Common Threads

I’ve been reading Kyle Vaughn’s Lightning Paths and writing through the daily exercises. Today’s prompt inspires writers to write an ode about or an elegy for a person. On November 20, 2020, I wrote an ode to my childhood playground on the Sapelo River. Our family sold the property in McIntosh County, Georgia that had been a part of my life since I was a young child. I’m sharing that poem here today, once again. I’d shared the poem with my brother, one of the realtors, and at the closing, the new owners brought a framed copy of this poem that they planned to put up in the house; they shared an emotional closing on the property and on that chapter of our lives.

Ode to Sapelo River


your marsh and river 

at dawn and dusk

ever-changing palette 

of brilliant hues,


whose back we scratched 

on novice skis,

whose arm we tickled 

casting lines, nets


whose oaks 

huddled family gatherings 

and 

sheltered peaceful togetherness


you picked up 

the dinner check:

deviled crab, 

steamed shrimp, 

fried fish


and lulled us 

in a dock hammock 

as we listened

for playful dinnertime dolphins


your trees and river breezes 

brought cleaner air 

to clear 

the lungs 

the mind


your heart our refuge 

from demands  

and deadlines



well done, friend! 


now you’re ready 

to 

fully embrace 

and care 

for a new family 

who’ll take 

your empty shell 

and 

breathe new life 

into you


you have so much more 

to give 

and you’re long overdue 

for a makeover 

and 

the laughter of family 

flooding your veins


we’ll never forget 

the joy you brought us! 


so long, old friend! 

the memories live on….

I’m reading Kyle Vaughn’s Lightning Paths and working through the daily prompts. Today’s exercise is writing a Haiku, one of the most popular forms of poetry and one of my favorites for its brevity of form and economy of words. Modern Haiku writers often write outside the traditional 17-syllable form of 5/7/5 across three lines to include 3/5/3 or 4/5/4…….as Vaughn puts it, “very short/short/very short.”

Haiku

how does one write
in just seventeen syllables
something so profound?

I’ve been reading Kyle Vaughn’s Lightning Paths and completing the daily writing exercises. Today’s prompt is a ghazal, a poem written in at least five couplets, generally on lamenting or loving something on a theme. There can be abrupt shifts between couplets as well.

Here is a ghazal that I wrote back on July 20, 2020 when Mo Daley hosted our Open Write group at http://www.ethicalela.com. I’m sharing it again, thinking about the passage of time since I wrote this poem.

I’m Going Back!

since March 13th, we’ve stayed home: Covid 19
four months and one week later – today – I’m going back!

today begins a new chapter: 2020
new challenges and opportunities I seek – I’m going back!

we’ll mask up and sanitize all the way to ‘21
cautiously distance and crowdsurvey peek – I’m going back!

will outings be safer in 2022?
surely by then we’ll be past the peak – I’m going back!

my 5-year grant term will close in ‘23
I stand boldly with literacy, cheek to cheek – I’m going back!

I’ve been reading Kyle Vaughn’s Lightning Paths and completing the daily writing exercises. Today’s prompt is a Landay, a poem that is short with only two lines. The first line consists of nine syllables and the second line has thirteen. Often these deal with themes of war, suffering, love, nature, beauty, or death.

Last Breath

we circled you as you slipped away
held hands, prayed together as you drew your final breath

I’ve been reading Kyle Vaughn’s Lightning Paths and writing through the daily exercises. Today’s prompt is to write a poem about a tragic event that you are trouble by, to speak truth and shed light or to share feelings about the way it impacts you.

Freak Accidents

freak accidents are
most troubling, those you wonder~
could we turn back time?

I’ve been reading Kyle Vaughn’s Lightning Paths and writing through the daily exercises. Today’s prompt is to write a poem about a significant loss.

Echoes

I used to call her
  ask for advice
     tell her about my day, ask about hers
        talk about dogs, kids, things

she always knew the answers
   even before the questions 
       when no one else did

she held Dad together
    like no one else could

I miss her 

Made with

I’ve been reading Kyle Vaughn’s Lightning Paths and writing through the daily exercises. Today’s prompt is to write a poem – a small one, between two and ten lines, that at first presents something dark, negative, and unwanted but resolves into something positive.

In memory of my friend and co-worker Tim Zellner, who died in November 2022

He fought the good fight
In the end, his cancer won
Now he's in Heaven

I’ve been reading Lightning Paths by Kyle Vaughn and participating in the daily writing exercises. Today’s challenge is to write a poem that is the opposite of the Resume and Part of Me poems of the past two days. Instead of defining ourselves through our experiences, this poem calls to define ourselves by what we are not.

Lack of Tact

Apparently, my 
tendency to tell the truth
means I'm "not tactful"

I’ve been reading Lightning Paths by Kyle Vaughn and working through the daily exercises. Today’s prompt is to write a poem in which you choose something that may seem insignificant that is actually a big part of your identity.

The Roots

a baby in a cloth diaper 
    pinned up
sitting in the middle
of a desk
surrounded by stacks of books
her father speaking 
Greek and Hebrew roots
in his seminary studies

a love of books 
   of words
     of language
       of learning
is rooted in those days
    back in Kentucky
       in 1966

I’ve been reading Lightning Paths by Kyle Vaughn and working through the daily exercises. Today’s prompt is to write a poem that addresses who you are, what you’ve accomplished, and what you might want to project about your hopes, dreams, and future. Today, it’s about identity.

Adventuring Nonet

each day is a brand new adventure
packed full of the wonder of life ~
seize and savor each moment
praying, working, playing
giving thanks for our
many blessings,
abundant
riches,
gifts....