national poetry day: poetry about poetry

Happy belated National Poetry Day! I saw that it was National Poetry Day on Twitter this morning and thought I might celebrate by sharing some poems I wrote focusing on different poetic styles (after I finished wondering exactly which nation was celebrating poetry ...).

What do we gain from poetry? 

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, but poetry manages to convey its pictures in far fewer, carefully-chosen words. 

I love that poetry isn't afraid to paint using language.

I love it when poetry uses humor and pushes boundaries. Conversely, I love how lovely it can be, and I enjoy playing with form.  

For me, personally, I love that poetry plays with the sounds in the words. The linguist in me loves assonance and alliteration.

So here we go: poetry about different poetic forms that I wrote which will never be published anywhere but here. They are goofy --be forewarned!

Couplet by a Writer Who Spent More Time Typing the Poem’s Title than Composing the Poem

I really don’t have much to say;

The title’s better anyway.

Dialogue in Verse by God and Man (Who, Although Capable of Rhyming, Has Other Skills to Develop)

“Hello, Mankind, and how are you?

I’ve come to pay a visit;

And here!  I’ve brought you presents, too,

Both sacred and exquisite:

A summer storm, a charming sneeze,

The scent of babies’ skin,

Good chocolate, Brahms’ Symphonies,

A sense of calm within,

A cricket’s chirp, that old book smell,

A clever turn of phrase,

A day-long hike into the woods,

Those lazy winter days,

Absurdist jokes, the blessed meek,

The dewdrops lightly glistening, …”

“Oh, sorry, God, did you just speak?

‘Cause I really wasn’t listening.”

Limerick by a Guy Forced to Rework the World’s Filthiest Limerick in Mixed Company

There once was a man from Nantucket

Whose … head was shaped like a bucket.

He said with a grin

As he peered at his chin,

“Oh!  There’s that hair.  I should pluck it.”

Ode (Terza Rima) by an Individual Who Struggles to Comprehend Meter (But Who Does So with Enthusiasm)

I love eight little syllables;

I love those iambs grouped by four,

And otherwise, I’m miserable.

I do admit that I adore

When verse is written in this way –

So beautiful, the stuff of lore.

No force on Earth could halt or stay

My love of half octameter.

My feet join joyously to say:

“I love to use pentameter!”

That’s five feet?  Not four?  Oh.  I guess

I love to use tetrameter?

I am confused, I must confess;

Good thing I’m better using stress.

Triolet by a Child Who Wants to Write Silly Words Despite Parental Admonitions

My mom told me I shouldn’t make up words,

But I will.  Made-up words are no big deal.

I mean, there’s nothing wrong with words like “blerds”.

My mom told me I shouldn’t make up words,

But why not?  “Stumbleserk” and “snerglejerds”!

There are way worse words that are really real.

My mom told me I shouldn’t make up words,

But I will.  Made-up words are no big deal.

Villanelle by a Cranky Old Poet Who Seeks Assurances from the Literary Establishment

A poem’s even better with rhyme done well.

It’s difficult to write but not to read

An ode, a sonnet, or a villanelle.

Those free verse writers, they can go to hell –

It’s just the place for them to smoke their weed.

A poem’s even better with rhyme done well.

It’s tough to get this kind of verse to gel;

I sweat, and yet, I’m never guaranteed

An ode, a sonnet, or a villanelle.

There’s prose, lord knows –and I don’t want to dwell

On rhyming verse, but pay these words some heed:

A poem’s even better with rhyme done well.

Though hard to write, they’re still a harder sell.

“A rhyme is cute and all, but we don’t need

An ode, a sonnet, or a villanelle.”

Will rhyme survive?  Well, only time will tell.

Please listen up.  So here’s the case I plead:

A poem’s even better with rhyme done well –

An ode, a sonnet, or a villanelle.

Once again, wishing you a Happy National Poetry Day!