Return of the...

On this final day of Na/GloPoWriMo 2020, we are challenged not to write a farewell poem, but one of something that returns, as I will to this blog at the same time next year. Until then, happy writing and enjoy!

Dandelion

Even if I pull your roots

from the earth,

you'll appear elsewhere –

yellow heads gazing up

and soft white puffs 

bobbing on the breeze

I could pick your delicate seeds

before they spread,

but you anyway manage 

to appear elsewhere

So, I'll leave you be

to tell the time with each

blow of my breath,

to spread your joy

so you may appear elsewhere

Andrea Vermaak © 2020

Man's best friend

On this penultimate day of Na/GloPoWriMo, our prompt is to write a poem which acknowledges a pet. As I no longer have any of my own, I shall write one to my sister's dachshund, Lilo.

Queen Lilo

Her majesty would rather lie in,

enrobed in fleece blankets

upon a giant pillow

When Queen Lilo does rise,

her nose emerges before paws,

her head before body

She refuses to walk on wet grass,

but will weave between plants,

hunting lizards and birds

Yet, will sit on your lap

with wide, innocent eyes –

it's her right as queen of the household!

Andrea Vermaak © 2020

A room somewhere...

Today's prompt is two-fold. First, we are to read Martha Dickinson Bianchi's (Emily Dickinson's niece) description of her aunt's room. The Emily Dickinson Museum then prompts us to write a poem in which we describe a bedroom from our past.

Safe haven

A shade of winter morning

caressed the walls,

a beach-coloured carpet underfoot

and denim curtains drawn open

to welcome the sun

Posters of teenage dreams 

clung to once empty spaces,

and music lifted the downtrodden

while I stayed up late 

in the silence of my haven –

listening, reading, writing –

away from outside world

Andrea Vermaak © 2020

Review

Our challenge today is "to write a poetic review of something that isn't normally reviewed."

Online catch-up

It was good to see your faces,

be they two-dimensional,

sometimes blurred 

or frozen in place,

and our conversation

b r ok e    n on occasion

It is good to know 

that you are just moments away

without the drive

or flight –

the journeys we so want to take

It is good that we can still catch-up

over coffee and cake,

though we can never 

steal a taste of each others' treats

But it was good to see your faces

through the broken connections

and blurry lenses

of a new world

Andrea Vermaak © 2020

Time

Today's prompt is to write  poem based on our responses in the given "Almanac Questionnaire." My answers and the poem to follow:

Almanac Questionnaire

Weather: Cloudy, but warm
Flora: Inca lily
Architecture: Tuscan
Customs: I'm not big on customs
Mammals/reptiles/fish: dogs, cats and lizards
Childhood dream: To live in the mountains
Found on the street: 20c
Export: Fruit and wine
Graffiti: on Edinburgh's streets ("Down with London rule")
Lover: Whahahahahaha
Conspiracy: Is China trying to sink the world's economies?
Dress: Black swing dress with white polka dots
Hometown memory: Riding bicycles in the street
Notable person: Passenger (Mike Rosenberg. He is notable to me)
Outside your window, you find: a herb box
Today's news headline: "SA's COVID-19 death toll hits 87, infections rise to 4546"
Scrap from a letter: "eat marshmallows on the moon" (from a birthday card)
Animal from a myth: dragon
Story read to children at night: Little Red Riding Hood
You walk three minutes down an alley and you find: a view of a sunset
You walk to the border and hear: silence
What you fear: needles
Picture on your city's postcard: the Union Buildings

Never the same

Will I ever walk the streets of Edinburgh again,

trying to hide a smile at her graffiti,

shouting "Down with London rule"?

Will I ever ride a bicycle again

like when I was a kid

or dance again in

my black swing dress 

with the white polka dots?

Will I ever get to live in the mountains,

eat marshmallows on the moon,

or meet a dragon?

The world looks different,

yet –

the herb box beneath my window,

my salmon pink Inca lilies,

and the silent sunsets

remain

But

it will never be the same

Andrea Vermaak © 2020

How's the weather?

Today's challenge (and it certainly is a challenge), was developed by Hoa Nguyen, a poet and teacher. We are to use James Schuyler's poem Hymn to Life as a guidepost for our poetry. However, it is not as simple as it seems, as you will discover when viewing the entire challenge here.

Were it not quite so deep into the evening and had I more energy, I may have jumped for joy at the challenge (which I certainly will do if I remember it at an hour when I am more alert). However, I am usually winding down at this time of day. Therefore, I choose to be inspired by a few of the recommended inclusions without reading Schuyler for about 24 minutes (apparently).

The storm

The red, orange, yellow, brown

leaves quiver

in the unusually warm wind

The once clear sky,

now shrouded in thick darkness

threatens to tear apart

A bright flash singes

a trembling horizon

followed by rumbling sky drums 

The leaves, 

terrified

fall

Andrea Vermaak © 2020

Fruity

Today's prompt is to write a poem about a particular fruit of our choosing, but we should describe the fruit as closely as possible.

Pineapple

Queen of the tropics,

I stand tall,

crowned,

shielded in golden armour

If anyone dare 

dig beyond 

my prickly countenance,

they'll find I'm pleasant

for I too bleed sweet nectar

Andrea Vermaak © 2020