to be the beginning,

not the end. Filofax of the year forgotten,

calendars closed, diaries left blank,

life deferred, put on hold. New Year dreams 

caught in Covid’s chokehold.

All my days blurred into one.

Seasons scurried past unnoticed.

My predecessor roared his riposte (giving

the 20s a bad name, huh!)

but people were in a flap. Everything suddenly

reduced to nothing. An empty time

of worry, fear, grief, regret.

I did my best. Years come and years go.

Mine will be one with an elegy of woe.

 

Day 7: Fib

 

Today's prompt was to write a fib! An 1,1,2,3,5,8, syllable count poem.

Fib

Just

one

feather

is enough

to outweigh hardness,

incrementally soften hate.