A Poet's Prayer

Let my heart grow
with the wonders
of this world.
 
Let me hear 
waves crash
turning rocks and shells
into the soft sand
beneath my feet.
 
May I see
the whale breech,
the albatross
and shearwaters
winging over
the lighthouse.


May I smell 
the sweet spicy scent
of plumeria, orchids
and the pikea.

May I taste
salt air on my tongue,
feel the gentle rain
and the warming sun.


May I see
the bright colors
of a rainbow
arcing over my world
like this poem
I must write.


  Jane Yolen sent a poem today titled Another Writer's Prayer.  I used it as a mentor poem for mine.  Her poem was about all the woodland things she needed to write her stories.  The first time I read her poem, I thought these are all fall things, we need a summer poem for this time of year.  On further reading, I realized it wasn't fall, it was woodland with sycamore trees and gray squirrels.  We don't have squirrels on Kauai.  In fact, as someone pointed out to me recently, there isn't a wide variety of mammals on the Hawaiian islands.  Most of those we do have were imported. 
  So, your poetry challenge for today is to write your own ode, a poem of praise.  Use your five senses and tell what you can see, feel, smell, touch and taste.  Use your locale to share your world with your reader.  Have fun writing your own poem.

  Do you wish to touch the stars?

ODE TO PIRATE BART

Pirate Bart had an artificial leg
finely crafted of stainless steel
and when he strode upon the ship's wood deck
his leg made a loud sounding peel.

So when the seas would gently roll
he'd shift his weight and tap, tap, tap.
But in the cold, foul weather of high seas
his leg shook to tip-tap, tip-tap, tip-tap.

One night the rains were bucketing down hard,
the waves were over the boat's sides
and lightning struck Pirate Bart's leg of steel
and pitched him out into the tides.

Bart was caught in Neptune's watery grip
as from this world he bravely rode
while sailors stood at the side of his ship
to hear his taps of Morse code.

   An ode is a poem of praise. I guess this could also be called an elegy which is a poem about death, but the elegy is supposed to have a serious tone and that doesn't fit for this humorous poem.  I'm still playing with this poem. I thought about capturing the thought of the leg rusting but I haven't got it yet.  That may be another poem completely.
   Your poetry challenge for today is to write your own ode--a poem in praise of something or someone.

A good children's poem starts with a good story. 

 Today's Poetry Friday Roundup is hosted by Margaret Simon at Reflections on the Teche.  You can find more poetry by jumping over to her blog.  Thanks, Margaret for hosting us. 

DESERT ODE

DESERT ODE

I am part of the desert,

I feel the heat in my bones.

Sand blowing is a part of me.

Texas Rockets are my skin

shining in purple blossoms.

I hear the cactus wren,

watch the gila woodpecker

and know the Saguaro

is my home—in holes

deep drilled through spines.

Somewhere there is

a cool icing, but for me

lay me down in the sands

and I shall shift

with the winds

flow with monsoons

and change

with each breath we take.

An ode is a praise poem.  What is something you might praise?  Can you try writing your own ode today?  Have fun writing.

There are lots of things in life to praise.  I praise children's poetry.

I WROTE A POEM TODAY

Woot! Woot! 
Ya-hoo! Yay!
I want to say
I wrote a poem
for you today.

I feel so good.
I want to sing.
My little heart
beats ting-ting-ting.

Eeee-haw!  
What about you?
Wouldn't you like
to write one too?


     I've been too busy lately and when it came to writing a poem for today, my mind was all in a whirr.  Do you ever feel like that?  There were just too many directions I could go.  Too many ideas in my head.  Too many things I could write poems about, and I wasn't happy with any of them.  So I started to write a poem about how I couldn't write a poem; but when I'd gotten done, I had written a poem.  So I started over with a poem to celebrate the poem I'd written.  I like this poem a lot more.  I like celebrations.  How about you?
     Do you think you could call this poem an ODE?  An ode is a poem in praise of nature, public figures, or events.* I think this poem is in praise of writing a poem, so I can classify it as an ode.

  *Definition taken from A POET'S GUIDE TO POETRY, by Mary Kinzie, University of Chicago Press, copyright 1999, page 441.

    Today's challenge is to write a poem.  Do you want to write your own ode in praise of something?  Do have fun.