We Are Teachers to Our Grandchildren

This is for DVerse Poetics. I was going to write something else to post, but the ideas are not coming, so here’s one that I wrote yesterday. We are responding to titles that Sarah provided for us. I responded to the one that is the title of this post. The form is like a cherita, but in reverse.

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Grandma taught me how to bake sugar cookies.
Grandpa taught me that once you turn 80
No one can tell you you can’t eat ice cream nightly.

They taught me family history from past centuries,
And how not to freeze in the snow, a foreign thing

To these California sensibilities — gone crazy.

Sick of Abiding This

I wrote this quadrille for DVerse this morning, inspired by the threat of a new stay-at-home order from California’s governor. Hopefully, it won’t happen, but governors like this one love their power, so… we’ll see. I am also sharing this, two days late, with the Writers’ Pantry.

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You might think I’m a prancing pony,
Yet there are war-horses, chariots inside.
I have generally a docile spirit,
Yet can be a general, military guide.
There are overreaches I cannot abide:
No one gets out of Earth alive,
So I’ll go down fighting.

Gravy Volcano

I wrote a cherita for FOWC: Gravy, shared with DVerse OLN. Unfortunately, I missed the live event, but there was too much else going on. 🙂

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As kids, who didn’t love making volcanoes:

Either as a science experiment for class, or
One made of mashed potatoes and gravy —

A baking-soda-and-vinegar mixture, or
Gravy overflowing the potatoes on a plate,
As if that’s the biggest disaster one could create.

Leaving

A Pleiades poem for DVerse Poetics, partially inspired by FOWC: Vapor and this prompt about goodbyes.

Photo by Nico Obsieger on Pexels.com

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Left to dissolve to nothing,
Life is a vapor quickly
Leaving almost no traces.
Leaves tumble from autumn trees
Listless, dead in whisp’ring wind,
Lethe takes memories — so
Light from stars must say goodbye.

I See Ghosts

My attempt at a Jisei (Japanese death poem) for DVerse MTB. I’m not sure if I did this correctly; I did not use a haikai form but still tried to give it the same style as one. I’m also linking this to MLMM’s Tale Weaver, which is about beginnings. This was inspired by an actual experience I had yesterday, not that I literally saw a ghost, but it felt like it, in a way.

Space for Maybe

Here is my second offering for DVerse quadrille Monday, using the word “possibility” or a form of it.

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Perhaps we all can go to the moon,
Get on a rocket sometime soon,
The literal limitless of space,
Contains tons of possibilities to embrace.

We can travel to distant stars,
Maybe Venus will conquer Mars,
We will be aliens!
Wonder will have salience.

Infected With Infernal Blight

For this and that from MLMM, and for DVerse’s quadrille Monday (not late! just depressing!). I promise I’m not like this all the time in real life. “Possibility” is an optimistic word, and I could have taken it in a positive direction, but that is not what happened. Maybe I will try again later. Anyway, without further ado….

Kinship

I didn’t post anything yesterday, so hopefully today’s offering is decent. This is in response to paint-chip poetry week 45, and I am also sharing it with DVerse OLN.

November Invites Extra Introspection

For DVerse Poetics, we are writing about November:  What does it mean to you? What does it remind you of?  I wrote a 9-line poem, like an etheree but with 9 instead of 10 lines, because “novem-” means “nine.” Also linked with FOWC: Anticipate. Thanks to Sanaa for the DVerse prompt and for inspiring the title.

A Happiness Project

At DVerse, it is quadrille Monday, and our word is “happiness” or some form of it. I also used the word for FOWC: Pacify. I appreciated this prompt and wrote this poem about an hour ago, which I’m grateful for because it would be more difficult to write a cheery poem now.   Yes, happiness is a project one must constantly work on, especially if “one” is me. 🙂

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Find a little blast of happiness,
Gust of gladness, or even one
Whispering wind of change:
Sew a little peace-pocket,
Fly inside a reprieve-rocket
To try to pacify times strange.
For a while, find a quiet place:
Present-tense is a future I can face.

Good advice, self from an hour ago. Good advice.