A very special thank you to our January Open Write Hosts: Anna J. Small Roseboro, Dave Wooley, Larin Wade, and Leilya Pitre. We are so grateful for your care with our words and hearts. We hope that you will write with us again in February (17-21) with poets Margaret Simon, Linda Mitchell, Wendy Everard + Creative Writing Students, Britt Decker, and Amber Harrison. And mark you calendars for April’s Verselove, 30 days of poetry.
Our Host: Leilya Pitre
Leilya lives in Ponchatoula, LA, a small town celebrated for its strawberries. She teaches and coordinates the English Education Program at Southeastern Louisiana University. An editor and contributing author of Where Stars Meet People: Teaching and Writing Poetry in Conversation and one of the curators of Dr. Bickmore’s YA Wednesday Weekend Picks, Leilya loves people, cultures, and their rich traditions. She reads, writes, listens to music, visits her children and grandchildren, or travels with her husband.
Inspiration
It is Wednesday, and, like all of you, I have been busy at work and at home. Sometimes by the end of the day, I have just enough energy to land on the sofa and scroll through the messages and read news on my phone before going to bed. If you feel like that, this prompt is for you.
I want to introduce a short poetry form—Naani. The Naani poem has its roots in India. It is the most popular of the Telugu poems. “Naani” means an expression of one and all. It was created by one of India’s renowned poets, Dr. N Gopi and shares some similarities with haiku. Like the Japanese form, Naani poetry has a set line and syllable counts. It consists of 4 lines and usually consists of 20 to 25 syllables total. The poem is not restricted by themes, subjects, or any metric patterns. Any human relations, events, experiences, and/or thoughts are welcomed.
Here is an example, written by Julia James:
Balancing Act
Life is a tightrope
Sometimes you will fall
But step out in faith
You are only inches off the ground
See more examples of Naani here and here
Process
You may write Naani using your imagination about any topic, subject, person, or object, or you may follow these instructions:
- Scroll through your messages on the phone or your feed in on any social media platform.
- Find four phrases that catch your eye.
- You may use them as is or paraphrase for clarity of meaning
- Remember, the Naani poem should have between 20 and 25 syllables.
My poems didn’t originate from the phone messages; they are rather philosophical, but I will try to write one alongside you today.
Leilya’s Poem
Wednesday
The week is not new,
And yet has a few days
To turn and change your life
Forever before it ends
Joy
Comes in countless shapes,
Forms, sizes, but the most enjoyable
When touches you
With tiny hands and smiles
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.
Leilya, what a fun prompt and poem format. I have fallen a bit behind in sharing poems each of these days, but it has been on my mind in the prewriting process. Somehow my poem ended up merging with a previous prompt I have not yet written either. So, it’s cool to see the two prompts come together as one into this poem.
I took all the lines from text messages (including the title) and merged them to work together. I searched “maybe” in my messages and found that word is used often for me and those I text. This poem is not a Naani, but without your prompt I wouldn’t have gotten this poem which I really, really like.
Thank you for providing the space and opportunity for writing. I like myself better when I think creatively in these ways — playing with words.
Maybe They Are Fools (Two HaHa Crying Emojis)
Maybe you – maybe –
maybe we hang out this week – go dancing or something
Maybe Friday, Sunday, next Tuesday! – Meet at 11, maybe later…
(Maybe she will think about it.)
Yeah. Maybe.
Maybe, if my dad will let me.
Then, maybe it’s not the time right now.
Maybe another time; some day!
Maybe for Spring Break in March.
Maybe next year…only 30 years.
Yeah. Maybe.
Maybe I’ll drink enough – gain some dance moves.
Maybe it’ll be the Jägermeister, maybe I’m born with it.
Maybe some of my energy can rub off on [others].
Maybe something simple: I can call you;
maybe just stick with that.
Yeah. Maybe.
(Maybe ask him???)
Then, maybe no maybes.
(Yes.
Yes.
Yes.
Yes.
Yes.)
Amber, what a fun approach to the prompt(s). I love what you’ve done with the maybes. Now I want to search my texts! Nicely done.
Yes, Mo! It was so fun. You’ll have to let me know what you find and rearrange.
Hi, Amber! I am so glad I came back to check in the break between the classes if someone else has posted since this morning. Your poem, like Mo says, makes me want to check for my maybes. I use them quite a bit in the emails and the feedback to students when suggesting some things. I like the word “maybe” for it’s not imposing; it is suggesting. It is more about the possibility rather than about condition (should) or mandate (must/have to).
Love what you have done with this topic and then in combination with the previous prompt.
I love the ending:
“Then, maybe no maybes
(Yes.
Yes.
Yes.
Yes.
Yes.)”
It makes me think that the indecisiveness has a possibility to turn into something that may actually happen. And then all the “yeses” in italics – as if an internal rejoicing over the possibility. Thank you for sharing!
You picked up on exactly what I was trying to convey. That maybes become things that actually happen and the internal rejoicing of that.
Yay! I am happy the message is so hopeful.
Thanks for the inspiration and the prompt to go through messages: interesting what arose. I ultimately chose this from my text chain with nine women I went to high school with. One woman’s mother suddenly passed away this year, and we shared lots of memories of her perhaps overly-permissive but very kind and accepting mother.
To Dot
I’m fresh out of Fuzzy Navels
so I’ll toast to your mother
with my coffee instead.
Sending our love.
Emily,
I love the turn from fuzzy navels to coffee. And the final thought in the last line. This is a really nice tribute poem.
Hi, Emily! Sorry about your communal loss. Let her rest in peace and live in your memories. It is a very warm and touching poem beginning with “Fuzzy Navels” and ending with “Sending our love.” Thank you for sharing these messages with us!
I particularly am fond of the last line of sending love in this situation. It’s appreciated and healing.
Leilya,
I’ve never heard of a Naani poem before.Thank you for the introduction. My daughter is redoing her room, using old books as artwork.
Old Room Refreshed
A splash of color
transforms her room
she papers walls with words & phrases
creates art from old book pages
Tammi, this sound like a great project. I don’t know if I could stay away if my daughter would be redoing her room. I love that “she papers walls with words & phrases” and I am wondering which words and phrases she uses because they would tell us so much about her apart from “creating art.” Thank you for sharing your poem!
Tammi, so many folks want to know what to do with print books now that so many are available electronically … and don’t have to be stored and dusted. What a creative way to preserve stories and artwork! No, I’m not advocating for tearing up books, but if there is no choice, why not decorate with them. 🙂
Oh! Wow! I like how it flows with such rhythm and it appears to rhyme, but doesn’t. I enjoy reading that.
Leilya, thank you for your lovely offering today of both the prompt and your poetry! I loved your elegantly expressed sentiments. “Joy,” in particular, brought back memories of my kids’ youths and made me smile. My oldest had to return to college today, and I type this at the desk in her room (now my temporary office).
Seated at her desk
in her room, pink
blinks at me from everywhere:
her absence palpable.
Oh, Wendy! I am right there with you –hugs, hugs, hugs! My kids are far away, and I miss them so much! You said it perfectly: “her absence palpable.” Hope she is back long before the Spring Break.
Wendy,
I feel this — “absence palpable.” I only have one of my three children left at home, and the house is so quiet. Miss my older two all the time.
Awww, so much in a few syllables. I like the pink blinks- reminds me of blinking away a tear or a quiet. Thanks for this!
This has been a very rewarding five days. My thanks go out to Dave Larin, Anna and Leilya. It is such a pleasure to get my mind out of a rut with these lovely prompts. Here are two for today.
As they slowly strolled
she could only surmise his motives
when he slyly smiled
and put his arm around her.
____________
Her eyes opened
wide with surprise
as a brilliant magenta
greeted her with a new hopeful morning.
What sweet poems, Susan! I really enjoy the brevity of this form, don’t you?
I love the alliteration Susan! “slowly strolled” and “slyly smiled”- the 4th graders at my school are in their poetry unit right now, and I tell you they are having difficulty with figurative language because at that age they are so…literal! I’ve been able to share bits and pieces with them and I don’t know if they do, but I sure do enjoy it!
Susan, thank you so much! Your first naani is full of love, and the second is full of promises. Both are beautiful with careful word choices.
Susan,
I love the story you created through this image of the stroll. So much conveyed in four lines.
I love the brilliant magenta giving hope- these lines are so vibrant!
Leila, Thank you for the new-to-me form. Really appreciated the combination of a structure and a place to look for poetry. Just the push I needed. I had fun trying to get the structure to work. Couldn’t get the last one short enough yet. Oh well, wabi sabi.
Wimberley Walk
Ice flowers
Frozen spiderwebs
Trees green on the leeward side
Frozen on the windward
Once a Farmer’s Daughter…
Is the rain needed?
My mentor texts from South Dakota
The daughter of farmers
She’s always pragmatic
Returning for Year Four!
My teammate who tells me I’ve been teaching
waaaaaaay longer than she’s been alive
tells me she’s stopped making lists
of reasons to leave teaching
Hi, Sharon! Thank you so much for your generosity today – three beautiful poems. I first read the titles and was itching with anticipation. “Frozen spiderwebs” sound so beautiful and full of mystery. Love the pragmatism of a farmer’s daughter in your second poem. I also consider myself pragmatic, and not just about the weather, so this one is very close to my beliefs. In the final one, I like the sound of “waaaaaaay longer,” and want to assume that the teammate “stopped making lists / of reasons to leave teaching” because she wants to stick to it as long as she lives. Absolutely beautiful poems!
Sharon,
Love the images in Wimberly Walk. I can see those frozen spiderwebs and partially green trees. Makes me long for spring.
Thank you for introducing me to a new form of poetry. I enjoyed playing with it.
A work in progress
The acrylic, the artist
Painting this life
One stroke at a time
Heidi,
Your poem gives me such a sense of calm and of hope. Thank you for slowing my thoughts.
Heidi, this is great. The short form suits your subjects well. That “One stroke at a time” really helps with the pacing.
This is beautiful Heidi. I believe poetry is a work of art so to use the analogy of the artist and painting with poetry-the author “painting this life one stroke at a time.”
Hi, Heidi! Thank you for “playing” with us today. My favorite lines are “Painting this life /
one stroke at a time.” I am wondering about “this life” as a part of eternal existence.
Being a painter, of course I love this poem. You are so correct with you last lines of painting a life one stroke at a time. Thank you for this one. I will remember it.
Heidi,
This is such a beautiful message. We are all works in progress!
Heidi,
I really like the rhythm that you establish in the poem. The musicality of these lines really pull me in.
Thank you for hosting today Leilya. This is something fun and reminds me of the book I hope this finds you well, the collection of poems by Kate Baer. I can also see this as healing. Also, thank you for the reminder that today is Wednesday. There have been many icy/snowy days in Arkansas the past few days so I’m forgetting the days. It’s interesting how your words of “And yet has a few days” is a reminder that my district has lost 4 days of instruction since January 15th so now we are trying to recoup and recover. My poem is from a message I had with a mom friend of mine who had to make some big decisions. I emailed her first, giving her some kind words and love and the result is the exchange below.
Plate spilling over with blessings
heart is too big
Lot for me to digest
I completely understand
Hi, Jessica, Yes, it does remind me of that book. If you scroll a bit, I wrote another poem with a reference to that book. I can’t even imagine how people will catch up on four days; we lost one day, and I already feel like we are a mile behind.
I love how you support your friend mom, and your poem once again reassures me that while we have someone to lean on and share our pain and struggle, we will overcome. Your hear is huge! Thank you!
Jessica,
There is so much emotion in your poem. I love the way your poem feels like a conversation, especially the last line “I completely understand.” Those are words that friends need to hear.
Leilya! How fun! I love a new form and especially one without theme constraints. I instantly thought about the recent passing of dear Dexter King. So sorry to imagine the sorrow the King family continues to suffer.
And thanks to all of our amazing hosts this week! I loved being back here with you.
Dexter, age 62, ascends to heaven
Martin and Coretta
open arms
“Welcome home, son.”
©Stacey L. Joy, 1/24/24
Beautiful. So sad, but beautiful.
Stacey,
Somehow I missed this news. “Ascends” is the perfect word, connoting rising above and a heavenly image. 62 is too young. 😔
What a tribute Stacey Joy! Your last line resonated with me: “Welcome Home, Son”. It’s a reminder that this world, full of hate, is not our final resting place. As I read the headlines, my heart weeps for the family as his death was sudden. I pray that they continue to fight and that one day Dr. Bernice King will see valleys of orchards, the fruits of the King family’s labor.
Oh, Stacey! This is sooo beautiful and sad. I love the image and the visual of the poem. “Welcome home, son” to me is both heartbreaking and uplifting; I can’t even explain it. Thank you for such a gift and remembering Dexter King!
Stacey,
“Welcome home, son” — beautiful and heart wrenching! I somehow missed this news. Thank you for your poem.
Thank you, Leilya, for the sheer joy of playing with syllable counts in a new form – this was fun!
make hay with daily writing
comb through spread seeds
find the golden needle
a poem within
Maureen, you had me from your first line. Love your action words and the line “find the golden needle”. With just a few words, you’ve created a powerful poem. Stunning!
Maureen,
This is a lovely play on “needle in a haystack” imagery. In these first seven days of the Stanford Challenge I have welcomed so many poem starts into my notebook and on my phone’s app. They’re not all “golden needles,” but they are “seeds.”
Hi Maureen,
I think this beautiful poem lends itself to be becoming the striking line for somebody’s golden shovel poem next month… hint hint.
💙
Hi, Maureen! Your poem is a gem, and “find the golden needle” is priceless. That’s what true poets do, and you showed it with such ease and grace. Thank you!
You describe the act of composing a poem very well, Maureen. For me it is combing through the haystack to find the gold.
I love this! Reminds me somehow of Rumplestiltskin.
Leilya,
I appreciate learning a new form and thinking about the truths in your poem, the idea that we experience the old and new simultaneously. My poem is inspired by a book I’m reading, I Have Some Questions for You by Rebecca Makkai. The photo is one I took December 30, 2023 near Lava Hot Springs, Idaho on U.S. Highway 30.
Slip
How easy it is to fall—
face plant on cement
slide from confident adult
back to adolescence.
Glenda Funk
1-24-24
I am so glad you mentioned that you were inspired by the book – or I’d have some questions for you! We should dare to slip and slide and rediscover the younger self.
Glenda, wow, you have definitely captured a truth here. Your photo is sensational. Love the color and sense of magnificent beauty. I so understand the dramatic change one deals with by a simple twist of the ankle which you’ve capture perfectly in the lines:
face plant on cement
slide from confident adult
back to adolescence.
Very dramatic photo and poem combination! Bravo!
Glenda,
Oh, this reminds me of how frightened I was when my grandmother fell down and hurt herself. As a little girl, it really traumatized me. It’s so scary how a fall can turn into a life-changing effect.
Thank you for reminding me to watch my step and stop texting and walking.
This image poem is just beautiful, Glenda – and the words, so poignant and true!
Glenda, “slide from confident adult back to adolescence”. This line…every now and then, when life gets hard, I wish I was a kid again. So innocent, so carefree, and happier. But then I realize that as an adult, I had a life to live and I’m glad I have evolved from the “Toys R’ Us kid! Thank you for sharing.
Hi, Glenda! I need to check out the book you are reading because I always have tons of questions. Your poem throws me back to my awkward moments which happen from time to time and that “slide from confident adult / back to adolescence” becomes unavoidable both in connotative and denotative meanings.The colors in the photo are incredibly beautiful. Thank you for sharing.
Glenda, this is the poem for me today. I took a side plant today in a muddy riverbed and luckily I fell in sand. However, my confidence was really taken back. Thanks for the reminder in your lovely poem.
I like that image and I feel reduced to teenage angst every time I lose footing!
Leiyla, thank you for introducing me to this new form, and for the suggestion to mine our texts and social media feeds for lines. The exercise was super cool! After rabbit-holing through texts, the first 2 lines are mostly verbatim, edited for syllable count and, ahem, an inappropriate “sentence enhancer”.
Incoming text from the kids who decided on their own,
to go to the New York Public Library, on their own
“Y’all lame 4 not taking us
to the NY public library!!!”
Damn… the kids
are gonna be alright.
Those kids “are gonna be alright,” Dave! They certainly know a great place to go, and I would join them in a heartbeat. Thank you for making me smile! I like how you used verbatim “Y’all” and “4,” which is so authentic in today’s communication. I teach Advanced Grammar junior/senior level college this semester, and when I pull out things like this, my students look mighty surprised 🙂
Wonderful! Finding the gift of the message in their overheard words.
Dave, I love how you open with the text and follow it up with the adult reaction. I had to laugh at your editing skills! Very fun poem!
Dave!!!! Mic drop poem!! 🎤🎤🎤🎤
As I happily distract myself by reading the poems you crafted, I am endlessly grateful for your generosity with words. I promised to write a poem alongside you today to try out something from messages. The text messages didn’t help, but when I opened my Google Search feed, which apparently knows me well, my Naani poem was there (see the screenshot below). Those who attended the Book Club on Sunday know my title reference.
Go Read a Book (after Kate Baer)
Every “cool” teacher
Offers an alternative to
The ‘science of reading’ —
Read some fiction
The headline about the “science of reading” got cut at the top of the second photo.
Love that you are writing alongside us! Reading fiction is the best of alternatives.
Thank you Leilya for sharing the work you’ve done today. Love your perfectly delivered final line: “Read some fiction” Yes!
LOL! I love the “cool” teacher graphic! This is awesome. And I love the resolution, we all need to read some fiction from time to time!
Leilya, What an insightful way to use Naani style. Thanks for reminding us of yet, another short. focused way to poetically relay facts, thoughts and experiences. Some educators may find this a powerful formative assessment tool. “Tell me briefly what we’re learning this week!” Here’s mine showing some of the facts I’ve learned about elephants!
Elephants, largest mammals on earth
Land animals’ biggest babies at birth
Famed for families and forever memories
But slain for what their teeth are worth
Oh, Anna, this is a powerful naani and call to action.
Sarah
Thank you, thank you for such a majestic photo of elephants and your poem, Anna! The final two lines made me sad thinking about their fate in the world of greed and consumerism.
You’ve shown how Naani can be used to show understanding about a topic. I have hurt for elephants for years, that they would be killed for money.
Many countries have made importing ivory illegal and others have taken in elephants to their zoos to preserve them somewhere!
In fact, I’ve been so moved by what I’ve learned about elephants as faithful family members, that one of the children’s books I’ve written addresses their preservation. You can see one such book by searching online. I’m not gonna use this space to more specific. Sarah has been generous enough with us already!
Leiyla, It is so good to share this space with you today! I love playing with syllables and this new poetry form is new to me which makes it extra fun. I read your post earlier in the day, had a 4 hour dental appointment, and a flat tire. Some days are like that. LOL! Perhaps I was inspired by your poems, but as I sat down to write I couldn’t think of anything so I went to my metaphor dice and came up with this Naani.
time is a small town midwife
laboring between midnight
calls, coffee breaks,
delivering joy and pain
Barb Edler
24 January 2024
Oh, Barb, what a perfect metaphor for your day. Beautiful image. Sometimes time delivers joy and sometimes pain, as that FOUR-HOUR dental appointment might have, and flat tire on top of it! I love that you are still LOLing.
Barb, I am, too, happy to “meet” with you here again. Sorry for the day full of bumps. You made the best of it with your metaphor of time. I love the notion of time as fluid, changing, and balancing “joy and pain.” Beautifully crafted! Thank you 🙂
Barb,
That metaphor thread pulled through the lines is very moving “laboring between midnight/calls” and that “delivering joy and pain” is everything. There are both. Time only offers both. Labor, I imagine, only offers both.
Sarah
Oh, Barb! So relatable! The verb choices (laboring, delivering), the objects (calls, coffee breaks) continue this metaphor so beautifully (I almost pulled out my metaphor dice today too!). You capture so much in this Naani, which is both beautiful and impactful.
Barb,
What a lovely image. It harmonizes w/ “Call the Midwife” and reminds me of a time when I felt like a human rather than a numerical nuisance when going to the doctor. I’ll be thinking about time personified the ready of the day. That’s truly a retaliatory metaphor.
“time is a small town midwife” – what a fun offer from the dice! Seeing it in the Naani, it becomes a profound message for one and all.
Barb, first of all, what a day! This poem is inspiring me to dig up those metaphor dice from somewhere deep in my drawer. The small town midwife is a really vivid image. I love the last line and your enjambment choices!
Barb!! What a dynamite metaphor you created. Time is definitely like that midwife!!
Thank you, Leilya. This is a fun prompt for a busy Wednesday. I love the idea of using what we see in our texts and social media to inspired poetry. Creative and fulfilling practice that could become! This from a photo my daughter sent this morning in the Milo Fan Club group.
A big kid climbing
the rope bridge at the park
inspired my toddler grandson
to dream big.
Denise, wow, your poem is absolutely precious. I love your use of precise and simple language to show the idea of possibilities a toddler can aspire. Love how you ended with “to dream big”. Truly, a perfect children’s poem!
Hi, Denise! I read your poem with a smile imagining your toddler grandson watching “[a] big kid climbing.” This is how kids learn to “dream big,” by example. It makes my heart warm and fuzzy. I like how you paralleled a big kid with dreaming big. Thank you, friend!
Denise,
Lovely image here of the mentoring we need to dream — to know/witness that it is possible. The “rope bridge,” however, must have been a little scary for a first timer.
Peace,
Sarah
Oh! Delightful! I am smiling, imagining your grandson watching the bigger child perform. What a whimsical way to ‘record’ our grandchildren’s big moments – to write a sweet Naani as a caption.
I had to come back and add the photo. 🙂
I was wondering why you didn’t, but thought of privacy and protection. This makes the poem more visual. That rope looks a bit intimidating. Thank you for sharing this cute little “big dreamer” with us!
Such a sweet story-poem-Naani, Denise – and I can envision the scene!
Denise,
Don’t you just love the way toddlers climb and explore? Now I’m thinking about the poem I need to write about my grandson and his climbing and the traversing of rope bridges in Ireland I need to write into poetry. I particularly fixate on the “big kid climbing” as inspiration.
I love this, Denise! The way you crafted this with all of the “g”s and “d”s is wonderful, and I really like the repetition of “big” for both the kid — the mentor — and the “dream.” So good!
Thank you for introducing me to a new poetry form. And those who know me on here, know how much brevity is an issue for me. So, this forces me to be succinct.
Post-fallout
“Sounds like a plan; I can’t wait” her text says.
Finally, she embraces time with me.
Sharing space
is rare these days
~Susan Ahlbrand
24 January 2024
Susan, I feel your struggle with brevity. LOL I am so happy when “Sharing space” with our loved ones is possible. Lucky you! My kids may come to visit in a couple of weeks for Mardi Gras. I haven’t seen them since November, and it seems like forever. Thank you for sharing your joy!
Susan, I can hear the ache to be with this person and that I infer is a child due to the “sharing space” line. Love your direct voice and word choices such as embrace, sharing, and rare. I can relate!
Ah, enjoy this rare opportunity. I love the image that she “embraces time with me.” So beautiful.
Possibilities
by Mo Daley 1/24/24
Global Entry I D
in hand, the world
opens easily to me.
Where shall I go?
Mo, I love the passport feel – – a ticket of entry to the world, and feet ready to take a direction.
“Just go. You’ll figure it out along the way,” would say one of my college professors 🙂 I love the anticipation and trip planning! Waiting for summer. Thank you, Mo!
Mo, the movement and actions within your poem are vivid. Love your closing question. Is this a website? I’d love to learn more.
Global Entry is kind of a ramped up TSA Precheck. I’ve been waiting for months for my in-person appointment. Of course it’s today, when I am still under the weather and the actual weather here is crazy- rain, ice, and fog. Wish me luck!
Hope it went okay. Thanks for the information!
I love the title “Possibilities”. I hope you will go and go to places new and wonderful. I love the phrase “opens easily to me.”
Oh, yes, Mo. Congrats on that ID. And how lovely to imagine possibilities.
Peace,
Sarah
“Where shall I go?” is a big question. Lots of things to consider when traveling alone. I have spent the day today looking at travel brochures.
Also, Leilya I love your poem about joy and children! You captured a sentiment that I have been reflecting on for the past few days. I think it is cool how the title is actively a part of your poem, pointing the reader in the right direction when they start reading the first line. Thank you for sharing and for this prompt!
My pleasure! I learned about this gorm recently and was happy to share it with the teacher poets here.
*form
A look back at time
shows recharging needed.
You lucked out:
An invitation to write.
Oh, I am sorry, M M! I hope this little exercise helped to relax and forget about all the day’s commitments for a few minutes. Thank you for writing and sharing this morning! Have a wonderful day.
Thanks 🙂 The poem definitely sounds more dire than reality is: that’s what happens when it is built from email subject lines (Blaze Pizza ad, Autozone battery ad, Amazon ad, and an Ethical ELA reminder email).
I know! It is interesting to see though how the meaning changes taken out of context. Thank you!
M M, what a wonderful poem to celebrate Open Write. I love your choice of words especially recharging, lucked and invitation. Love it!
M M,
Yes, an invitation to write can give a recharge! Hope you continue to recharge, as needed.
Writing DOES recharge us! There’s been so much inspiration to do so this week – I think your Naani captures it perfectly.
I agree MM. This opportunity to write recharges many of us. We get to triple think! About ourselves, our teaching, and what’s happening in the news. And all by invitation. Thanks for that reminder.
Vision is a recipe card
at the bottom of the drawer
waiting for you to uncover
the steps to fatten dreams.
Sarah, I am going to keep this definition of vision for me and my students, especially when we write. I like that it is “waiting for you to uncover / the steps to fatten dreams.” Incredible! Thank you,
Leilya
This definition and metaphor of vision is just perfect, Sarah – – especially as I think of it like a recipe. A little of this, a little of that, let it rise, wait, and watch what happens.
Oh, Sarah, such a fun poem. I love the recipe card’s hope to becoming uncovered. Steps to fatten dreams, indeed. What a great image.
Sarah, wow, what a perfectly delivered ending line. The “fatten dreams” offers a clear insight to the type of recipe found. Love the concept of having a vision and being able to make it happen in a way that is fullfilling. Provocative!
I am laughing, Sarah, at the truth in “steps to fatten dreams.” l have been planning all day to make some date cookies. Thanks for reminding me of my vision.
Ruth
Bar-B-Que, southern freedom,
Friends, strong when you need them.
Life, whips like a tornado,
Savor, The Fried Green Tomato.
Your poem is a great example of how the poem works with and without a title. Two readings. I like the reading with Ruth and wonder if she is the “you” or if the speaker is telling Ruth the savor or Ruth telling us to savor. Fun reading and wondering on this Wednesday.
I am from Louisiana, Boxer, and know well how food and friends make our lives much better regardless of it “whip[ping] like a tornado.” Thank you so much for sharing! I think we have best people around us in times of needs.
You make me want to watch Fried Green Tomatoes and go for lunch at The Whistle Stop Cafe in Juliette. Yes to BBQ, Georgia style or any style!
Delicious! I love the savoring of this comfort food.
I really appreciate the craft in this. The focal point of the lines before the comma, the vivid imagery (especially life whipping like a tornado) and the element of rhythm and rhyme. Like Sarah, I wonder about the “Ruth” in the title and that adds to the complexity.
Leilya,
I just got a text last night that pretty much mirrors the poem. Thanks for the prompt, and the chance to learn a new form.
My son warns of Godzilla
His stomping for Hollywood
But it is his time…
Time for an Oscar.
Hi, Rex! Yes, it’s time for an Oscar! I am so glad the poem came to you through the text. Isn’t it amazing? Love the lines you chose. Thank you!
Oh. I am not up on the Oscars, so I am reading Godzilla as a metaphor for the committee stopping on dreams.
Peace,
Sarah
Yikes!
No Godzilla is nominated, literally, for Best Visual Effects… If the Academy is smart, they will give it to him.
Oh, now I see a new perspective.
Rex, the actions in your poem show so much “drama” and possibilities. I could imagine your second son heading to Hollywood which makes me ponder how a parent can support a child’s dreams even when they may seem impossible to achieve. Your last two lines seem two-sided. Very fun poem!
I shall pull for Godzilla…your poem made me smile.
Exams Today, New Semester Tomorrow
Ahh! turns to Agh!!
when one semester ends
and the next
so quickly begins
___________________________________________
Leilya, thank you for your mentor poems and your prompt today! You’re right, this poetic form is very accessible, and I can imagine that it will prove to be a great success in the classroom. (With that said, though, I’ll have you know that I have a notebook page full of variations of the above offering! And although some even meet the suggested syllable count, I kept coming back to this one – even though it’s two syllables shy. Shhh! Don’t tell anyone! Lol.)
You are so profoundly right with your title and poem today, Scott! Many of us go from “Ahh!” to “Agh!!” every time this “switch” happens. I love your explanatory note, as always. I decided not to count syllables in today’s poems. Shhh! 🙂
Yes, Scott. I was always so frustrated that the semesters could be designed to end before winter break to return after the new year for a fresh semester.
Scott, sitting right in that same place with you. A short breath before the frenzy begins anew, perfectly captured in your naani. This year, a couple of snow days/boiler problems added to the “rest,” allowing me to catch up on much work to prepare for the second half. No complaints here, though!
Scott,
I love the transitioning onomatopoeia. That isn’t something you see very often. I also get a really strong visual of one of my kids actually saying this. It could also be in regards to getting a snow day, and then finding they have to be made up later.
Scott, I can definitely relate to your poem!
Agh!! is right. Currently in grading purgatory!
In a word: TRUTH! I enjoy reading your post-poem scripts, too. Not everyone kept to the line or the syllable count… to this I say, poetic license. These are the poems that wanted to be written. 🙂
I wrote to a photo of my grandson. It’s also posted on my blog for This Photo Wants to be a Photo prompt. Thanks, Leilya, for a new-to-me form. I love short poems, small vases for beautiful bouquets of poems.
Paper butterflies
flutter through a wind
of imagination–
a child’s vision of wonder.
Margaret Simon, draft (Naani)
This is beautiful, Margaret.
I appreciate the description of small poems (my fav for morning writing) as “small vases for beautiful bouquets of poems.”
Kevin
Thank you, Margaret! This poem and a photo clearly reflect “a child’s vision of wonder.” Beautiful word choices! Your grandson is precious 🥰
What a treat to see this picture here. I am feeling a call back to the poem you wrote on Saturday (?) that included nectar and 🦋. So lovely to think of paper butterflies as a metaphor for all our wonder.
Peace,
Sarah
Beautiful – both the poem and the image. And what a keepsake of a memory that will be for you both. I hope you share it side by side.
I love this, Margaret. I feel like my strongest poems come from the purposes tied to friends and family. Love the winds of imagination, lots of directions this could go in terms of visualizing it.
I always enjoy how your pictures and images evoke such beautiful words – – from delightful and memorable moments spent with those you love.
Love the photo you shared with your poem, Margaret. Such a perfect children’s poem. Love “flutter through a wind/of imagination-” Beautiful!
Wondrous indeed – your poem, the moment, and certainly a child’s imagination.
My grandmother owned a harmonium,
fuzzy notes, breathy
like the velvety
warmth of a horse nose.
She played just for me.
“breathy
like the velvety
warmth of a horse nose” – such a beautiful simile.
Thank you for the tribute to your grandmother and her harmonium this morning!
OMG — a harmonium. I haven’t thought about that breathy instrument in some time.
I love the “warmth of a horse nose” reference. Perfect!
Kevin
Tellio,
Two rarity sensations in one poem. I love it. It took me to the last time I was at my sister’s and met her horse. Very evocative. It is even more special that it is about a shared event that only you and Grandmother had.
Tellio, oh my, I love the sensory appeal in your poem, the fuzzy notes, the velvety warmth of a horse nose. Your final line is so poignant. Sensational poem! I feel like I’ve experienced something extra special by reading your poem today.
I love this prompt! I have to dash to the shower and get ready for school…but my journal is loaded with fits and starts. Thank you!
Hi, Linda!
The day is young, and we have time. Looking forward to your poem 🙂
Leilya, what a perfect way to end the Open Write series! Your poems are striking in their clear, philosophical truths. Wednesday does hold hope! I feel those tiny hands of joy and see that smile (it’s my 2-year-old granddaughter!). I think I am going to love this form… these exact phrases came to me not in print today but from the TV just as I sat down to read your invitation – talk about serendipity:
From This Morning’s Newscast
Brace yourself:
the cicadas are coming…
the most beautiful sound
I’ve ever heard
Yes, Fran! And talk about poetry around us, right? You chose the perfect phrase chunks to craft your Naani poem. Love the sarcasm of “the most beautiful sound” in anticipation of cicadas. Thank you for writing with us these five days!
”The most beautiful sound I’ve ever heard” was exactly what the newscaster said; I couldn’t believe it, as it truly is a beautiful sound to me, evoking childhood summers spent with my grandparents, a time when I felt safer, happier, more sheltered and more loved than any other.
I can definitely understand how the sound might be the most beautiful to you, especially in connection with warm childhood memories. Thank you for clarifying my misunderstanding! 🙂
I beg to differ
I have seen enough
of their broods to know
that sound is an egg
cut into a tree.
Yay for a poem appearing, but as for cicadas, not my favorite sound, but it makes me reminiscent of summer.
Now, Fran, I may be stepping out on a limb here, but I didn’t read any sarcasm in this poem (maybe a bit of hyperbole perhaps). I really believe — given your affinity for the natural world — that you believe that cicadas produce “the most beautiful sound / [you’ve] ever heard.” Again, I could be mistaken, but I sensed no deception (or irony) here, lol. (Side Note: all your poems this month have been awesome, so well-written and so perceptive/insightful, just a pure joy to read, such gifts.)
Scott, your intuition is spot-on. Cicada songs are part of my most treasured childhood memories – summers spent deep in the countryside with my grandparents. The sound is so evocative of those beautiful times that it brings tears of longing and gratitude. I so appreciate your keen perception and your gracious words. I so love your work!
Fran,
Your poem makes me remember and feel so many things! I was talking with another teacher the just other day about cicadas and she mentioned that there are supposed to be a lot this year and it made me so excited. I have an entomology background and for me what stands out in a cicada is their coloring and wings: they seem like mini windows of stained glass.
The “…” at the end of your second line marks the transition from the fact/warning to the reaction well when I am reading it.
Thank you for sharing (and for celebrating cicadas :))
Fran, we are finding poetry everywhere today and I’m here for it! As always, you gather the words into just the right placement to share a story. I’m reminded of how sounds (and smells) take us right back to a place from our past (there’s a certain smell to spring days that put me in the midst of childhood and packing the car to drive south for spring break). I had a teacher who told us once that sound is the last to go when you pass away (I have no idea if that is true) and that we should talk to the person for as long as possible. I’m going to hold onto your poem for as long as possible today.
Fran, you remind me that I saw some kind of news article that only every (is it 221 years?) two different kinds overlap in upper Illinois and north of there. The double brood that are overlapping 13- and 17 year-emergences or something like that. They sound like summertime evenings with the windows open, and I love the sound too. But they scare my dogs quite hilariously when one flips upside down and spins out like a Nascar winner, circling its tail on the pavement. I can’t wait!
I love the focus on those ugly little signs of summer. It reminded me of the summer they were out in force, and our dog would gobble them, and you could hear them as they were in his throat.
Fran, ha! I love how you open and close your poem thinking about how I really do not enjoy the sounds of cicads but definitely love the idea of spring arriving soon!
Leilya, a perfect way to end our time together – short, snappy, quick, ease! Your Wednesday poem gives me an added push to keep going and make the most of the week. Thank you for sharing a new form. I headline-ripped a Naani today.
Baarbi
They pushed culture
With grit, genius
Clearly the voters
Didn’t understand
There’s no Ken without Barbie
Ha! I just saw the movie…great naani to capture the gist.
TRUTH, girl! I love the play on the title!
🙂
The injustice of the Greta snub … and Margot, too
Kevin
Hi, Jennifer, this is great! I heard about the Oscar nominations last night. You are right, some voters may lack understanding that “There is no Ken without Barbie.” Thank you for writing!
I love this! I may be one of the only left who hasn’t seen the movie yet. I like the word choice of grit and genius.
A to the men, preach truth, my friend! Amen.
Jennifer, I can totally relate to your poem. I was surprised Margot was snubbed. I appreciate your line “Clearly the voters/Didn’t understand” Yes, I agree, there is no Ken without Barbie. Perfect cultural poem for today!
Amen! I’m not watching the Oscars. I’m so pissed at the Barbie snubs. Barbie and Taylor Swift own Hollywood this year. The old guard needs to crawl into a box and get put up in a shelf to gather dust. Men need women much more than women need men. And did you see Hilary Clinton’s response? It’s priceless.
Jennifer, I’m with everyone else here, too! You nailed it! It’s just unbelievable (and, yet, totally believable, ugh, as one tweet put it, this is like, literally, the point of the movie…) Thank you for capturing the zeitgeist of this moment with your poem!
Indeed. Greta was robbed! Margo too. Your poem made me look up why Barbie was in the adapted screenplay category. NYTimes has a good article about the categories for anyone who is interested. Thanks for succinctly capturing the frustration of many movie fans.
How long will I sit here,
wondering, waiting
for the voice to let me know:
my words, delayed by snow
(Note: I had just finished counting syllables when the call came in — Snow Day, due to ice and snow. So to answer my own question: not long)
Kevin
PS – thanks for introducing us to a new form of poetry, Leilya
Kevin, I wish we had snow!! I could use a good cozy fireplace reading day. Enjoy it! I love that words, too, can be delayed by snow. Enjoy the slow snow word delay day.
I am saying that three times, fast: slow snow word delay day.
🙂
Kevin
Oh! I woke up to an early call yesterday. It’s always good but the waiting is the worst. Glad your wait was “not long.” Happy snow day!
woot! congrats!
You captured the waiting perfectly, Kevin! Enjoy – I could so use a snow day.
Lucky you! Thank you, Kevin, for the poem. Love the final line. The response is the best for you though. Enjoy the day – “slow snow word delay day,” as Kim put it 🙂
I just wrote in my notebook “Feeling tired. It’s raining, so no walk. I wish I could stay home.” Maybe that’s my poem for today. I envy your snow day.
Leilya, thank you for a fun short form today! Those little grandchild hands of joy are certainly the best kind of all. And to all our hosts this week, thank you for investing in us as writers! Your time in crafting engaging prompts is appreciated – and so are you! I took these lines from a family member.
Naani goat
William the goat
Was a character
The Sapelo cabin
Is a story
The fireplace remains
Love that last line, Kim, and the play on the poem form name. I am chuckling.
Kevin
Kim, glad to have been given a smile from your title (great title play) through your last line. I love that our poems can be found anywhere while also capturing what could be a moment lost over time.
Naani goat – too good! And what an intriguing, haunting bit of poetry! One begs to know what William did to the Sapelo cabin and why only the fireplace remains -!! I can see shadowy, flickering images in my head.
Kim,
You made me smile
The title is playful
William, the cabin, and fireplace
Make a witty Naani
Here is to poetry in our messages! Thank you for starting the poetry conversation this early Wednesday morning 🙂
Now I want to hear the story behind this. A goat? A cabin? Intriguing.
Kim, what a clever found poem from a text. Your ending is so provacative as I think you could put the goat and cabin together and contemplate the outcome. Excellent title, too!