Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Super Two-fer: Poem A Day Challenge for April 24, 25, 26 and 27

All I can say is the past four days have been a bit jam packed. The writing of the poems was challenge enough, and even more the public posting of them, which I didn’t get done each day. So, here they are, all four poems posted in one fell swoop from April 24, 25, 26 and 27—works in progress, one and all.

April 24: “For today's prompt, write an evening poem. My initial thought is that this poem would somehow involve the night, but upon further reflection, I guess it could be about evening things up or something.”

The Evening Of The Day
By Bill Kirk

When the long day’s labor’s done
And when all but gone’s the sun,
Fatigue wraps itself
Like a heavy cloak
Around the old man’s body,
At long last bound for rest.

His rough, work-worn hands
Weave their calloused digits
In thanksgiving for the
Warm bread and steaming bowl
At table before him.

Now, dusk approaches as
The day invites the dark night.
Even time is near—the end of toil and care.
And in this peaceful moment,
The evening of the day
Brings longed for respite
To body and spirit.

Amen.

April 25: “For today's prompt, write a poem inspired by a song. Be sure to include the song and artist (if known) with your poem, so that we can all make our own mix CDs to write poetry.”
This one is a challenge indeed, maybe because the possibilities are almost endless in the choosing. Will it be the first song that pops into our heads or a selection driven by mood or genre or our need in the moment? And anyway, isn’t the song is its own poem? So, what makes us think we might say it better? Or maybe we are simply to let the song speak to us and capture the moment.

Oh What Song To Choose?
By Bill Kirk

I listen to the radio of my mind
Wondering what song
Will most inspire the writing
Of even more words
Than those already penned
By the original writer.

But what if the song writer
Takes offense that someone
Might dare to suggest
Enough was not said the first time?

That is, for a song to inspire,
Would it not, by definition,
Have said all that should be said
In the very best way when first written?
And, by extension, if more is needed,
Would that not mean the original song
Had somehow missed the mark?

Perhaps.
Unless, that is,
The inspired poem is short and sweet
And written just in such a way
That no one will mistake
The poem’s complimentary intent.

In that case, I’ve already said enough.
Allow me to introduce my inspiration:
“I Write The Songs (That Make The Whole World Sing)”.
And dare I name the original writer
Or only give a clue
To those not from planet Earth?
The by line belongs to
The one, the only artist
Formerly, now and always
Known as Barry.


April 26: “For today’s prompt, write a "more than 5 times" poem. Of course, I'll let you decide what that means. Maybe you'll write a poem about something the narrator does more times than preferrable; maybe you'll write a deja vu poem; or maybe you'll just write the same line and/or stanza more than 5 times. I just know that multiple poets recently said the "More than 5 times" subject line would make a great prompt, so I'm listening to the group. Have at it!“

If I’ve Told You Once
By Bill Kirk

If I’ve told you once,
I’ve told you more than five times:

Call when you are going to be late.
Wash your hands before supper.
Get your elbows off the table.
Don’t go swimming right after you eat.
Do your homework before play time.
Buckle your seatbelt.
No listening to your i-Pod at the dinner table.
No mocking.
Turn off the light when you leave the room.
Hang up your Sunday clothes after church.
Take your hat off at the table.
Don’t tease your sister.
Watch where you’re going.
Stop your fidgeting.
Brush your teeth before bed time.
Eat your vegetables if you want dessert.
Don’t talk with your mouth full.
Wear your helmet when you ride your bike.
Close the refrigerator.
Sit still in church.
Don’t forget to ask to be excused.
Don’t punch your brother.
No running with scissors.
Don’t sit so close to the TV—you’ll go blind.
Put on sunscreen.
Tuck your shirt in.
Tie your shoes or you’re going to trip.
Pull your britches up.
Don’t drag your feet.

Oh, and one more thing---I love you….


April 27: “Today is a two for Tuesday prompt, so you've got two options:

1. Write a hopeful poem.
2. Write a hopeless poem.“

Considering both options, I tend to come down more on the side of hopefulness. So, I took the first option from this two-fer. Hopefully, this will be a hopeful poem….

There Must Be Hope After All
By Bill Kirk

I heard the other day
That some folks
Jes’ don’t believe in hope.
Well how much fun is that?

Without hope,
We’d sure be a sorry lot.
Why, there’d be nothin’
To look forward to.
So I guess we’d be lookin’
Backwards all the time.

Well, if we did that,
We might as well
Turn ourselves around and
Walk backwards.
Then at least we’d save ourselves
The trouble of constantly
Lookin’ over our shoulders.

Of course, if we was
Walkin’ backwards everywhere,
Then we’d prob’ly trip and fall.
And if we fell down a lot,
We’d spill stuff that we’re carryin’.
And we’d prob’ly hurt our bums or crack our heads.
Well, how much fun is that?

Besides, what’s the point
Of always lookin’ where you been
Instead of where you’re goin’?
So, it jes’ makes good sense,
To turn back around and walk forwards.
But if we did that,
Then we’d be lookin’ forward to things, wouldn’t we?

Well, I’ll be.
I guess there must be hope after all.

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