Imagine the Possibilities

So even though I knew A MONTH AGO that I wanted to join in with a word play poem on the last Friday in October, I didn’t start working on it until this week. But it was a lot of fun and got me thinking outside the box. I’m not sure why I picked “wave.” Maybe because we’ve had to do a bit of distant waving during the pandemic. Wave is also a word that holds several meanings. I explored a couple – a hand wave and an ocean wave, but it always came back to movement.

WAVE

Wave is a moving word,
a to-and-fro,
ebb-and-flow word.
It can be a happy hello,
or a sad, slow-to-let-go word.
WAVE smells of the salty sea.
Sometimes it tastes of tears.
It can shout or be silent,
ripple or flutter,
but it is never still.
A wave waits at the bottom of the ocean,
or hides in the hand of a baby,
a mother,
a friend.
Wave is a moving word—
come join in its dance.

Wondering what Poetry Friday is? Check it out here. If you want to learn more about Word Play poems, check out today’s post from Laura Purdie Salas.

Linda has the roundup at Teacher Dance, so head on over for some Halloween and word play fun.

The air turned a bit cool here at the beginning of the week, a sure sign that fall is on the way. I love the change in seasons, especially summer to fall when nature gives us so many surprises. This week I put together a few observations. They are random, not connected in any way, except that they made me stop and take notice.

the morning glory
on a discarded vine
searches for the sun
in a pile of compost

turn over a pot
with fading summer blooms
to find the hiding spot
of a fat, juicy, worm
or two.

tears of farewell
form as dew drops
on the last rose of summer

a leaf
lets go
and gently floats
to the world below

Wondering what Poetry Friday is? Check it out here. Jama has the round up today at Jama’s Alphabet Soup. Be sure to head over there for art and words that celebrate October. You might also be introduced to a new poet like I was.

Last week I was looking through an old notebook and came across a notation for 4×4 Poetry. I learned about it on Margaret Simon’s blog who was introduced to it by Denise Krebs. Basically, the “rules” are:

• 4 syllables in each line
• 4 lines in each stanza
• 4 stanzas
• 4 times repeating a refrain line – line 1 in the first stanza, line 2 in the second, and so on.

I began by reading some journal entries to pick out a refrain line. I chose the phrase “moving forward.” I sometimes think of the transition from season to season as a restart or an opportunity to reset goals. Nature is always my go-to for ideas, so as we move from this wondrous time of summer into fall, I let nature inspire my words. This form wasn’t as easy as I had expected, but I came up with something I felt was worthwhile sharing.

Summer to Fall

Moving forward
Summer’s goodbye
Drops dewy tears
On petal blush

Birds gorge on seed
Moving forward
To a warmer
Winter dwelling

Maples transform
To red, gold, brown
Moving forward
Into deep sleep

Warm days, cool nights
A reminder
To reset goals
Moving forward

You can find out more about Poetry Friday here. Irene has the round-up today, so head on over there for more poetry inspiration and fun.