It’s Poetry Friday and the round up is here! Thanks for stopping by.
My April Poetry Project was to write a daily tanka in response to a poem from my morning reading. I didn’t have much experience with that form so I thought it would be a good exercise. Some days were harder than others, but I’m happy to report that I was successful in writing the tankas. I did, however, let my inspiration come from things other than the poems I was reading. That helped me remember that there is inspiration all around and that poetry can be found everywhere.
Here is one in response to the Artemus II splashdown:
four brave astronauts
traveled higher, farther…then
a perfect splashdown
connecting again to earth
renewed in understanding
____________________________
There were surprises, too. After reading “On Finding a Turtle Shell in Daniel Boone National Forest” by Jeff Worley on George Bilgere’s Poetry Town, I was reminded of my first classroom and the turtle we kept for a brief time. I have no recollection of where he came from, but I have a distinct memory of returning him to nature.
Classroom Pet
He lived in a box
munching on lettuce and leaves.
A curiosity,
but not the life he deserved.
We waved as he ambled off.
_____________________________
At Easter my grandchildren visited. I was thrilled when six-year-old Nina not only took out her journal to write but suggested I get mine so we could write together.
Together
We write together.
Flowers march across the page,
words woven in stars;
sharing dreams and ideas
in thoughts connecting our hearts.
Thanks for visiting today and for the support and encouragement of this community. Together our words have the power to make the world a better place. You can leave your link with Mr. Linky and I’ll be back to respond.
Imagine the Possibilities 
Congrats on meeting your NPM goal of writing daily tanka! Enjoyed the poems you shared today, especially the one of you writing with your granddaughter. :) Thanks for hosting this week!
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Rose, how heart-meltingthat your grandgal invited you to write along with her!!
And great news about your April Tanka Time. All of yours are a delite to read.
Also, we’ve a bit of synchronicity this month regarding four-legged crawlers ….I luv that your wee turtle enjoyed freedom :)
in case I flub at Linky, I’m at https://bookseedstudio.wordpress.com/2026/04/30/moms/
Many appreciations for your hosting!
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Congratulations on all this writing you’ve accomplished this month, Rose! I’m so glad to know our turtle friend “ambled off” to a better life. Thanks for hosting!
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Lovely heartfelt images created in your “Together” poem, and I’m happy the turtle meandered off too–I’ve always loved tankas! Thanks for hosting Rose!
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High five for persevering in creating a whole month of tankas! 🙌
I like the connections you found in your tankas. The astronauts’ understanding and the planet. Your granddaughter’s heart and yours.
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Thanks for hosting us and congratulations on a successful NPM! I agree that inspiration comes from everywhere…sometimes wholly unexpected places!
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How precious! I hope someday I can write in a journal next to a six year old connecting hearts. Thanks for hosting this week!
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There is something quite affirming in meeting a challenge we have set ourselves, Rose. The immense self satisfaction arising from achieving our goal. You have no doubt acquired an even deeper appreciation of the Tanka form and your very capacity to write them. So much good comes from such endeavours. i liked the way you expanded the tanka terrain. It adds a richness and diversity to the wiritng of poetry. As the grandparent of a six year old, grand-daughter, I particularly enjoyed your shared writing experience with Nina.
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Your success with your NPM project is impressive, Rose, and my favorite thing of all is you and your granddaughter writing together. I love that. ❤️
Thanks for hosting!
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Rose, Thank you for hosting. I am so happy you feel like you had a successful NPM project. I abstained this year. I just didn’t have it in me and surprisingly, it gave me the freedom to continue to write and read poetry from a number of different sources. One of the sources I read was Bruce Ross’s book on Haiku, in which he covers tanka. It is a book I hope to review in the near future but I wouild recommend it. He does a great job explaining the forms and how they “should” be conceived. I will keep the book for reference. I love that you and your granddaughter wrote together and it was her idea to do so. What I would give to have that happen for me in the future! Love it!
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Rose, I love your poetry project for April and your embrace of the tanka. Thanks for sharing your poems and the inspiration behind them.
Thank you too for hosting.
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