NOTHING LEFT TO FOLLOW

When respect marches boldly
over desert sands,
his brown, work-worn hands,
smooth and dry
are held out in greeting.

Respect offers sparkle
in the tiny drops of dew
gathered on the petals 
of yellow creosote blooms.

Respect bleaches the bones
of a desert packrat--
his time too brief.

Not meaning to be rude,
I clasp the out-stretched hand;
I take the creosote branch;
and watch the bleaching
of my bones, as blown sands
shift erasing even my own footprints.
There is nothing left to follow.


     I hesitate to call today's offering a poem.  I believe is would be what Theodore Roethke referred to as a thinkie--the beginnings of a poem but something that needs more thinking.  So that is what I will do with this, save it for some more work.  I'm not sure respect is the word I need.  Would you like to offer a suggestion?
     For now I will say, when the poetry muse gives you weirdness, run with it.  Who knows where it might lead?
     What does respect mean to you?  Can you write a poem that shows respect?  Have fun writing and have a happy weekend.

Dragon's Breath

A dragon's breath of green fog
rests in rough ropes
around the base
of  the Catalina Foothills.

As I walked I knew
a knight named Sun
would come
and fly
the dragon
away.



     This is what I saw on my walk today.  The green foggy mist was quite something.  And I bet you were already thinking of "c" words for vocalizations--called, cried, croaked, coughed.  But I didn't want to become predictable or boring.  So I'll save that for another day.  Can you write your own poem today about  a green dragon?  What will the two of you do together?  Doesn't it seem like a perfect day for a dragon visit?
     Have fun writing your poem.

LET'S TRY B

Betty, a blue bottle rocket,
buzzed through the bluebells.
"Bring me some buttons
and a blanket for my bed."

Barney, a boxer,
begged of his buddies,
"Bring me a bone
or a biscuit to eat."

Bertha, a brown bear,
bragged to her babies,
"I'll eat more bean burritos
than that big blue buffalo."

    I did have fun trying to think of vocalizations that started with the letter B. I didn't use barked, brayed, bawled, or blubbered.  So now it is your turn, can you write your own poem today with lots of B's?
    Did you know that a bottle rocket is a dragonfly?  These are all tongue twisters.  I think National Tongue twister Day falls in February, I'll have to check when that is.

ALL ABOUT A

Asked Agnes, an alligator,
"Please fetch my afghan.
I am awfully cold and I am achy,
and my arthritis is acting up."

Asked Arthur, an armadillo,
"Can you get me an avocado?
I am ravenously hungry
and I want to eat."


Asked Andrew, and aerialist,
"Please hold my anchor line,
I want to aerobic dance
and I am afraid I may fall.
(from the high wire.)" 

Asked Alice an ant,
"Are you staying
for the picnic?
I want an ankle
and your's are
absolutely tasty."


   I'm just messing around today playing with the letter "A"   Do you want to play too?
I used asked for my dialog tag, but you could use announced.  Can you think of another "a" word to describe speech?  Then you will need a name that begins with "A" and an animal with an "a"  I haven't used them all.  What are some others you can think of?  Then what might be fetched?  Again it should be something (another noun) that starts with or has an "a" in it.  But if you are playing, go farther afield and change the lines.  Do have fun playing.  If you'd like to leave your creation in the comments, please do.  I'd love to read them.  
   Oh, these are going to be fun to make sketches for.  If you like to do math with your poetry, you can count the number of  a's in each poem.  Or get out your jump rope, these should be pretty easy to jump rope with.

Is it going to rain?
The clouds are dark and gray.
It will be a pain.
I wish they'd go away.

I'd like to run and play.
I'd like to have some fun.
I'm hoping that this day
will clear and shine with sun.


     I hope the sun is shining where you are.  Are the birds singing?  Are any flowers blooming?  I sure wish you were here so we could share a cup of tea and poetry.  Have fun writing your own poem today.

HAPPY GROUNDHOG DAY

I knew a groundhog
his name was Phil
on February 2 
he trudged up a hill.

He looked around
to have some fun;
he couldn't find
the shining sun.

And as his brow
began to furrow
Phil walked home
to his cold burrow.


     I grew up in the desert and so I'd never seen a groundhog or a prairie dog until I was older.  I had been told, or somehow I got the idea that the two animals were very similar.  (They both lived in burrows under the ground.)  I later saw the animals in a zoo.  this reflection got me to thinking about my first trip to the zoo.  Where is the closest zoo to where you live?  Can you write a zoo poem today?

February

I have a friend
named Rosemary.
Her birthday is
in February.

Then there's Lincoln
and Washington,
don't forget Valentines
for a month of fun.

The second of this month
is Groundhog Day,
and don't forget 
the birth of
Susan B. Anthony.

So, I send
some cheer your way
and say, Yahoo! 
It's February.


     Happy New Month.  What is your favorite day of this month?  Can you write a poem about that?  Have a great weekend writing.

  To find out about more exciting days in February, you might want to visit my friend Linda Andersen's blog,
A Writer's Playground.