Category: poem

Here’s Colleen Chesebro’s Tanka Tuesday Poetry Challenge No. 271. This week is a theme prompt.Yvette M. Calleiro provided this month’s theme: Beginnings & Endings.

I’m right in the middle of replacing my very old computer. I reflected on that day many years ago when I opened the box, carefully unpacked it, and set my computer up. Our time together had just started. Now, I’m moving all its information to its replacement and look forward to working without the computer freezing up every few moments or the long periods of waiting. But after all the good years we had together, I needed to say my final goodbye as our partnership ended.

Once shiny and new
towering grace held the world
you were everything
but time downloaded your essence
you’re efficiently replaced

Here is Colleen Chesebro’s Tanka Tuesday Poetry Challenge #270. This week’s theme is a photo prompt which is an ekphrastic poem.

You may have guessed I picked the picture this week 🙂 I decided on haibun which is a connected combination of a prose paragraph and a  haiku.

A NEW BEGINNING

The pod took their final dive off the coast of Kauai, as the place of their birth was leveled. No land location survived the barrage of bombs, but sections of the ocean were untouched. Their pod was alive and unharmed, but they heard many dolphin families silenced along with all the humans. Right after the final explosion, a beautiful perfect-pitched dolphin song began. Directions were weaved into this beacon of hope, guiding them to where dolphins could start over. A paradise where fish are plentiful, and nothing would hurt them. They swam over the wrecked ships and under the floating tombs that used to net their kind. It was their time now when the gentle creatures of the ocean rule the earth’s new world.

under the surface

kelp becomes the new forest

life begins again.

Here’s Colleen Chesebro’s Tanka Tuesday #269. It’s a specific form or Tanka Prose.

THE OCEAN SIGHTING

Last December, as we reached our Hawaiian destination, Kauai, I glanced out the plane window to see the approaching shore. Right below the plane, there was a pod of humpback whales. It was one of those moments in life where all I could do was to be part of it, but I couldn’t record it to share. I spotted another whale that day as soon as we got to our room. There was a gray spume of water shooting up that I first thought—ghost ship. Looking again, I realized it was a whale blowing air through its blowhole. Although I kept looking; I didn’t see another whale until the very last day. I stood on our balcony to take one last look before we left and there it was, that burst of air exiting the whale. Then the whale breached and dove. I didn’t see it again. The whales had greeted me the first day and then said goodbye, until the next time.

above paradise

a pod of whales welcomes me

awakens my heart

soothing my discouraged soul

a magical moment heals

Here is Colleen Chesebro’s Tanka Tuesday Weekly Poetry Challenge No. 268. We are challenged to taste the rainbow or write about color.

Last week, I went to the bank driving through a small downpour when saw the sun peeking through the clouds. I knew there had to be a rainbow somewhere and there was. It was the most beautiful one I’d ever seen. The main one was double the colors and then another one framed it. I could almost touch them. Of course, in my hurry to get to the bank, I forgot my phone and any chance of getting a picture of it. Yet, at that moment I got a strong message that everything was going to be okay.

 

the day dull and gray
heavily laden with fear
until light breaks through
coloring my opaque soul
in a rainbow of hushed hope

 

Here’s Colleen Chesebro’s Tanka Tuesday Weekly Poetry Challenge #267. This week we are being challenged to share our day with pictures and poetry.

I’m sharing a day from our vacation last week. I love to write poetry in as many places as possible, and one of them is while I’m riding with my hubby on a Harley. I keep a pad and pen in my coat pocket and, so far, have only lost one pen but none of the words written. I have a tanka and senryu to share from our excursion. Healing was a theme in most of the poetry written last week.

road takes us nowhere

except into the moment

nature reaches out

caresses my weary soul

I’m healed on a warm spring day

D. L. Finn writes words

captures thoughts on the Harley

healing Denise’s soul

 

And yes, I do separate Denise and D. L. Finn 🙂

 

Here’s Colleen Chesebro’s Tanka Tuesday Weekly Poetry Challenge #260. The challenge is to do Abhanga form which is 6a/6b/6b/4c. I did an Abhanga series and used a picture I took in Hawaii. The photo looks out of a dark cave into the light.

I have been getting more than my share of messages lately, including paying attention and trusting myself. As usual, I fought the unwelcomed changes at first, but I came to a point where I see the wisdom in letting go and going with this wiser flow.

THE AWAKENING

abundant messages
surround my universe
as if brought by a curse
they are ignored

invasion continues
my suppression inept
finally, I accept
darkness ascends

golden beams filter through
cast light in the shadow
love’s compassionate flow
awakes my soul

Here is Diana Wallace Peach’s Writing Challenge—The TBR Pile. It can be a story or poem. I decided to go with a haibun format. That is the combination of prose paragraph ending with a haiku, or in this case a senyru.

MAGIC PAGES

The magical gift sits next to my bed. Dressed in black leather, it holds the ideas of generations. I gently open the promise of endless entertainment in the two hundred and thirty pages. I can barely contain my joy with so many words that offer knowledge, insight, thrills, adventure, heartbreak, or laughter. It may take more than one lifetime to explore. Yet, it’s never full and always welcomes new editions onto its electronic shelves—even the bad ones. It is my paradise.

add to my kindle

with the best of intentions…

to read every word

Here is Colleen Chesebro’s #TankaTuesday Weekly Poetry Challenge No. 255: #Tastetherainbow. We pick the color to use and poetry form.

I went with a poem I wrote during our six-day power and phone outage. I was surrounded by four feet of snow, so white is the color of my poem, even though I don’t directly mention the color. Tanka 5/7/5/7/7 is the format.

NOTE: We are lucky to have gotten our phones, internet, and power back so quickly. There are still many who are heading into day nine without— and some without access to heat. There was a lot of damage below us and we are praying things get back to normal soon for them. Like our firefighters, those who go out in these icy conditions to restore our power and communications are our heroes too!

These are the moments when the magical goodness in humanity steps up to help fellow neighbors.

snow fairies rejoice

when mother nature provides

winter wonderland

they can fly amongst the flakes

capturing special magic

Here is this Colleen Chesebro’s Tanka Tuesday Poetry Challenge #251. This week we were given the option to do a synonyms only poem or taste the rainbow. I went with the latter which is a butterfly cinquain (2/4/6/8/2/8/6/4/2) that brings colors into it.

Taking our dog out for her morning nature visit, I saw the sky reflected on my car’s back window. I immediately thought of the Allegory of the Cave and how we only see shadows, not life’s beauty, until we step outside our limited experience—or the cave. With those thoughts in mind, I came up with this.

blue skies

a reflection

Under silver raindrops

illusion on my car’s window

Nature

blissfully surrounds the moment

awakens my gray soul

vivid lushness

heals me