Half Way Through the Progressive Poem

April 15 and it is my turn to supply a line for Irene Latham's challenge to group-write an epic Progressive Poem each April!

Woo-hoo!
But first...

I wrote these pre-poem thoughts, before I even read the first line. I thought I'd jot down what I thought I might/could/should do with the line no matter what the topic or event since it would be in the MIDDLE of the poem: 

• Wouldn’t it be fun to find a single word you could repeat in the line like an interruption?
• Maybe do a rat-a-tat-tat sound, or introduce an unusual sound?  
• Maybe introduce an interesting color word?  
• A texture/feeling?  
• A taste?  
• A smell?

Then I read Line 1 by Liz Steinglass:  "Nestled in her cozy bed, a seed stretched."

My thoughts about where the poem might go:

• I’m picturing the life of a plant, that grows old and returns to the earth, while her seeds grow where she stood, and in other places they were carried...by birds, animal fur, children...atop a mountain stuck to a climbers sock, in the woods where an animal dropped it...what adversities does each encounter?
• I could imagine being able to add almost any of the pre-poem ideas to this line as it stands.  But who knows where it will be by the time I read this again!

Some ongoing thoughts:

• Hey, there's a bird carrying it! That was in my thoughts.  Maybe it will go that way...
• This is crazy.
• What?  How...
• Oh, I see.  Yes.
• Try reading it out loud.  Yes, much better.
• Let's look at some interesting words in it: cozy, blooming, honeyed, feasting, whoosh, pulse, stardrops, moonbeams, embrace, sliding, dancing... so many!

And now, today - the poem.  This is what I was thinking as I read the poem today, preparing myself for the challenge of adding something worthy of this collaborative gem:

• Remember to read your thoughts about this poem BEFORE you write.  Maybe they will help you.
• Is the poem anything like what I'd imagined it would become?  Not really. 
• Loosen up.  Scramble your brain some, unscramble your brain some.  
• Have some coffee, sit for a bit.
• Read it again
• Joke about it with my husband, "I think I'll just write that Jasmine slipped out of the owl's talons and fell to the ground and the owl ate her, The End... 

• Get serious.

Did I  use a pre-poem idea?  In a way, I did.  I knew that I wanted it to be unusual, and an interruption for the half-way point if at all possible. It wasn't a taste or smell or texture that needed to come out - it was MOVEMENT! 

I think I did what I thought the middle of a poem should/could/would do.  See what you think.  Here's the poem today with my part added - its half-way point:
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Nestled in her cozy bed, a seed stretched.
Oh, what wonderful dreams she had!
Blooming in midnight moonlight, dancing with
the pulse of a thousand stars, sweet Jasmine
invented a game.

"Moon?" she called across warm honeyed air.
"I'm sad you're alone, come join Owl and me.  
We're feasting on stardrops, we'll share them with you." 
"Come find me, Moon called," hiding behind a cloud.

Secure in talons' embrace, Jasmine rose
and set. She split, twining up Owl's toes, pale 
moonbeams sliding in between, Whoosh, Jasmine goes.
Owl flew Jasmine between clouds and moon to Lee's party!

Moon, that wily bright balloon, was NOT alone.
                                                       Jas grinned,
                                                                
                                                               stretched,
                                                                          
                                                                     reached,
                                                                             
                                                                           wrapped
                                                                               
                                                                          a new,
                                                     
                                                   around          tender
                                                              rootlet

****************************************************************************

Take it away, Sarah!!  It is your turn!
See the sidebar navigation to keep track of this poem's progression.                    

                                

M is for MS NEAT and Minute Poetry

Poetry Form:  Minute Poetry - Minute Poetry has 12 lines of 60 syllables written in iambic meter. Its format is 3 stanzas of 8,4,4,4 syllables each.  The rhyme is aabb, ccdd, eeff.

Ms Neat

So many things to put in place

It's like a race;

A mess I fear  -

I neaten here.

Can never leave a speck of dirt

It seems to hurt

All must be fixed

Sorted, unmixed.

It's all just one big curse on me,

To live by sea

Where all this sand

Covers the land.

by Donna JT Smith

And here are more M vanity plates that I liked:

  

L is for LAUGH and Limerick

Lee Bennett Hopkin's Birthday....Suh- prize!!  It's a happy birthday day to Lee Bennett Hopkins!
And we are all having a happy, hoopla of a day to celebrate!
Limerick, anyone?  I think these two poem have both subjects covered today!

There once was a poet named Lee

Who dined often on lobster and tea;

He'd dream then in rhyme

Which cost him sleep time

But sometimes his verses were free.
(hee-hee!)

by Donna JT Smith, ©2018

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Which takes us to LAUGH:

Happy Lee-day

There are often times

That bring tears to our eyes

And tears to others as well,

But isn't it great

When the tears are of joy

And everything ‘bout it is swell.

This is one of those times

When the misty eyes smile

And we get to have cake,

Goodness sake!

So spoon up ice cream

And get out the knife

For it’s time for some Lee birthday cake!

Sprinkles aplenty

Adorn all the sweets

Ooooh, I want the frosting rose!

I’m watching my diet

As it goes to my waist

But at least it won’t drop to my toes.

So bring on the sugar

The sweetness and bliss -

Mayhaps a poem or two!

Oh, our misty-eyed wish is

For the happiest day

And so many more for you!

by Donna JT Smith, ©2018

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Also happy L day of A to Z, and Poetry Friday hosted by Robyn at Life on the Deckle Edge.

See you there!  Bring your own spoon!

K is for KITTIES and Kyrielle Sonnet

K is for a Kyrielle Sonnet for KITTIES:

A Kyrielle Sonnet consists of 14 lines (three rhyming quatrain stanzas and a non-rhyming couplet), with a repeating line or phrase as a refrain (usually appearing as the last line of each stanza). Each line within the Kyrielle Sonnet consists of eight syllables. French poetry forms have a tendency to link back to the beginning of the poem, so common practice is to use the first and last line of the first quatrain as the ending couplet. This would also re-enforce the refrain within the poem. Therefore, a good rhyming scheme for a Kyrielle Sonnet would be: 
 AabB, ccbB, ddbB, AB  or AbaB, cbcB, dbdB, AB


I chose the latter rhyming scheme for mine.  Actually I chose the latter, and switched (without realizing it until I showed it to my husband) to the former for the last two, then had to do some finagling to get it right.  It was easier to change the last two stanzas than the first, so did that.  I wanted to get some French in there...so "tout le monde" replaced "all the world" or "everything".  Finis.

Old Cat

The warm sun blankets old cat’s back,
Slitted eyes and whiskery face
Hide behind tail striped gray and black;
He dreams again of the wild chase.

The chase that begins with twitching
Then lowers to a crouch and brace -
That fidgeting kind of itching -
He dreams again of the wild chase.

Once all rodents got a trouncing,
He always jumped with feline grace,
Tout le monde was his for pouncing;
He dreams again of the wild chase.

The warm sun blankets old cat’s back;
He dreams again of the wild chase.

by Donna JT Smith, 2018
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More K vanity plates I found:

J is for Just Me and Jazzetry

Jazzetry is not so much a type of poem, but a poem recited to jazz music in the background.  I decided NOT to write Jazzetry for this today at the last minute, when I saw that I'd not written one.  I will, however, link you to one I did write back in 2012 so you can see/read/sing it.

This is a Joseph's Star poem.  It has no rhyme, and is written with 1,3,5,7,7,5,3,1 syllables, center aligned and no stanza limit.  Each line should have a complete statement in each line.

 Just Me

What?

The time's come?
Sky blue pink sunset.
Tomorrow's come unannounced;
The heavy door cracks open
One would go through it;
It can't be.

Alone?

By Donna JT Smith, ©2018

I'm sorry.  I don't know where this came from or why.  I wasn't sad until it happened.  Now I'm going to write a happy one so I don't have to have this ringing in my ears.

                                                          ******* +++++++ ******* +++++++

Here's one I just wrote using a Jeffreys Sonnet - an isosyllabic (only 8 syllable per line), 2 sestets with a cross rhymed couplet (the cross rhyme is in the 2nd to 4th syllable in each of the two lines of the couplet). Also there is a cross rhyme in the first line of the 2nd sestet (between the 2nd to 4th syllable), tying the 1st sestet to the 2nd. So the rhyme scheme would be: aabccb, (b)ddeffe, (e)g (g)e. The letters in ( ) are the cross rhymes.

Just Me

Is it just me or is the moon

Shining a more singier tune?

Is the loons' laughter happier?

Are the spring peepers cheepier,

And melty snowmen sleepier?

Are fingers a bit snappier?

Is downy tappier on wood,

And is the squirrel looking good?

Is it just me who smells spring?

I know the rocks and old leaves do

As small green shoots grow up and through

The warming mud to bring us things

Like flower zings in bluet field,

And garden yield of butter wings.

by Donna JT Smith, ©2018

I is for Indriso and In Faith

Vanity plates in Maine that start with I...and a poem form beginning with I...and they both go together...

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In Faith

By faith I know the roaring sun will reappear to face us,

the sleepy moon will return changed in the night,
 
and the pouring rains will fill soil with sustenance.


By faith I know the green grass blades will creep in cracks to fill gaps
and my heart will stand for good despite the dark.
I plant lilac and rose to fill breezes while we're here.


In faith and by faith I am walking;

This I know, it’s the sweetest way to go.

by Donna JT Smith ©2018

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This morning, after reading it last night and not being content with it, I rewrote.

In Faith 

By faith I know the roaring sun will reappear face bright,

the sleepy moon will return changed each night,
 
and the pouring rain will fill soil with its might.


By faith I know the grass will creep in cracks, greening spaces,
my sore heart will stand for good and look for soothing graces,
and lilac and rose will I plant to fill breezes with their traces.


In faith and by faith I am walking, this I know.

Faith is by far, the sweetest way to go.

by Donna JT Smith ©2018

Indriso has  two terzains and two one-line stanzas (3-3-1-1), with free use of the number of syllables in its verses. It admits all grades and types of rhyme. 

http://poeticconnections21.blogspot.co.uk/2011/05/what-is-indriso.html


Here's a nice one.  I tried writing one for this, but it just didn't take...
Feel free to try it!

H is for HBRGRL and Haibun

Oh, so many plates for H today!!!  But I picked HBRGRL!  I love it and it worked so well for a Haibun.  What is a Haibun? It combines short prose with a haiku.  Though a haiku doesn't have people in it, mine does... oh, well, sue me.   Click here for more info.

Visit other H blogs in this challenge today HERE.

  Here is the MASTER LIST of ALL participants who signed up for the #AtoZchallenge 2018!  

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Harbor Girl

There are girls and women who work at sea alongside their grandfathers, fathers, husbands, and brothers.  There are some who work on their own boats.  And there are women who stay at home and keep house and the books for their men who are out on the boats.  Whether they are on the water or on land, our harbor girls are a hardy lot.

gritty sand and salt

every surface layered

harbor girl's face glows

by Donna JT Smith, 2018

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Here are the other H vanity plates.  This was a difficult choice to make, there are so many good H vanity plates!

G is for Goblin and a Ghazal

I'm Blogging from A to Z in April writing poems A to Z about vanity plates in Maine A to Z.

Visit other G blogs in this challenge today HERE.

  Here is the MASTER LIST of ALL participants who signed up for the #AtoZchallenge 2018!

I chose to write a Ghazal.  The description is not fun to read, but go ahead and see if you can understand 

it before reading mine.  Bet you won't have a clue.  I had to find one to read first to make sure I was reading

it correctly..  I'm trusting that they are right.

This is not a form I would choose to sit down and write because it was pounding in my brain to be released.

No.  I will not find a random Ghazal wandering around in my brain waiting for an outlet, I'm sure. 

"A Ghazal is a poem that is made up like an odd numbered chain of couplets, where each couplet is 
an independent poem. It should be natural to put a comma at the end of the first line. The Ghazal 
has a refrain of one to three words that repeat, and an inline rhyme that precedes the refrain. 
Lines 1 and 2, then every second line, has this refrain and inline rhyme, and the last couplet should 
refer to the author's pen-name... The rhyming scheme is AA bA cA dA eA etc."

Links to the form:
https://www.poets.org/poetsorg/text/ghazal-poetic-form
http://www.shadowpoetry.com/resources/wip/ghazal.html

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Who's in the Barn?

They say there's a goblin in the barn
Floating between beams gray-brown in the barn;

I say there's an owl that howls
Swooping silently down in the barn;

Some whisper that a ghost prowls
Wearing gauze gown in the barn;

I say there's a goat with whiskery jowls
Who's a curious clown in the barn;

Could it be spooky specters in the barn's bowels,
Or benign beasts Mainely spies after sundown in the barn?

by Donna JT Smith, 2018

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My refrain was "in the barn".  The in line rhymes preceding each were "brown -down -gown -clown -sundown".  I chose to rhyme the first line of 2,3,4 and 5 with "howls" - though that is not necessary.  My pen name I took from my web page "Mainely".
 

Here are two more plates that are fun:

F is for Fix M and Free Verse

F is for Fix M and Free Verse or Fib??  Oh, and also for FRIDAY.... I'm scheduling my posting, so it just dawned on me that this is Poetry Friday!  So check out more poems at Amy's blog, The Poem Farm, where today's list of poetry blogs to visit is being hosted!  Also, check out the Progressive Poem instigated by sweet Irene Latham.  We are on Day 6 - Line 6 of a poem created by a group of 30 people.  My line doesn't come up until April 15, so who knows what will be happening at that point!  Join us is celebrating poetry this month!
Oh, yeah!!  And Matt Forrest Esenwine won the drawing for the jelly beans with his Theodora poem for Solar Bear! They were all out of Jelly Belly beans everywhere, but the Classics are on their way, Matt!  Thanks for that beauty of a twist in your poem!  Here's the link to the Padlet to read it if you haven't.

Visit other F blogs in this challenge today HERE.

  Here is the MASTER LIST of ALL participants who signed up for the #AtoZchallenge 2018!  

Free Verse is an irregular form of poetry in which the content is free of traditional rules of meter or rhyme.
Line breaks are the poet's main consideration at natural pauses or at points of suspense for the reader.
http://www.shadowpoetry.com/resources/wip/free.html   

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Fix 'Em

A broken voice

quavers

as a soul's cry

shimmers the

sidewalks

with shards of 

the lost whole

silica again

it is not

dust to dust

time

the weatherman calls for

cleansing showers

to revoke stains

and restore

mirrors

press through

all is right as

healing rain.

by Donna JT Smith, 2018 


Aw, then I had to go an read Namy's's E post and there it was...  a Fib poem. 
 THE FIB is a type of poetry that follows the Fibonacci series i.e 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21…It is an infinite series and the next number in the series in the sum of the two preceding numbers.

So I decided to try and adapt this one to that format just for some fickle fun.  And it wasn't as hard as I thought.  I evidently used mostly the right number of syllables in the right order to make the switch fairly fluidly and fluently.  
Fah-dah!

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I found this plate just after writing my FIX M poem.  It could have been an interesting poem subject!

I saw the owner in the car so stopped to ask about taking a picture, and ask if it was "finer print" or "fingerprint".  It was the latter, and she gave me a business card.  They make custom fingerprint rings right here locally.  I don't usually pass this information on, because I am not a commercial site, but suffice it to say, if you do a search on fingerprint - rings - Maine, you will find them!  It is well-worth a peek!

Spiritual First Thursday

Carol Varsalona is hosting today, and has asked us to speak to "Poetry as a Spiritual Practice of the Heart" in our small group of bloggers who take turns hosting the First Spiritual Thursday of each month.  Visit Carol at Beyond LiteracyLInk where she has posted links what others have said about this topic today.

I am also involved in the Blogging AtoZ Challenge, and just happen to have this first poem posted earlier for today, and the second poem is for tomorrow.   Coincidentally, they both speak to my need to write poetry that refreshes, renews and reminds my heart and soul that there is more to this life than meets the eye - that there is more to love about the world than hate; that when you are down, you are only on your way up.  I cannot be a poet who dwells in the depths of despair; nor can I pick out the grays and browns of life unless I also note their potential for growing flowers, for creating works of clay or sculpture, or leading to better days of vibrant color. 

I have things in my life, as we all do, that I could dwell on and get mired in if I so choose.  But I choose to write with a happy heart, a hopeful spirit, and uncompromising words.  Some poets would say then I am not being "real", that my work lacks heart because it doesn't use strong language, is not bordering on offensive or intrusive, does not make statements about social or political agendas, has little to do with the finality or brutality of death, or have any gruesome bent.  Well, I would beg to differ.  My heart has always looked for the good,  been willing to give the benefit of the doubt, wanted to sing, wanted to spin in a swirly dress, loved the warm nuzzles of a horse, and been waiting to see what the next good thing will be that God has in store for me.  

Poetry helps keep me singing, thinking, appreciating, loving and doing!  I thank God for every frosting drizzled day he has given me, and I thank Him for every rain drizzled day, too.  For only then can I know how delicious that frosting is!

I only realize how much is on my plate and how heavy it is when I stop and think about it.  There really is too much to handle alone.  Thinking about it does NOT help.  Poetry immediately turns my head and heart away from the worry about the things I cannot control to the miracles around me, and the comfort that I am NOT doing it alone.

• John 16:33 These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.

• Ephesians 5:19 Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord;

I need to keep writing.  I need to listen to that quiet voice.  Sometimes it rhymes.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Ever Young

Your
secret
for staying
forever young
is to forever
love the moments given,
to hold each new encounter
wrapped in the tissues of your heart,
releasing them again for others
as words vibrant with new color and depth.

by Donna JT Smith, 2018
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Fix 'Em

A broken voice
quavers
as a soul's cry
shimmers the
sidewalks
with shards of 
the lost whole
silica again
it is not
dust to dust
time
the weatherman calls for
cleansing showers
to revoke stains
and restore
mirrors
press through
all is right as
healing rain.

by Donna JT Smith, 2018
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++  

E is for EVR YNG and Etheree

For the A to Z I am posting a Maine vanity plate beginning with the letter of the day and a poem, in a poetic format beginning with the day's letter, that was inspired by the plate.
So today E is for EVR YNG and an Etheree.

Visit other E blogs in this challenge today HERE .

  Here is the MASTER LIST of ALL participants who signed up for the #AtoZchallenge 2018!

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The poetry form, Etheree, consists of 10 lines of 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 syllables. Etheree can also be reversed and written 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.

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Ever Young

Your
secret
for staying
forever young
is to forever
love the moments given,
to hold each new encounter
wrapped in the tissues of your heart,
releasing them again for others
as words vibrant with new color and depth.

by Donna JT Smith, 2018

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Nice that I got EASTER in the right month at least.   And Easter Etheree would have been a good option also, but I think I had already started the other poem when I found this one.

D is for DN2ERTH

Visit other D blogs in this challenge today HERE.

 Here is the MASTER LIST of ALL participants who signed up for the #AtoZchallenge 2018!   ************************** D is for DN2ERTH and Didactic Poetry.
Didactic Poetry is a form of poetry intended for instruction such as for knowledge or to teach.  Not sure if this is exactly the instruction they intended, but it is close enough for me and my vanity plate.

Like a Flower

Her head, not in the clouds,

She's planted on the ground 

And does not look for pots of gold

Where crocus can be found.

Flights of fancy, fairy tales

Don't keep her thoughts amused

She's looking for the deeper stuff

That cannot be confused

No pixie dust nor sparkling gems

She's of the earth and sky

Where stars like diamonds twinkle

A treasure not to buy

She's down to earth and happy

All she needs is rain and sun

With tree as hat, warm soil for toes

And a visiting bee, for fun.

 

by Donna JT Smith, 2018

This vanity plate could also have made an interesting poetry subject...no time, no time...must move on! Feel free to write to it!

C is for CLAYART and Cinquain

It is Day 3, letter C, of the A to Z Challenge!

Visit other C blogs in this challenge today HERE.

  Here is the MASTER LIST of ALL participants who signed up for the #AtoZchallenge 2018!

Today, my inspiration vanity plate - CLAYART:

Cinquain is a short, usually unrhymed poem consisting of twenty-two syllables distributed as 2, 4, 6, 8, 2, in five lines. It was developed by the Imagist poet, Adelaide Crapsey. For further information, please read this article on Cinquain from the SP Quill Quarterly Magazine written by Deborah P. Kolodji.

Another form, sometimes used by school teachers to teach grammar is as follows.  It can result in  a stilted poem as it is taught in many schools, but it shouldn't be.

Line 1: Noun

Line 2: Description of Noun

Line 3: Action

Line 4: Feeling or Effect

Line 5: Synonym of the initial noun

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Cold clay

Resists cupped palms

Stroking, molding, pushing,

Coercing ruddy earth into

Warm mug.

by Donna JT Smith, 2018

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Extra plates I came across this year:

 

B is for BEE KIND and Ballad

It's Monday, April 2, 2018, and Day 2 of the A to Z Challenge 2018.  We are on the letter B!

To visit other B blogs in this challenge today, go HERE or click on the AtoZ image at the top of the page.

Here is the MASTER LIST of ALL participants who signed up for the #AtoZchallenge 2018!

My theme is Maine Vanity Plates and a poem.  I'm hoping to do a type of poem that also corresponds to the letter of the day.  Today's poetry form for B is Ballad.

"Ballad  A short narrative poem with stanzas of two or four lines and usually a refrain. The story of a ballad can originate from a wide range of subject matter but most frequently deals with folk-lore or popular legends. They are written in straight-forward verse, seldom with detail, but always with graphic simplicity and force. Most ballads are suitable for singing and, while sometimes varied in practice, are generally written in ballad meter, i.e., alternating lines of iambic tetrameter and iambic trimeter, with the last words of the second and fourth lines rhyming."  http://www.shadowpoetry.com/resources/wip/ballad.html

I decided to go with Bee Kind, with Be Gr8 slid in there, too.  Have fun retaining and omitting commas.   Am I talking to the bee, or saying be?  Are the words directives, or descriptives?  You decide.  Read it both ways.  Which do you like?

Just, Bee

Bee all that you can bee, Bee,

Oh, Bee kind, and so fuzzy!

Bee gr8 as you can bee, Bee,

Oh, bee happy, and so buzzy!

Just, bee

Fair, bee,

Nice to

Me, see.

Wherever you may light, bee!

Beesweetened just beecuz, see

Flowers here and there bee

Nectar filled to guzz, bee.

Just, bee

Fair, bee,

Nice to

Me, see.

by Donna JT Smith, ©2018

B has some Beauts!  Here are some extras that I found:

Visit other B blogs in this challenge today HERE or click on the AtoZ image at the top of the page.

 Here is the MASTER LIST of ALL participants who signed up for the #AtoZchallenge 2018!