For dVerse Poetics, Mish asks us for an “object poem” beginning with “this is not a ____”
Pearls of Wisdom
This is not a necklace
but a strand of memories
each more precious than the last
Layer upon shimmering layer
each covering the tiny seed
of discontent, making it more bearable
beauty in the layers, truth in the grit
pearls of a mother’s wisdom
wrapped in layers of love and life
Til next time ~Stay trippy hippies ~JP
Kim881 from Writing in North Norfolk, is our host for this week’s Haibun Monday
“For this challenge, I ask you to think about your own birthdays, ones from the past, one that is coming up, a memorable one, or one you are dreading. Whether it’s birthday cake and balloons, a quiet glass of wine on your own that turned into something memorable, or a complete disaster, I’d like you to share a birthday with us.”
Birthday Magic
Born on a cusp with an aura of blue, a child between signs. Always looking for where she fit in. Black and orange confetti, fairy costumes and pumpkins as happy children dance around the cake table. A birthday wish for magic and a pony.
Birthdays come and birthdays go. Her aura darkens as does the world. No dinner, no parties, nowhere that she fits in. No need to hide her blackened eye. Alone, she makes her birthday wish for magic and love.
Moons wax and wane as life goes on. She finds love again, and trust. Purple and black decorations, a pointy hat adorned with flowers, love and laughter. Amber eyes twinkle with merriment. No need for birthday wishes, she has all she needs, she IS magic.
Candle burning bright
years come and go by too fast
blow the candle out
Strange Magic — ELO
Til next time ~Peace ~JPP
Our host a dVerse Poets Pub Tuesday Poetics is Laura Bloomsbury, who asks us for our flights of fancy. The following is based on a real life observation of a nesting pair of Great Horned Owls who were being tormented by a scold of very noisy jays. One of the adult owls defiantly lured the jays away and suddenly turned on them, snatching one unwitting fellow right out of the air.
Flight of Fancy/Dance of Death
Whump, whump, whump the air throbs
under the assault of massive wings
three powerful strokes and he is aloft
master of the thermals
He dips one wing in silent condolence
to the pitiful flightless things below
while defiantly flying straight
into the scold of jays, and through
He climbs ever higher, taunting
inconsequential forms of lesser birds
that fall behind in the chase
still jeering they cluster … until
Pivoting on one wing, he falls
with sharp talons and flared wings
like an avenging angel set to smite
their relentless taunting
A silent cloud of black feathers
announces his success
Fly Like an Eagle — Steve Miller Band
Til next time ~Peace ~JP
Sarahsouthwest is our host for poetics and asks us for something red.
Anger
She was pale, like the waning crescent moon
stark against the black of night
lips painted a shocking garnet
like a vampiress fresh from a feed
Her aura was a blazing shade,
not the cool magenta of sunrise
nor the deep claret of late sunset
but the bright crimson of blood
She wore her anger like a second skin
so tight it seemed ready to split
staining the world a sooty brick
with the blemish of her hatred
Every Rose Has It’s Thorn — Poison
Til next time ~Peace ~JPP
Mish brings us this week’s dVerse Poetics and bids us contemplate what we have gained through personal (or global) crisis.
Like the Moon I Rise
Like the moon, I rise
from the darkness
to brighten the very sky
like the moon, I rise
Like the pheonix, I rise
from fire and ash
I spread my wings and fly
like the pheonix, I rise
Sorrow cannot keep me down
when in pools of darkness
I fear to drown
like the sun, I rise
Every day, warm or cold
night may bring good-bye
but, every morning,
like the sun I rise
At Last I See the Light — from Tangled
Til next time ~Peace ~JPP
Merildsmith is hosting Poetics at dVerse and bids us “I’d like you to think about impermanence, things that are transient, or things that have passed their time. If you want to stick to the seasons, nature, or the weather, that’s fine, but I’d like to challenge you to try to come up with something different or unusual.”
Constancy of Change
What do we hold on to
in a world where the only constant
is change
Words that spoke of love
passed and slipped away
with the impermanence of Spring
In a universe where
even brightest stars burn out
and skies remain empty at the loss
Who is to say what is eternal
and what is transient
hope still beats strong within my heart
For in this universe of transience
and temporal impermanence
only one thing remains sure
You and Me. Always.
The Best Thing that Ever Happened To Me ~ Gladys Knight
Til next time ~Peace ~JPP
Mish is hosting poetics over at dverse poets and enlists us to create a new world
“As another year approaches, it is sometimes difficult to maintain hope for what lies ahead, though hope defined is really something of our own making. We can always have hope. We can always have dreams. This world we live in has progressed in countless ways but has also taken regressive steps, in my opinion regarding humanity. Often my poetry tends to dip into the dark. For me, the words flow from what I see as an obvious truth, a direction that our society has taken, without hesitation or contemplation. Today I am asking you to do the same. Dream with me. For this prompt, create and describe a “new world” as you envision it. You can write from a general perspective or focus on one particular scene in your new world. Try, if you can to avoid a specific political view. This ol’ world has been a bit lost for awhile now. The sky’s the limit. Maybe your world doesn’t have a sky. Maybe we live in the sky. Keep it simple or take us to Utopia.”
New World — The Great Mother Smiles – a Prosery Tale Continue reading “dVerse Poetics – New World — The Great Mother Smiles – a Prosery Tale”
Merril is our host for Poetics at dVerse poets pub this week. So, for today’s Poetics challenge, I’d like you to write something about echoes. You can write actual echo poetry—where you repeat the end word or syllable or echo sounds.
OR—you can write a poem about some sort of actual echoes.
OR –you write about the myth of Echo.
OR—you can combine any or all of these.
Voices echo dimly
in the hollow of my heart
empty no longer
The Voice – The Moody Blues
Til next time ~Peace ~JPP
Laura Bloomsbury is our host at dVerse Poetics this week. In this season of more, more, more, Laura asks us to pen a poem of less.
The suffix ‘less’ has both negative and positive connotations and even neutral ones. The challenge is to choose ONE or MORE from THE LIST of words BELOW and include it/them in the body and/or title of your poem. If possible, add a soupçon of hopefulness for Hope is the message in this first advent week!
ageless ~ boundless ~ breathless ~ careless ~ cloudless ~ colourless ~ faceless ~ fearless ~ feckless ~ flawless ~ formless ~ harmless ~ heedless ~ helpless ~ homeless ~ listless ~ needless ~ restless ~ rootless ~ senseless ~ tasteless ~ weightless ~ windowless ~ wordless ~
Weightless by Moonlight
Gazing out at the cloudless night
colourless half moon shining bright
My eyes beheld the flawless sight
an owl in ageless graceful flight
Hovering weightless in the air
faceless prey now moves with care
for this fearless hunter dares
to hunt the boundless forest bare
harmless tonight he floats on by
formless hoots and eerie cries
restless now he scans the sky
the beat of wings his breathless sign
Til next time ~Peace ~JPP
HA is hosting and welcomes us to another week of dVerse Poetics. “Today, I am prompting you to think of what comes to your mind when you picture ‘Black’. Think of what it means to you or what it stands for. You can venture into different areas like identity, materialism, personal experiences, physics, et al. as well. Or you can simply incorporate the word ‘black’ in your title and poem. Once you have thought it through and you have written and published your poem, link it up in the widget down below.”
Black Heart
Deep and Rich and Dark
the black of night
removes the colors
from our sight
but for a single star
that burns more bright
or is it just illusion
Hearts so fragile
and easily broken
when into blackness
the mind is woken
when angry words
can’t be unspoken
souls lie in confusion
Blackness covers all
withered limbs that
writhe and fall
crumbled ‘neath the wind
we must walk away or crawl
as colors dance in gay profusion
Til next time ~Peace ~JPP
