Welcome. All are welcome to participate in the 5-day Open Write — from one day to all days, depending on your schedule. There are no set rules for the length of a poem, and you are free to modify or reject the prompts as you wish, allowing you to write whatever is on your mind or in your heart. We firmly believe that the best writing instructors are actual writers, and this platform offers a supportive environment for you to nurture your writing journey. Just scroll down to share your poem in the comment section. For more information about the Open Writes click here.
Our Host: Margaret Simon
(Margaret with her granddaughter June, December, 2023)
Margaret Simon lives on the Bayou Teche in New Iberia, Louisiana. Margaret has been an elementary school teacher for 36 years, most recently teaching gifted students in Iberia Parish. Her first book of children’s poetry was published in 2018 by UL Press, Bayou Song: Creative Explorations of the South Louisiana Landscape. Margaret’s poems have appeared in anthologies including The Poetry of US by National Geographic and Rhyme & Rhythm: Poems for Student Athletes. Margaret writes a blog regularly at http://reflectionsontheteche.com.
Inspiration
I follow the Poetry Sisters who post a monthly challenge. One recent challenge introduced me to the elfchen form, also called an elevenie for its eleven word structure. The poem form looks a lot like a cinquain, without a set syllable count. So far in 2024, I’ve written an elfchen almost every day. There is no tangible reason I started this daily practice. It has served me well as a small poem I can write in a short period of time.
Process
I usually start my daily writing with a quote and some stream of consciousness writing about what I’m thinking, feeling, etc. Then the elfchen shows up; I find it in the quote and writing. Here’s a peek into my notebook.
The basic elfchen rules can be found on Wikipedia.
Guidelines:
Line 1: One word
Line 2: Two words about what the word does.
Line 3: Location or place-based description in 3 words.
Line 4: Metaphor or deeper meaning in 4 words.
Line 5: A new word that somehow summarizes or transforms from the original word.
Mary Lee Hahn, one of the Poetry Sisters, wrote her elfchen in the original language of the form, German.
brot
warm, frisch
vielleicht mit Käse
und natürlich viele Butter
lecker
bread
warm, fresh
perhaps with cheese
and of course lots of butter
yummy
Margaret’s Elfchen Drafts
Truth
comes in
times of silence
contemplating the thrumming rain
Presence
From a Word of the Day (Merriam-Webster)
Banter
generations of
bunkum about nothing
important or relevant– chitchat
balderdash
Based on a quote: “When you say ‘yes’ to others, make sure you are not saying ‘no’ to yourself.” Paulo Coelho
Yes
makes sounds
like an ocean
drawing me to love
Myself.
Your Turn
Now, scroll to the comment section below to write your own poem. (This is a public space, so you may use only your first name or initials depending on your privacy preferences.) Not ready? That’s okay. Read the poems already posted for more inspiration. Ponder your own throughout the day. Return later. And, if the prompt does not work for you, that is fine. All writing is welcome. Just write something. Also, please be sure to respond to at least three writers. Oh, and a note about drafting: Since we are writing in short bursts, we all understand (and even welcome) the typos and partial poems that remind us we are human and that writing is always becoming. If you’d like to invite other teachers to write with us, tell them to subscribe.
“-chen”
cute, little
transforming a word
endearing things through language
queridinho
Elfchen based on my thoughts of Jon Acuff’s analogy of the Tortoise and the Hare in his book, All It Takes Is A Goal.
tortoise
focused steady
infinity and beyond
advancing within my potential
winning
Love this prompt and format! Inspired by an image on a walk today.
Cardinals
flirting, chasing
on brown grasses
scarlet contrast to snow
warmth
Oooh I love that image of the “scarlet contrast to snow.” The warmth and life juxtaposed with the cold stillness. I’m sure it was a neat thing to witness & you have captured it beautifully!
Emily,
Cardinals are so beautiful and rendered even lovelier through your words.
Emily, that word “flirting” is just right. I love the contrasts between the brown, scarlet and white.
Emily,
I like how when reading your poem, in my mind cardinals contrasted against the snow become the embodiment of warmth on a frigid landscape. Thanks for sharing!
I’m visiting my grandson for a few days, so my poem is about a game he likes to play. I made a Canva. My son and daughter-in-law have a strict policy forbidding photos of Ezra. The one I used shows the back of his had last Halloween. He’s Max from Where the Wild Things Are.
Toy Toss
Ezra
tosses toys—
practices free throws
shoots threes behind the
couch
Dad
tells baby
boy to stop—
no hurling blocks balls
overboard
Mom
rescues toys—
her pole grabbing
gator hand reaches latches
retrieves
Glenda Funk
The picture of your grandson being Max fits so perfectly with your poem! What a captivating little trickster. Enjoy your grandma time!!
Glenda, the energy is real. Little ones with all the movement and constant physics in motion to figure out how their little acts of force can cause big things to happen in their world is right on point here. More power to the parents and grandparents who shape these little ones in beautiful ways. You captured sweet moments~
Oh, I can picture the fun in this sweet game. What a delight to spend time with him!
Glenda, I love the action in your poem and the Canva production is beautiful. I really enjoy how you structured each section to show Ezra, Dad, and Mom. Beautiful!
Pandiculation
greet me
with eastern rays
of hope and promise
morning
Sigh
rest me
in western glow
of acceptance and forgiveness
evening
Allison,
You’ve crafted an extraordinary metaphor. I had to look up pandiculation. Now I’m fascinated by it. Lovely images throughout.
Allison,
Thanks for teaching me a new word and sharing your pair of poems. I like the symmetry of beginning the day with “Hope and promise” and ending with “acceptance and forgiveness.” Good job capturing the rhythm and feelings of morning and evening.
Greetings of hope and promise, resting in acceptance and forgiveness – – ah, the metaphor of days, of ages and stages, of life and living and dying. And I love that the sun is part of it all, as it still rises and still sets and still keeps count of the days, the years, the months, the phases of the moon and the universe.
Wow, Allison. There is a lifetime of mornings and evenings and the wisdom that comes with living, all wrapped up in your two elfchens.
Allison, what a beautiful way to contrast Pandiculation and your Sigh. I appreciate the way you weaved in the sun rising and setting. Absolutely adore your fourth lines which adds such an incredible to these poems. Brilliant!
Inspired to write by the form and all of this week’s love notes:
”The Week of February 14th”
Crafts
Open minds
Tabletops and floors
Connecting hands to hearts
Bridging love across state lines
Love “Connecting hands to hearts” and “Bridging love across state lines” in your poem, Laura. I wish it were like this every day of the year. Thank you for beautiful lines today!
Hi Laura Langley!
Nice to run into you on here. Thanks for the feedback and for sharing your sweet poem. “Connecting hands to hearts / Bridging love across state lines” makes me happy.
Laura my friend,
I love finding you here.
“Connecting hands to hearts” is wonderful. I will use it soon when I again invite students to express their ideas/thoughts/analyses through art.
I love the image of the crafts spreading out to “tabletops and floors”- sounds so expansive and loving and fun!
Margaret,
Thank you so much for this new-to-me form, the peek into your journals and your poems. I especially like the line “contemplating the thrumming rain” and the comforting yield to “Presence.”
I enjoying playing with the form which brought up a lot of memories.
trees
calm walks
my grandparents’ houses
home away from home
Maine
cycling
riding around
South Austin streets
looking, pedaling, drifting, recharging
resetting
lake
skipping rocks
joking with cousins
telling same family stories
reunion
Grandma
pie baker
gentle, faithful, practical, loving
missed
flood
uprooting trees
Wimberley, Memorial Day
nature’s force pushing back
destruction
transplant
extending life
another family grieving
hope, health, gratitude, sorrow
lungs
brook
burbling peace
behind my grandfather’s house
connecting change and permanence
summer
tagging
dripping paint
on railroad bridges
claiming space and identity
disrupting
Grandpa
tale teller
green suspendered workpants
orphaned by 1918 flu
tough
It feels strange not to call you Mrs. Roy, so, Mrs. Roy 🙂 —
I really love the way your elfchen echo one another. Each one reveals another facet. I especially love the lines: “connecting change and permanence/
summer” and “claiming space and identity/disrupting.”
thanks for sharing!
Wow Sharon, it sounds like some of these could be a book, just enjoyed the glimpses into this variety of beautiful and emotional moments in your life. The transplant one was a beautiful meditation on what that actually feels like. Thanks.
Margaret, thank you for this prompt today! I used a word generator to find a word to write about. I enjoyed playing with this form today! 🙂
Eloquence
Speaking well
Heart-based, mindful words
Like a flowing river
Intentional
Larin, you bring to my mind the importance of selecting the proper word before speaking and writing. Intentional and flowing.
Larin, I love the simile you’ve crafted — an “[i]ntentional” “flowing river” compared to “[s]peaking well” with “[e]loquence.” Thank you for this!
Larin,
I really enjoy how your first and last lines talk to each other. I also love the idea of a word generator for inspiration! You explore this concept deeply in just a few words. Well done!
Thank you for hosting today Margaret. Your granddaughter June is precious! I love words that are not commonly used, yet when I hear them I’m like “Oh yeah…!” Balderdash, such a rich vocabulary that is hidden in a book no longer valued. I love how the words “important or relevant– chitchat” jump off the page at me. To me, important or relevant does not describe “chitchat’ at all, but your emdash makes such a striking, resounding afterthought.
Here is my poem:
Peace
smothers noise
in your element
within the soul
order
Jessica, I love that you chose “smothers” for your second line. At first it seems counter to what peace is but as I reread it, I felt it. Perhaps your words gave me the peace I needed to smother the noise. Thank you for sharing!
You’re so welcome Laura! I hope they did.
Aw, Jessica, you are right. Peace smothers the noise in the soul. Thank you.
Your welcome Susan. We need more “s
Smotherers”.
Jessica,
I really like how you decided to pair peace with order. I had never consciously made the connection before but when I am feeling peace, it does feel like there is order in my soul. Thank you for sharing and helping me go on the journey to realize that.
Elfchen for Eve
Eve
sasses everyone –
even in hospice –
because 10 shouldn’t be
sunset.
Margaret, I’ve been reading some of your elfchens this month & I love the look at your process. Thank you for offering this form here. I actually wrote several, but for me, as for Britt, the simplicity of the form allowed me to begin to grapple with a recent grief.
Amanda, first please accept my condolences for the loss you’ve expressed and commendation for capturing the emotions so well in this poem.
Having a simple structure to follow sometimes helps us focus and articulate our feelings in ways that release some of the pain and capture the love. You’ve done that here.
Amanda, this is heartbreaking, yet inspiring. Your line, “because 10 shouldn’t be
sunset” is a realistic truth now. So many lives are ending when they’ve just begun. 10 year-olds are at the prime of their sass. I pray that Eve continues to shed sunshine and rainbows during this transition and may you find peace in knowing that her impact will change the world, adding light in a world full of darkness.
Amanda,
thank you for sharing these loving images of Eve.
heartbreaking starkness: “10 shouldn’t be / sunset”
Amanda. I am in tears for you. 10 should never be sunset…
Amanda,
”10 shouldn’t be sunset.” I felt that line in my heart. Peace and comfort to you and to Eve’s family.
Amanda,
That is heartbreaking and I am so sorry! In so few words, you bring Eve off the page and capture so many emotions.
What a fun form! I’m trying to combine poetry with art. I hope the image attaches.
Time
Mind swirls
In my head
Ellipses of one’s thoughts
Never-ending
Heide, thanks for including a photo to expand the message of the poem you used to paint the picture of time for us. You’ve demonstrated the power of multi-model presentations, but I’m confident your poem, standing alone, would have evoked similar images in our minds. Thanks for painting a word picture about TIME.
Heidi, what a great marriage! I love your art. The colors are vibrant and the images are simple, yet tells a story.
“Ellipses of one’s thoughts
never-ending” reminds me of my domestic duties at home. I much rather be writing poetry of course, but at some point adulting has to take precedent. Thank you for sharing!
They pair really well together, Heidi! Thank you for creating and sharing them!
Awakening,
novel possibilities
a circadian gift
untie the inviting ribbons
Begin
This was inspired by a quote recently shared with me by a dear friend. Her grandmother said it often about the gift of each new morning. Over the past week, her words have run through my mind each morning before rising. She has made me see each morning really is a gift and I should be grateful.
Thank you for introducing me to a new poetry form.
Cathy, thanks for selecting such a captivating word, “circadian” to encapsulate the key idea your poem elicits from me. Novel possibilities that unravel from day to day. I also like the use of “inviting ribbons” that suggest a gift we will be glad we opened.
WOW!! I’m seeing so much in your eleven words.
Cathy, I love how you use the word “circadian” to connect with the rhythms of night and day, awaking and sleeping. What an intentional way to use this word! I also enjoy your imagery of a gift with a ribbon to untie in anticipation of its possibilities. Thank you for this joyful poem!
Cathy, these words you share were spoken by a wise woman. I feel the older I get the more I need to stop and take in the awe of the world. “Untie the inviting ribbons” reminds me of a gift that keeps on giving. When I’m having one of those days, one of my friends always tells me, “Tomorrow is a new day.” And with that, I can’t complain anymore. Thank you for sharing.
Thank you, Margaret for this prompt. I’ve never tried it before, but the guidelines really helped me to let go and create. I think I will use this as a warm up for my own writing and also teach this to my students.
The last poem was inspired by the photo of you and your granddaughter.
Anxiety –
quickened heart,
dark, silent room,
purple pulse of fear,
Apprehension.
Listen –
quietly present,
little girls chatter.
pink petals of laughter.
Connection.
Birthday –
Let’s party!
In Spring’s backyard,
Mouthful of sweet icing,
Jubilation!
“purple pulse of fear” is such a beautiful visual for my own anxiety. Thank you for giving me this language. Excellent poems, Joanne.
Joanne, you say so much between the lines of these poems. I particularly love how you link listening with connecting with others. A reminder for me to be present with those around me! I also enjoy the tangible references to “pink petals” and “mouthful of sweet icing.” I can just see and feel those petals, taste that sweet icing. Thank you for sharing your poems today!
I can certainly relate to the anxiety…perfectly said.
I like how you went from that one to the little girls chatter with their pink petals of laughter…what a great line!
Thanks for sharing.
Joanne,
There’s a release and building joy in the sequence of your poems. I sure wish Spring would arrive w/ her backyard. I love the thought in that line.
Joanne, wow, your word choices throughout these three poems is striking. Love the levels of emotion and how these start off with a sense of panic to jubilation. Loved each of your fourth lines. “Pink petals of laughter”…wow, such beauty, color and taste. Incredible poems!
My grandfather (Tito, as I call him) passed suddenly two nights ago. This side of heaven has lost an exquisite, amazing human. Thank you for this offering as I allow my grief to work itself out.
To My Tito
Abuelo
generous, doting
in our hearts
male model of excellence
Tito
A gorgeous, poignant tribute to your Tito, Britt – every line echoes in my own heart, remembering my own grandfather. He’s been gone almost 25 years and I’ve missed him every day. My heart goes out to you <3
Britt this is a well-captured tribute,”male model of excellence.”
I, too, am working through grief during this round of the open write. Your poem’s framing – two personal ways to refer to your grandfather – is especially poignant. Sending you condolences. May his memory be a blessing.
Britt, many hugs and warm thoughts your way. Here’s to poetry for its power in working through the sorrows and the joys of life.
I am so sorry for your loss. I can feel your love for him through this poem–“male model of excellence”…how lovely!
This is what poems are for. The writing of them expresses our soul and brings comfort. This tribute is beautiful and I hope you gain comfort surrounded with loving memories.
Britt,
My condolences to you on the loss of your tito. I do love that word. It’s so beautiful, more in your tribute to your grandfather.
Britt – I am so sorry for your loss – your exquisite Tito. May all your memories surround you and hug you. I am sure your abuelo is looking down and smiling upon you.
I love the beauty of your Abuelo who is so poignantly described here. “generous, doting” says so much about his “male model of excellence.” You have been blessed to have him, and I am so very sorry for your loss. Sending love and condolences.
Distance
running track
indoor; field house
complete chaos, difficulty focusing
Explosive!
©️JenniferKowaczek February 2024
Written as a reflection on my daughter’s first track & and field meet as a freshman. There is SO MUCH going on all at once, compressed into the confines of the field house.
Margaret, thank you for introducing me to a new form; the peek into your writing process was also very welcome.
Your last word – explosive!- brought two different images into my mind for the end of the poem. First- a runner exploding with speed off the blocks and finishing the race so far ahead of any contender. The other was a sense of overwhelming and senses disintegrating so the participant couldn’t handle the environment. I like how one word brought to mind two totally different ends to your poem.
I can feel the energy as it builds in each line, Jennifer. Cheers to you and your daughter this season – here’s to all the power to come.
Loved this!
Margaret, I’ve never tried writing elfchen/elevenies before…this simple form is enchanting and deceptively difficult, at least to me! The remedy for that is, of course, to do it more. Your daily writings amaze me. I love each of your drafts for their different “flavor” and tightness of connections in first and last words.
I ended up with a little elfchen chain today – in need of more hammering, but here we are:
February Elfchen Chain
February
gray desolation
brightened by bluebirds
and sudden pink blossoms
overcoming
winter
gusting winds
squeak naked branches
against each other, awakening
desire
greenness
seeps imperceptibly
to the edges
Nature revels in pre-season
preparation
I think your February poem describes my neighborhood exactly. The birds are coming back and the trees are in bloom. So happy!
Exquisite, Fran. I read it as it should be read, and then I read the first line in each stanza and kept going… That works well too! Thank you for your experimentation! I always learn something from you!
“Greenness seeps imperceptibly to the edges” stood out to me. It made me think about how Spring starts with the awakening of the roots and water and then seeps through the tree until those green leaves unfurl. You nailed it with imperceptibly because we don’t notice until the green pops.
Fran, this is lovely! That steamy second stanza — I got the vapors and had to go lie down! XD
Fran, the idea of an elfchen chain is fantastic! I really love the way the last word of one stanza relates to the first word of the next. I also notice here (and in your recent blog post delighting in the return of the nesting finches) how February is a season of preparation for you. Here, it’s just cold! How I long for greenness that “seeps imperceptibly/ to the edges”.
Fran, the promise of warmth and spring’s splendor in this pre-season preparation is the hope we all need this time of year, right when we see there isn’t the chance of a snow day to stay home and read and we’re tired of being cold. You capture this feeling so flawlessly in these three elfchens. Welcome spring, Welcome green!
Your poem breathes spring, Fran. It brings hope.
These lines warm my heart as I read and reread your chain: “brightened by bluebirds,” “sudden pink blossoms,” and “greenness / seeps imperceptibly.” Thank you for your beautiful words!
seeds
natural grass
dandelions creeping slowly
reach the yellow house
home
_____________
noise
vibration bumps
“Hold on tight!”
trail through the brush
motorcycle
Thank you, Margaret for this new form. Fun!
Oh, Susan, these are sweet. I especially like the yellow house. It popped a picture in mind with matching dandelion decor in the yard. I love natural grass–in all its seasons.
Susan, I watched a little Dark-eyed junco feeding by a closed dandelion floret today and marveled at the flowers and clover beginning to appear… and here one appears in your poem, to connect us. Love the “movement” of dandelions and the connection of their color to the house and home. Lovely imagery. And the brief motorcycle ride through the brush was fun!
Love these! I haven’t tried this form yet. But your images come to life beautifully.
Cognitive Transitioning
Cheese
Daguerreotype Catchphrase
Flash Bang: Image
Mosquito Caught In Amber
Dinosaurs!
______________________________________________________
Margaret, thank you for this new form (and for introducing me to the Poetry Sisters)! I enjoyed the peek inside your notebook, too! And your “Banter” elfchen was so good. I really like the idea of banter turning toward balderdash at the end. Regarding my offering today, I decided to try and illustrate “the wandering of thoughts” that my brain sometimes makes, traveling from one idea to the next to the next to the SQUIRREL!
Oh, my goodness! I loved seeing your wandering mind. Now I want to wander off and kearn the history of saying “cheese” for a photo….on to the next squirrel.
Scott, I want to say sorry to this poor (?) mosquito that got caught in amber with no verbal warning that the flash-bang capturing was about to happen. I would never have thought to connect cheese and dinosaurs ALTHOUGH… I feel certain there’s a kid’s boxed macaroni meal which does… however: Your wanderings are endlessly fascinating, your imagery amazingly vivid, and the poem is so entertaining and thought-provoking in its own way. As are all your poems. Always fresh, even with the combination of aged things like amber, cheese, dinosaurs (who else could do this???).
Perfect for me the retired Photography teacher. I had some of the dinosaurs to show my students. Love the visual of the amber mosquito.
Heehee…this made me laugh…as usual. 🙂
Scott,
You again rewarded my search for your poem. The title tells all!
Margaret, I appreciate the sweet simplicity of this form; thanks for sharing how it fits into your daily writing practice – such a great idea!
stillness
gives space
opens my mind
fear dissipates, possibility surfaces
light
Maureen, wow, what peaceful thoughts your poem brings. Beautiful! I’m taking ‘fear dissipates’ with me today.
So true, Maureen – your poem invites tranquility and reflection. And overcoming – in so few words!!
“fear dissipates, possibility surfaces”
Wow. Thank you for this offering, Maureen.
Maureen, you walk us from “stillness” to “light” so smoothly. I can imagine how the obstacles are going away to “open mind” and rid of fear. Beautifully written!
Maureen,
Theres so much truth in the calmness of your poem. I’ve thought about this all week amid the chaos and anxiety of a hard week.
Maureen, I love how you show that fear can block potential. Your poem moves so beautifully, and I adore how you end with “light” which opens the window for all kinds of wonderful possibilities. Powerful poem in such a few words!
Margaret, this is great. I love the German connection. (Since I teach German).
Elfchen
Zuhause
Bin ich
Immer gern zuhause.
Nirgendwo ist so zufriedend.
Ruhe
Ah, nice that you got to write a German poem! Katrina, I hope you get to enjoy a quiet weekend at home.
I just translated your poem & was delighted by the way some of the words that are one in German (Zuhause) are two in English. This also brought back my 6th grade German – I didn’t get it all, but some is still buried in my brain!
Katrina, I wish I had learned another language and could produce not only words but poetry in German. My brother minored in it in college, and so I do know a few words. Nice to see poetry in another language here.
Katrina, your poem sent me off to write own Elfchen in my language. Thanks for sharing the different possibilities. I’m off to translate yours.
glasses
spherical correction
tortoise or aviator
missing scenes unfolded wrinkles
earned
Sarah, thank God for the “spherical correction” glasses provide. Yesterday, I had to assist the tech people in reading tiny serial numbers on Chromebooks as part of the annual inventory. How indispensable are our specs.
“missing scenes” – thank goodness for glasses!
Wrinkles earned; missing scenes. All so true!
Sarah, enjoy seeing everything with your well-earned glasses. I love “unfolded wrinkles.”
Oh yes, I know this well. Your last word/line so powerful!
I love the experience you’ve written using this form – fun and fitting!
Sarah,
I felt every line, every word. Im not sure what I did to earn wearing glasses since I’ve worn them pretty much all my life. I nearly lost my overpriced prescription sunglasses in Hawaii a few weeks ago.
Sarah, wow, I love “missing scenes unfolded wrinkles/earned” …Wow! that is quite a metaphor. I have been nearsighted for most of my life, so I understand the “missing” and how the wrinkles become earned. Very clever poem!
I really love the simplicity and spareness of this form!
Here’s mine:
Maybe
Opens up
Heart possibilities, becoming
A fragile bud blooming
Grace
Love “A fragile bud blooming” – beautiful metaphor for grace, I think.
Julie— that last word, grace. We need more of that…
Julie, songs of my favorite words are nestled here. Grace and maybe…beautiful elfchen.
Brings me calm. Thank you!
Love your phrase “heart possibilities”. What a creative way to express hope.
I love the flow of your elfchen, particularly the placing of the comma. Beautiful!
I’m reading so many different connections here. I was moved by, “Heart possibilities” and your final word, “Grace’.
Margaret, what a neat little form! I took your advice and did some journaling beforehand, and I think that you have convinced me to start journaling again: I haven’t done so since my 20s. Thanks for that.
Mom’s Advice
“Wait.”
she said.
Each life stage,
proving ground of pain:
Weight.
Weight
lifted when
life proved joyous,
sweet, and worth the
wait.
Love that these two ‘bookend’ one another with that ‘wait,’ as beginning and end. There is such captivating wordplay of the homophones ‘weight’ and ‘wait’ – oh these two elfchen are fun!!
Beautiful story here. Worth the weight, worth the wait… wonderful.
Oh, Wendy, so much treasure here. This is wisdom: “Each life stage / proving ground of pain”
Great, great, great! Love how you use wait/weight so proficiently. Wonderful!
I love the way you used “wait” and “weight” in each poem. Very clever!
Whew! Absolutely stunning.
When I read something like you’ve created, I get a twinge of envy at your brilliance. The way you play with “wait” and “weight” works so well.
Love the use of homophones that bring the meaning to the forefront, Wendy! Your words make me think how our life’s experiences might burden or lighten up weight. Life is definitely “worth the wait.” Thank you for this wonderful poem!
Such delightful and clever symmetry. I like the idea of “each life stage” as a “proving ground of pain” juxtaposed with “life proved joyous.” Sometimes we need our mom’s perspective to help us surf life’s emotions.
Yay! So happy to be back with all of our Ethical ELA family! 💜
Margaret, I am pumped and loving this prompt. I’m a little biased because my magic number is 11 (birthday 11-11) so the Elfchen might become my new favorite form! Your mentor poems resonate with me, espcially the last one in response to Coelho’s quote. That’s a fave of mine too.
I’m teaching a district course on culturally responsive strategies to meet the needs of underrepresented students in Gifted/Talented programs. I am swimming and marinating in all things responsive so that’s my word.
Responsive
Meeting needs
Curriculum, relationships, pedagogy
Not because it’s February
Radical
©Stacey L. Joy, 2/17/24
Stacey, I think I’ve shared with you before that my father’s birthday was 11/11/33. I always think of him when I see the time, which is often. I would like to have an email conversation with you about your work. I am a GT teacher and need to advocate for these populations as well. My email is masimon at iberiaschools dot org. Thanks for your important work!
My husband and I were married on 11/11/11! Definitely a lucky number!
Stacey, I love the line “Not because it’s February”…it took me a minute, but then the light bulb came on. We should always aim to be responsive, not only during the “month of love.”
Julie, I love that you were married on this date!
Hi Julie, I had a big party on 11-11-11 and we sang happy bday to me at 11:11pm🥳! Love that you married on this special day! I put in the February nod because Black History Month is typically the time when some schools decide it’s time to be responsive to Black students. I hate that our system has not yet evolved to learn about Black History all year. But yes, it’s also the month of love and we should love our students all year! 🥰
Stacy…ahh…your explanation here totally shone light on how the structure of your poem is working…I read some sarcasm into that “radical” now. 🙂
*Stacey
Stacey,
I so appreciate this reflection on the responsive pedagogies conversations going around the eduworld situated here in the context of February. This form lends itself to commentary in that shift from line 3 to 4 to 5 that you uncover brilliantly in the “Not because” and then “Radical.” I hear the tone. Thank you!
Sarah
“Not because it’s February” – bravo! Thank you for your advocacy work!
You go, Stacey! Yes, we need Black History year, every year. Bless you for the work you do and the challenge you give to others.
LOVE! One of my recent favorite pd books is on culturally responsive teaching, Stacey; it stay on my desk at work as a reference. Responsive teaching IS the heart of our work – your image is perfect!
Stacey – small words with big importance. Yes – Not because it’s February! And yes – that should not be such a radical idea! Thank you for your voice.
Oh! Those last two lines! YES!!!!
Hi, Stacey! So great to “see” here today as well. A couple semesters ago, I worked with a grad student whose Master’s thesis research was focused around creating ELA curriculum that is culturally responsive. Your poem reminded me of the important work educators do to meet the needs of every child in the classroom. Thank you!
Hello Canva Queen! I love that you’re teaching that class. You’re perfect to do that. Keep bringing the “Radical.”
Stacey, what a beautiful way to create your poem! I love your fourth line “Not because it’s February” which says so much about curriculum planning!!!
Thank you, Margaret. I appreciate short poems because they make me think but I don’t feel the need to spend hours on them getting every word just right! I appreciate your prompt this morning!
Grief
open, wrenching
in early morning
a weight on my chest
Remember
Sea
moving, alive
starry nights upon it
Warm wind as a blanket
Heal
💙 🌊
Emily, the two go together and offer the wrenching grief soothed by the sea, the stars, the wind. Nature helps us see hope.
Emily,
I am struck by Grief and Seas as different and complementary, and I found myself reading these into each other wondering how grief is moving and how the sea is wrenching. How the the last word in the Sea poem “heal” may be alongside remember in grief. You have given me a lot to consider with these two poems today. Thank you.
Sarah
Oh, Emily, here’s to that “warm wind as a blanket” holding and healing grief. These are a beautiful pair of poems together.
Love the juxtaposition of these two poems the sea heals the grief. Very soothing. Thank you!
Emily,
thank you for this beautiful pair of poems. I can identify with both the “open, wrenching” of grief,” of unbound feeling and the solace of the sea.
Margaret, thanks for sharing this short poetry form. I love how it requires you to carefully choose your words. So enjoyed a glimpse of your writing notebook. “Focus on the light” such a powerful line and so necessary during troubled times.
Summer Escape
serenity
quiet waters
peaceful summer breeze
nature’s sweet honey kiss
welcomes
Barb Edler
17 February 2024
Barbara, I love the quiet waters as the words that tells us what serenity is. I can see those waters in my mind. Natures sweet honey kiss! I love it and it makes me long for summer days. (It’s storming at my house right know!)!
Barb, this is such a soothing poem and has me yearning for the days that offer this respite, especially while surrounded with the snow squalls we are experiencing today. Each line is lovely but I’m most drawn to quiet waters.
Barb,
I too feel the pull of summer’s promise. I want to feel that “sweet honey kiss” instead of winter’s frigid face slap. I know you felt it too yesterday. Lovely poem full of promises and expectations.
Hi Barb,
I adore “nature’s sweet honey kiss” and long to be kissed and welcomed at the end of this school year! 🌞
Dreaming of summer, are you? “Sweet honey kiss” is just right.
Barb,
You have me thinking of summer and wishing for some warmth on my skin today. Oh that line, “honey kiss” is lovely.
Sarah
The transformation of ‘serenity’ to ‘welcomes’ is gorgeous!
Barb,
How lovely. A February escape to this scene is perfect! And that fourth line! Delicious!
Ah! Barb, you brought to the summer sea on this snowy day! Thank you!
Barb, I am savoring the thoughts of summer and its warm waters, gentle breezes, and peace. Yes, yes…..welcomes is a perfect ending word!
Hi, Barb! Oh, how welcoming your poem is. Every word here is enticing with that “nature’s sweet honey kiss” as a cherry on top. Thank you for a beautiful treat today!
Margaret, there’s beauty in the succinct nature of this structure (Elfchen). Thank you
Friendship
Friends
Holding hands
Everywhere around us
Our hearts are warmed
Dependence
I love how the word friendship becomes in the end, dependence. So often we think of that word negatively, but oh, how we need our friends! Your poem is so warm!
We do need our friends “everywhere around us”. Love this little tribute to friendship.
Juliette,
I like seeing friendship poems in our community because I think of the hard time I have had making and being a friend as an adult and the way dependence can serve us – and yet how hard that can be for some. “our hearts warmed” is a lovely line, and you’ve given me much to contemplate today. Thank you.
Sarah
Juliette, how wonderful to have friends to hold and keep “our hearts warm.” I’m liking the truth of that last line, and how it’s used differently than we usually use it. That word has gotten a bad rap.
yes, Juliette, we humans depend on friendship so much!
I like this so much because “dependence,” instead of being something to bristle against, is sought out through friendship. Thank you!
Unexpected Snow Day
By Mo Daley 2/17/24
Stillness
Forces reflection
Snow-covered landscape
Blanketing my overstimulated brain
Productivity
Mo, I like how stillness provides productivity in your poem. The beauty of a snow day is clearly captured. Very relatable poem.
Mo,
I love that even though it began in stillness, you found productivity in the day.
Mo, I hope you are also relaxing. Sometimes the overstimulated brain needs a warm blanket of doing nothing.
Oh, Mo, is there snow today in Illinois. Of course, it is February. And I love how you say “Forces reflection” and the contrast with “productivity” in the final lines. This is interesting to me and makes me think about how an invitation to settle in often ends up being a day of furied (flurried) activity. Hmm.
Sarah
Oh, my! I chose ‘stillness’ as my beginning word, too! Love your line ‘blanketing my overstimulated brain’. Elfchens are so fun!!
When I loved in the Midwest, snow days were my favorite blanket for “my overstimulated brain” Such a powerful image! Enjoy the quiet and the productivity that’s coning with it.
I can relate to your idea of snow blanketing your overstimulated brain. I went for a walk in newly fallen snow this morning feeling restless. Came back relaxed and ready to tackle my to do list.
Mo, I feel this! We had one yesterday, too, and my productivity was (finally!) home-centered instead of school-centered!
Mo, I just read Maureen’s poem that led me from stillness to light. Yours makes me want to get under the blanket with a book and forget about work at least for couple hours )) Thank you!
Margaret, Having such specific structural guidelines focuses our attention on careful word choices, but sometimes constrains what we have to say. So, you’ll see that the draft I bubbled over to six lines per stanza, somewhat following the instructions. But, alas, this is OPEN WRITE and we are free to do just that. :-)Thanks for the prompt. I enjoyed the challenge of combining key thoughts considered in February: Black History Month and Valentine’s Day that tend to evoke memories of both love and hate and hopefully, ending with love.
Love
Opens doors
Paves the way
In heart and head
Compassion, care, and concern
Devotion
Hate
Shuts gates
Stifles one’s progress
In heart and head
Cruelty, careless, and cackling
Aversion
Love
Neutralizes hate
Oils scratchy skids
In heart and head
Fondness, friendship, and fidelity
Faithfulness
Anna, I love how you’ve taken this prompt and made it your own, while of course, remaining the queen of rhyme! You’ve really demonstrated for us how much can be accomplished with so few words. You’ve taken such large themes and really boiled them down for us. Just wonderful.
Wow, Anna, I think you created a new form! These three are so nice together. I love the fourth line in each, and these descriptors of hate: Cruelty, careless, and cackling. Wow!
Anna – I really like how you treat these two words/concepts and have them interact with each other – Devotion – Aversion – Faithfulness. So true.
Love this, Anna!
Nice. Love the form and what it does here so succinctly! Can’t wait to try it out in the AP LIT class.
Hi, Paul! Nice to see you here in this space! Welcome!
It’s been a while, but your prompt was calling me this morning so I’m popping back in! Thank you!
Dreams
Pester me
All night long
Walls on every side
Trapped
Awaking
From nightmares
Twisted sheets loosen
Their grasp on me
Relief
Hi Rachel! Wlcome back. You have really captured the terror of nightmares here. I really like the grasp those sheets have on you.
Rachel, I felt the same way this morning. I love how you’ve captured so much within your two poems. Excellent word choice to provoke images and sensations such as pester, twisted and relief.
Rachel, I can relate. Odd dreams have been plaguing me, too! This was imagistic and really spoke to me.
Rachel, as someone whose dreams can cast a shadow on the entire day, I can relate to the sentiment of your poem. Those “twisted sheets” are an excellent image of the power of dreams to reach into us. Thank you for the contrasting image of their loosening grasp.
Katrina, I totally relate to dreams having that effect!
Rachel,
I love how you use two elfchens to tell the story between tortured sleep and the relief of being able to finally get up. So well done!
Coffee
lures, percolates.
Gas burning blue;
gray dawn through glass.
Awakening.
Leilya, we started at the same, quite common, morning place. But what we wrote is quite different.
Yes, Cindy, we did. It’s the morning, right? I love how you capture awakening through “gray dawn through glass.”
Hi Cindy. I’m not a coffee drinker, but I can relate with my morning tea. I love your use of the word lure- there is just something about it, isn’t there? Well done.
Cindy, I loved the mood this set — the colors really did the trick.
Cindy, in eleven words, you paint a picture. I love the “Gas burning blue.” I am ready for “gray dawns” to go away though.
Cindy – I can see this! And I yearn for a cup!
Hi Cindy,
Nice to see you on here.
You paint a vivid picture in just 11 words. I especially like “gray dawn through glass.” Hoping this is one of our last cold weeks I’m ready for spring.
Margaret, it’s been so fun to watch this form go viral throughout the Poetry Friday community and lodge itself in your practice as your go-to daily form! I’m watching the snow come down and marveling at how many individual flakes it takes to cover the yard, to stack up on the top of the fence and the power lines, to silence the human world.
flakes
each unique
gently join others
strength comes in numbers
blanket
As you know we don’t get snow, so this meditation on how many flakes fascinates me.
Mary, I really appreciate the dichotomy of gentle flakes building strength in numbers. Very powerful message and image!
This is beautiful . . . love the movement from flakes to the blanket!
I love this one – especially your last word (and how it works with your explanation at the start – “to silence the human world.”) Isn’t snow the neatest thing?? Wishing we had more snow here – it’s been a short winter!
Thank you, Margaret, for letting us wake up to your beautiful prompt.
I often see your elfchens on Facebook, and they are as lovely as they are profound. Love your “Yes” poem based on P. Coelho’s quote. Here is my humble attempt.
Morning Bliss
Coffee
Robust, rich
Brewed in djezve,
Warms up my soul—
Heaven
An ode to the morning coffee. This chilly morning I think I’ll have another cup. I had to look up and hear djezve. This kind of coffee must be strong!
Hi, Margaret. Djezve is a little coffee pot made Turkish style. I make hubby’s coffee in Keurig and mine in djezve. It is strong, but so refreshing.
Leilya, morning bliss is the perfect title for your warm coffee poem. Your ending is especially powerful considering I’m a coffee lover and I like the connection to being comforted with the idea of heaven. I had to look up djezve, but now I know a little bit more about the world and I appreciate exploring words and worlds.
Leilya, I don’t even drink coffee but feel the need to have a djezve after looking it up! There is a weight of history; I can imagine the hands that have touched these in coffee preparation. Your words warmed me as much as the djezve.
Leilya,
I love this tribute to coffee and its subtle inclusion subtext. I’m taking it as a sign I need to plan a trip to Turkey. For now I’m drinking the Kona coffee I recently purchased in Hawaii. Cheers!
Leilya, isn’t that first cup a loving warmth!? I enjoyed your poem and enjoyed my second cup of java! I only have two on the weekends. 🫶🏽
Leilya, I had to Google the djezve — and thanks for that. I love learning new things and especially new things related to coffee. Agree that it warms the soul.
Leilya, I love all the cultures of coffee, and your reference to this Turkish pot and method of brewing lights up my imagination about how wonderful it must be. Thank you for teaching me a new word and inviting me to imagine this coffee with you.
Margaret,
Thank you so much for this great inspiration and your wonderful examples. And, I love the picture with your grandson . . . what joy!
I especially like how accessible the elfchen is. I am sitting on our couch, looking around andthinking about things I can write about and easily went to four different topics: Lent, our extended family that’s going through some hardship, the joy of an overnight getaway, and Kristin Hannah’s new book The Women that I am reading. While I came up with topics and wrote quickly, I know there is definitely room to deepen, especially the metaphor inclusion.
Lent
sacrifice connect
deep inside me
my heart a rocktumbler
transforming
family
supports fractures
homes built shoddily
members sinking into quicksand
dysfunction
responsibility
strengthens controls
tethers me immobile
an anchor in the deep
freedom
veteran
pridefully serves
Vietnam changed that
shame usurping the crown
nurses
~Susan Ahlbrand
17 February
Susan, thanks for sharing all of your drafts. I find the form addictive for writing those small snippets of thoughts. I’m especially drawn to the one about Lent as it always confuses me a bit. Rocktumbler! My rough places get smoothed? Or rocked some more?
Susan,
I was so intrigued by how this changed so from beginning to end. I was especially caught by your use of “pridefully” since the connotation is a little slippery: brilliant. Your use of “rocktumbler” was so arresting! My dad served in Vietnam, so allusions to it always give me pause. Beautiful poem!
Susan, I like the way you strung your poems together like pearls. The sinking in quicksand is something all families witness at some point, and pray and pour resources into those we love. You are close in thought. I am anxious to see if you like the new Hannah book. I’m a fan who hesitates to read the first page, knowing I’m in for a ride and I won’t be able to push the pause button.
I finished it today (thus so few comments on poems thus far). I found it to be fantastic and I keep thinking about it . . . the trademark of a great book.
Susan,
“My heart a rock tumbler” is such a great line. I’ll be thinking about that one for a while.
My Dad and his two brothers are all Vietnam vets so the “shame usurping the crown” close to home, sadly.
Thank you for sharing.
The book impacted me greatly. I can’t imagine if I had family that served over there. What a complex set of emotions those veterans must still feel. And their families.
My most recent elfchen was written in Laura Shovan’s February project that’s theme is games. The prompt was demolition derby, so I thought of my oldest grandson, 5, who loves building with Legos. (played with rhyme in this one)
Monster
of invention
Lego block creation
Smash and bash demolition
Celebration
Margaret, I love how this started and ended and the juxtaposition. As a mom, it made me grin with recognition.
Margaret, I love the ease of this form. And your poems are lovely this morning.
Awake
morning
nosing, pawing
nudge a little more
time to get up
now!
Jennifer, I’m drawn to your title and the changing of the season. The world of people is awakening, dogs needing to get out and urging us to get up and live life, and I can see the struggle-nudge to wake, then the call for warmth of world to bring the buds and blooms. And a cup of coffee to nudge us all a long…..so much to read here from different angles.
Jennifer- I beat the dogs awake this morning. Many mornings, this poem could be mine!! “Nudge a little more”. Exactly!!
Jennifer, I love how the use of “nosing, pawing” gives us all a visual so you do not have to write the animal doing it, be it cat or dog. I spent a weekend house-sitting for my daughter whose dogs nosed me at 6 AM. They can tell time.
Your elfchen is sooo relevant on a Saturday morning, when I want to stay in bed and just do nothing for at least half an hour, but it’s “time to get up // now!” My children got a puppy recently, and now they are living by your poem every day. It is much easier with cats. Thank you for sharing, Jennifer!
Jennifer, I appreciate the action words in your poem to clearly show what’s occurred. Your title is perfect!
Jennifer! This was my morning with our new kitty, Chip. I had the audacity to sleep in on our first (official — we had a snow day yesterday) day of February Break, and he was NOT happy. Loved this cute picture.
Perfect pawing – I miss that in the morning! Lovely poem. Thank you!
Margaret–“Yes makes sounds like an ocean”–I will carry that phrase with me. You set a high bar here! I love the discipline of the form (even though I cheated a bit) and the thinking it provoked. Sometimes we just need to value quiet mornings for what they are.
Contented
“When you are discontent, you always want more, more, more. Your desire can never be satisfied. But when you practice contentment, you can say to yourself, ‘Oh yes – I already have everything that I really need.’” Dalai Lama
Contented
Quiet joy
Morning, book-open, dog-dozing.
Everything I really need.
Hearts-ease.
GJ Sands
2/17/24
Gayle, everything about your poem speaks of the gentleness of a morning (my entrance into the day began quite differently!). I love the phrase “hearts-ease.” I will carry Dalai Lama quote with me too.
Gayle, the use of the quote here and your personal spin on how your elfchen was born is a delightful process to witness. There is no purer contentment than a dozing dog, I don’t believe, anywhere. Hearts-ease is a deeply peaceful word to carry into the day. Such truth from the Dalai Lama!
I have been trying more and more to live in the present moment, to know contentment and embrace it with quiet joy. I relax with this poem knowing that right here, right now, everything is fine.
Gayle, I love the quote you chose to explore through this prompt this morning. Your poem catches the essence of being content in the moment. Thank you for your wisdom!
Gayle, I love the emotion and rhythm your poem exudes. I especially enjoyed your last word: “Hearts-ease”. What we really need in life is truly simple.
Gayle, beautiful, serene, warming poem!
Your poem eased by heart! Thank you!
contentment being “heart-ease” is so perfect.
Margaret, thank you for hosting us today with an elfchen. I have enjoyed reading your elfchens on your blog and was hoping this would become a prompt form. I also love the glimpse into your journal. Washi tape! A journal’s best friend. Your poem of truth coming in thrumming rain is deep and thought-provoking, and I like that it makes me imagine it. Mine is inspired by my dogs as we walked this week along the firebreak line for the prescribed burn on the farm.
firebreak
illuminates tracks
schnoodle noses enflamed
decadence of wildlife sweets
deer-ssert
A man made wildlife path- with a very poetic ending!!! I appreciate the double meaning at the end – 😁
Yes to washi tape! Love it. Also, deer-ssert. I’ll bet there is some fancy pup-treat that tastes like venison. LOL. Love the idea of how firebreak can be many things.
Kim, I am imagining this scene along the firebreak and thinking about how spring prep in the south has already begun (we had inches of snow overnight). I felt your words jump to life in each line, reminding me of fire leaping and spreading. I’m ready for my own spring desir-erts to bloom!
Kim–what a picture you have created–“decadence of wildlife sweets”–every dog’s dream of perfection!
“decadence of wildlife sweets” digs in. I can even smell it.
Hi, Kim! Talk about precise choice of words! You mastered it, my friend. I love the image your created from vivid “illuminate tracks” to consonance with [n] in “schnoodle noses enflamed” and [d] in “decadence of wildlife sweets // deer-ssert.”
I just love your metaphor “decadence of wildlife sweets” here.
Kim, love how you show the action through your carefully chosen words and word play. I especially enjoyed enflamed, decadence and deer-ssert. Very fun poem!
Kim, fire was in my head earlier today… maybe because a fiery Rhode Island Red rooster was strutting around my yard (he’s gorgeous and deserves a poem of more than eleven words, so). You’ve painted this scene so vividly that I can smell the woodsmoke (a favorite scent) and see the dog’s noses working the air. -Deer-ssert! A crown of an ending line!
Can just imagine those schnoodle noses! I love the play on words – deer-ssert. Made me smile! Thank you!
Margaret, I am particularly pulled by “Yes/makes sounds/like an ocean”—how compelling and yet gentle. I have been engaged by your elfchen poems, and will try one:
Grandmother
devotion, love
when visiting us
Matryoshka of hidden selves
secret-keeper
So much story packed in these little lines…the story of a mother’s children’s children…a visit and the matryoshka, keeper of secrets. I want to know more!
Carol–I had to really delve back in my mind for what a Matryoshka was. What a perfect metaphor–secret keeper. I think I want to meet your grandmother!
The fourth line metaphor here with a grandmother keeping secrets is nothing less than a masterpiece of a metaphor. I, too, want to know more just like Linda does. There is something about the mention of a secret here and the not telling (secret, defined) leaves us itching for what could be.
Ohhh! I love how the poem unboxes, just like the matryoshka dolls, each line opening up another and another. As I read, I feel the lines stepping aside to unveil more until we reach the end and are still left with what is yet to be revealed. So good, Carol.
I admit to looking up “Matryoshka” but immediately got the image of nesting dolls, of course, and the many layers that lead from grandmother to secret-keeper. Lovely.
Hi Carol,
I’m in awe at the power and presence you give to us in just 5 lines and 11 words! Love the ending!
Margaret, what a great example you give in your notebook of how your inspiration comes for the elfchen about looking up. You have given us such great examples. Thank you and to Mary Lee too.
I have had the privilege of being in Sao Paulo this week. All the people we’ve met have been so helpful and lovely. Here is an elfchen about those Paulistanos I’ve been privileged to meet. The photo is a view out my hotel window this morning.
Paulistanos
Greet kindly
Pursue life audaciously
Drink deeply of Amor
Vivacious
Excellent! With photo, too!
Kevin
Such wonderful—bountiful, really—word choices that made this elfchen delicious: “audaciously”, “drink deeply” and “vivacious”….not to mention the beautiful blue sky in the photo, as well!
How wonderful! At New Year, I was talking to a couple that highly recommended San Paulo for a visit. And now, I see poetry from yours. I think this place is calling me…or maybe I just want it to. “Drink deeply of amor” is just lovely. Safe travels.
Denise–way to put a hole in my contentment–now I’m jealous–of your view and your poem! 🙂 “Pursue life audaciously” says so much about the people and the place.
Oh, to pursue life and drink deeply of love. The vivacious word choice at the end just pops this poem right into an extra charge of life.
Denise, I can feel your love of the people in each line, and as one builds to the next, I can see you connecting more deeply with them, almost like each day (line) brings you closer to knowing them more. What a beautiful image – both your words and the photo!
Wonderful word choices, audaciously, amor, vivacious. This form fits you like a glove.
Denise, what a beautiful photograph to help capture the beauty and vivaciousness you describe of Sao Paulo. I can feel that sunshine from here! Loved your metaphor! Beautiful!
Denise, I love the phrase “[p]ursue life audaciously”! And thank you for the picture, too!
Beautiful and sunny and warm – big gulp of amor! Lovely, Denise!
Denis,
You know I love travel poetry, and I must say yours is amazing g. Love the tribute and the photo view. Cant wait to hear more about your trip.
This form is such an invitation to play. “Banter to balderdash” makes me giggle. “Truth to presence” makes me think. You make this form look easy.
Page
words in line
beginning, middle, end
a story’s paper portal
Magic
Ah, that fourth line … evocative of the power of story (with alliteration thrown in for rhythm)
Kevin
Love the transformation from “page” to “magic”, Linda, and the seemingly matter-of-fact yet so significant movement through words to substance to an open door to “magic”.
Love a story’s paper portal!! Thanks for sharing!
Linda, is there a better word to leave the reader with than magic? If there is, I sure don’t know it. The magic in pages is indeed a paper portal of a book. What a gem you have written. A magical elf-chen!
Linda–I love “a story’s paper portal”–the doorway to our words!
Oh, the magic of a story well told. I do find the form easy, but not every one is good. The practice of it is.
LOVE “paper portal”
I love this, Linda! I think it should be written on a library wall. It is a perfect invitation to read. Thank you!
thank you for a thought provoking prompt this morning- may your day be blessed 😇.
E’s Cough
Bitterness,
Heated Palms ,
Nestled Beneath Chins,
Steaming Our Thought Engines,
Awakened 🪽.
-Boxer
Boxer, you give such a story in these few lines…Bitterness to awakened, there’s intensity in those thought engines.
Wowza
Kevin
Boxer–so much in so few words. You paint a picture of tension. Wow.
The visual imagery and sound combine to bring a picture of wonder, and the x in a darkened box at the end after such a powerful word means I will return to this one several times to ponder all the possibilities of meaning here. I like when a poem does that.
“Steaming our thought engines” is a wonderful and mysterious metaphor. A puzzle from bitterness to awakened.
Ooooooffff! Powerful with only 11 words!
E’s Cough is Coffee 🪽
What a lovely form – compact, but not too much — and beautiful examples, Margaret.
Ivory
struck, rung
bass into treble
in harmony or solo
Piano
— Kevin
Lovely…that first word gives me such a color image and then the bsss gives me a sound that I love.
The movement and music is so clear in your words—lovely!
I hear middle C, then C, G, C as a harmonizing chord. I like the sensory appeal in the color, sound, and feel of these keys this morning. “Hey Google, play harmonizing piano music for reading poetry!” (actual command just now). Love the places this poem goes.
Kevin–your words reflect the sounds of the instrument. from the first notes to the melody. I wish I could play piano…
My mother and my brother were/are pianists. The instrument was rarely silent in my home growing up. I hold your poem with love.
If you haven’t already, read Piano Lessons by Noah Adams. My resolution this year is to learn/play a new piece each month. Thank you for reaching me.