Skip to main content

Poetry Friday- Poetry of Presence



This week I have been enthusiastically embracing the writing of Poems of Presence. Short poems, written daily, to celebrate my conscious thoughts and observations. It involves close reading of the world surrounding me. Noting thought and feeling. I have found this writing exercise has certainly made me more acutely reflective, more responsive. As I walk each morning, thoughts swirl round in my head jostling for position. When I return home, I rush to my notebook in eager anticipation of the jotting down of heightened thought. I am a well prepped poet. Here are  some of this week's notebook gatherings...









My suspicions
grow by the day for...
Door handles,
Cash, 
And populist politicians.
They are my push button issues
To be avoided like,
Like...
-the plague!
All the worlds I live in
All the worlds I see
Won’t fit into one mouthful
When words spill out of me
That emerge with spark and flame
Sometimes they’re words of fire
My worlds are not the same.
Sometimes they’re gentle whispers

A late afternoon walk
With my wife
And two enthusiastic dogs
Makes me grateful
For the company, the exercise
And the jacket I grabbed
As we left the house.

Forgive me for not 
Leaping from lockdown
Enthused by the easing
Of restrictions 
Neither a borrower
My mother
Always said
- or something like that.
Nor a lemming be

Notebook time
When thoughts are pondered
Ideas considered
Possibilities entertained.             
Then the word catching begins
-Fragments and phrases emerge
Nestling gently upon the lines
Clicking into place
Like jigsaw pieces.
Poetry flows from this. 
Labels:

Comments

  1. Michelle Heidenrich Barnes16 May 2020 at 00:06

    I've enjoyed reading your mindfulness poems on Twitter, Alan! I think my favorite of these is "Notebook time". I hope you will post one or two of your poems this month on the padlet where the #PoemsofPresence hashtag originated. Here's a link to Margaret's interview (with the padlet): https://michellehbarnes.blogspot.com/2020/05/reader-spotlight-margaret-simon-dmc.html . And here's a direct link to the padlet: https://padlet.com/TodaysLittleDitty/PoemsOfPresence

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Alan j Wright16 May 2020 at 13:53

      Thank you Michelle. Glad you are enjoying those poems of presence. I have been enjoying it as a conscious prompt to my daily writing. I will definitely follow up your link. Notebook time is a favourite of mine too, I must admit.

      Delete
  2. jama16 May 2020 at 01:45

    Thanks for sharing these, Alan. I think the fourth poem is my favorite -- can't resist that lemming (only too true). Much to ponder these days.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Alan j Wright16 May 2020 at 13:55

      Thank you Jama. There is indeed much to ponder right now, and for the foreseeable future as well, I suspect. The lemming reference was too good to resist...

      Delete
  3. Linda B16 May 2020 at 03:36

    I've enjoyed reading your poems on twitter, too, Alan, & have missed some of these, so I'm glad you shared again. I love the idea of "word catching", what I am doing too as I walk and know I can share that day. I'm glad your mother taught you about lemmings!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Alan j Wright16 May 2020 at 13:58

      Thank you for your remarks Linda. Even though we are living in opposite hemispheres, we are embracing similar patterns in our daily lives. There is comfort in that knowledge. My mum was a good soul, and a good teacher...

      Delete
  4. Jone16 May 2020 at 11:46

    I enjoyed reading these. “Word catching” swoon

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Alan j Wright16 May 2020 at 13:58

      Jone, I'm pleased reading my little poem delivered enjoyment. Thanks for dropping by.

      Delete
  5. Mary Lee16 May 2020 at 22:02

    I've enjoyed reading your poems on Twitter, and I agree that this stance of PRESENCE has been helpful in keeping my writing flowing!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Rose Cappelli17 May 2020 at 03:52

    Thanks for sharing your poems, Alan. I enjoyed them all!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Sally Murphy17 May 2020 at 12:31

    A lovely journey through your observations Alan, I love the jigsaw analogy in Notebook Time. So very true.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Alan j Wright17 May 2020 at 15:38

      Thanks Sally. I have been watching my wife devoting hours to jigsaws in recent times and witnessed the joy that erupts when a piece finally fits into a gap. As a poet, I knew that feeling.

      Delete
  8. Molly Hogan17 May 2020 at 20:23

    These are wonderful, Alan. I hadn't caught them all on Twitter, so was glad to see them grouped here. I'm especially fond of "Notebook Time" and of your mention of lemmings. Stay well!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Alan j Wright18 May 2020 at 10:04

      Glad you enjoyed the reading Molly. The two poems you mention appear to be the ones generating the most responses. It's always interesting to note the reception certain pieces receive. Wishing you safe times too.

      Delete
  9. Carol Varsalona21 May 2020 at 03:27

    Alan, I also have been reading your poems on Twitter. I liked your thoughts at this site, especially the ending lines and this set of thoughts:
    -Fragments and phrases emerge
    Nestling gently upon the lines
    Clicking into place
    Like jigsaw pieces.
    Would you like to share an image poem for my gallery: #NatureNurtures2020? I have info at my PF post: https://beyondliteracylink.blogspot.com/2020/05/nature-is-healer.html.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Poetry Inspired by Images and Objects

There are many ways pictures and photographs can be conscripted to support the writing of poetry. Allow me to share a few ideas with you: Old photographs are a great source of inspiration. Cynthia Rylant explored this idea with great success in her book 'Something Permanent' where she employed the Depression era photographs of Walker Evans to add a new voice to the starkness to the lives of people experienced under extreme circumstances. I have used this strategy to spark many individual poems. In ' I Bet There's No Broccoli On The Moon,' I used a photo I had taken in 2004 while living in New York to inspire a poem. The poem was based on a story related by a friend who grew up in New York.  I regularly combined poetry and pictures in my writer's notebook, drawing on inspiration from the photograph and my personal memories. We can also utilize existing cartoons and illustrations to create ekphrastic poems. I frequently use the illustrations of Jim Pavlidis to co
20 comments
Read more

Opposite Poems

O pp o s ite P oem s In his book, ' How To Write Poetry,'  Paul Janeczko presents the idea of opposite poems. Paul suggests they could also be referred to as antonym poems. This is wordplay and it's fun to try. Here are some examples Paul provides to help us see very clearly how these short little poems work. I think the opposite of chair Is sitting down with nothing there What is the opposite of kind? A goat that butts you from behind Paul Janeczko You will  notice the poems are written in rhyming couplets. They can be extended so long as you remember to write in couplets. Paul shows us how this is done. What is the opposite of new? Stale gum that's hard to chew A hot-dog roll as hard as rock Or a soiled and smelly forgotten sock You might notice that some of Paul's opposite Poems begin with a question. The remainder of the poem answer the question posed. Opposite poems are a challenge, but it is a challenge worth trying. Not e
26 comments
Read more

Powerful Poetry, 'Refugees' by Brian Bilston

  This week, Poetry Friday is hosted by Janice Scully  @ Salt City Verse where Janice shares some original words and offers us a taste of Thomas Carlyle to ponder. I encourage you to join a host of poets from all around the globe and visit Janice's page... Almost two years to the day, I wrote a post featuring the poem 'Refugees' by Brian Bilston. The poem was included in Brian's first book of poetry, 'You Took The Last Bus Home.' A very powerful Reverso poem and technically brilliant.  A Reverso poem can be read from top to bottom or bottom to top. It will often express opposite opinions depending on which way you read it. Such poems really make us think. A Reverso poem is like a picture turned upside down, a frowning face upended to reveal a smiling one. The poem read in reverse, contradicts itself with an opposing message. In 'Refugee' Brian Bilston focuses on a societal issue that tends to polarize feelings and the opposing views are clearly in eviden
14 comments
Read more