Category Archives: Poetry

April 27, 2016

April Poetry Month – A Poem a Day #27

By Kat Myrman

So…true story…my poor birdbath faerie ornament took a tumble and busted her head open. (it didn’t help that the bird bath bowl fell on her…likely the doings of one of the neighborhood cats!) At any rate, like Humpty Dumpty, it is not likely that I will be able to patch her together, but then I thought, maybe, just maybe, there was a “REAL” faerie trapped inside just aching to get out…People who love faeries like I do will get this. You others…yep…it’s a tad loony. But it made me feel better about losing my favorite yard ornament.

Of course I have another poem to write today for Poetry month and I thought, “what a perfect topic for a limerick!” Truth be told, I don’t care much for limericks. We do them in challenges here on WordPress, but the topics are not always whimsical which makes for a very unlimericky limerick. Limericks should be fun or at least slightly far-fetched or unusual.

Here is a description of a proper limerick:
A Limerick consists of five lines. The first line usually begins with ‘There once was a….’ and ends with a name, person or place. The last line of a limerick is normally a little farfetched or unusual. It has a rhyme scheme of aabba. Lines 1,2 and 5 should rhyme and have the same syllable count and lines 3 and 4 should be shorter in length having a different rhyme.

 

faerie

Escape from Polymeria

There once was a faerie held captive in clay,
her perpetual frolic – a cute garden display
then one day she fell down
cracked a hole in her crown
on the wind now, she’s happily free to this day!

kat ~ 27 May 2016

19 Comments   |  tags: , , , , | posted in Challenges and Writing Prompts, Essays, Limericks, Poetry, Random Thoughts and Musings

April 26, 2016

April Poetry Month – A Poem a Day #26

By Kat Myrman

Happy Day 26 of my challenge to myself to explore a new poetry form each day for Poetry Month. I can’t believe we are nearing the end of this journey. I would be remiss if I did not feature the Haiku.

We have a lot of fun here on WordPress with the Haiku, assigning interesting topic prompts in our challenges to each other. But the Traditional Japanese Haiku is a three-line poem with seventeen syllables writing in a 5/7/5 count written in the present tense with a focus on images from nature. It should emphasize simplicity, intensity, directness of expression and a sudden sense of enlightenment and illumination.

The haiku’s origins can be traced back to thirteenth century Japan and was used as the opening phrase of 100 stanza oral poems called “renga”. It became its own form in the sixteenth century, perfected by the Haiku Master, Matsuo Basho.

Iris

a goddess rises
graced in amaranthine blush
Iris is her name

kat ~ 26 April 2016

11 Comments   |  tags: , , , , | posted in Challenges and Writing Prompts, Essays, Haiku, Poetry, Random Thoughts and Musings

April 25, 2016

April Poetry Month – A Poem a Day #25

By Kat Myrman

I been in love with, and have used alliterations long before I knew there was a word for it. Alliterations are the occurrence of the same letter or sound at the beginning of adjacent or closely connected words.

Some examples of alliterations are: “towering trees”, “bouncing baby”, “fleeting fantasies”…you get the idea. In another example the alliterations are interrupted by non-alliterative words but the effect is the same. From Shakespeare: “From forth the fatal loins of these two foes; A pair of star-cross’d lovers take their life.”

There is something about the repetition of consonants and sounds in a line of poetry or prose that is fun to say and pleasing to hear. Alliterations give verse a lyrical quality. Today I found a fun poetry form called the Alliterisen. It was developed by Udit Bhatia and is a simple seven-lined poem with a specific syllable pattern and two alliterations per line.

The syllable structure for the Complex Alliterisen is as follows allowing for infinite syllable sequences:

1st line- x syllables
2nd line- x+2 syllables
3rd line- x-1 syllables
4th line- (x+2)-1 syllables
5th line- x-2 syllables
6th line- (x+2)-2 syllables
7th line- x syllables

Note: this is Udit Bhatia’s description. I had to smile when I saw the algebraic quality of his structural guides. For example (x+2) – 1, if the x in question were 9 could easily be written, x+1 for the same result…10.  I mention this because I am extremely right-brained and the thought of algebra makes my head hurt! Don’t let the seemingly complicated rules keep you from trying this poetry form.  Here is a kinder, gentler version of the syllable structure:

1st line: x syllables
2nd line: x+2 syllables
3rd line: x-1 syllables
4th line: x+1 syllables
5th line: x-2 syllables
6th line: x syllables
7th line: x syllables

IMG_4619

Dazzling Delusion

I am quite a quixotic, driveling dolt (10)
supposing somehow I possess the wit to write! (12)
Just how hard can four short verses be? (9)
My busy brain’s cacophony concocts a (11)
steady stream of  lovely, lilting, (8)
Rhyming, rhythmic, dazzling delusions, (10)
waxing poetic perfection in words. (10)

kat ~ 25 April 2016

 

 

8 Comments   |  tags: , , , , | posted in Challenges and Writing Prompts, Humor, Poetry, Random Thoughts and Musings

April 24, 2016

April Poetry Month – A Poem a Day #24

By Kat Myrman

Today’s I am trying my hand at the Bref Double, a French poetic form consisting of 3 quatrains and a final couplet, making 14 lines.

There are multiple variations when it come to rhyme schemes, though in all versions the scheme consists of three rhymes and 4-5 un-rhymed lines, providing the bref double’s primary distinction from sonnets. The c rhyme ends each quatrain. The a and b rhymes are found twice each somewhere within the three quatrains and once in the couplet.

Some rhyme scheme choices are:
axbc xaxc axab ab
axbc xaxc bxxc ab
axxc bxxc abxc ab
abxc abxc xxxc ab
xaxc xbxc xbac ba
xabc xaxc xbxc ab

…and I’m sure there are others. 😊

There is no requirement of meter in a bref double, but all lines must be consistent in length.

I chose this form to write my poem: xabc xaxc xbxc ab


For Those Who Blog…

There are faces I shall never meet
who write their hearts on cyber pages
just a cursor point and click away
Spanning cultures, miles, zones and time.

I may never know their real names.
Some prefer their anonymity.
It’s their words that draw me to this place.
Simple pseudo-handles work just fine.

We chat, we text message and we tweet
in this place where all the world’s a stage.
Stories weaved of joy and tales of woe…
souls revealed line by beautiful line.

Inspiration here for those who seek.
If you have a voice this is your place!

kat ~ 24 April 2016

17 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , | posted in Challenges and Writing Prompts, Poetry, Random Thoughts and Musings

April 24, 2016

Sunday’s Week in ReVerse – 24 April 2016

By Kat Myrman


Good morning world! It has been a week of entertaining the muse. She fills my busy brain to the brim with lovely words, knowing that I can’t resist letting a few spill out onto hungry blank pages. This week was about about embracing the fact that I see a world that exists between the lines. Each moment is a lovely comma…a selah.

Of course I know this in my heart. I’ve always known that when others see gray, I see silver…when others see chaos, I see Fibonacci swirls. I am odd (though I prefer  the word eccentric).

And I have a choice. I can force myself to color inside the lines, to blend in as I am expected to do. Or I can surrender to the exhilaration that comes from each wild stroke that breaks free. It only takes a moment. For me, it is an obvious  choice. 

Sunday’s Week in ReVerse – 24 April 2016

Find lasting peace
and burrow deep
love is in bloom; we must take a selfie!
but clearly this takes a bit of practice.
she fills my hollow head
what do they have in common
for me to forget
waterbending orbs…
a hypothetical glass,
promise in a glass half full
bestowing grace
but you had already gone
goodbyes are temporary woes.
that year for him…and for her…spring never came.
some don’t give one iota
this odd little place is in my neighborhood
heavy droplets descend
waning runs red.

kat

10 Comments   |  tags: , , , , | posted in Challenges and Writing Prompts, Essays, Poetry, Random Thoughts and Musings, Week in Review