Renewal and Goodbye (Two Poems)

 

Day 30 NaPoWriMo

Our final (optional) prompt! In some past years, I’ve challenged you to write a poem of farewell for our thirtieth day, but this year, I’d like to challenge you to write a poem about something that returns. For, just as the swallows come back to Capistrano each year, NaPoWriMo and GloPoWriMo will ride again!And last, but not least, our final (optional) prompt! In some past years, I’ve challenged you to write a poem of farewell for our thirtieth day, but this year, I’d like to challenge you to write a poem about something that returns.
NaPoWriMo and GloPoWriMo will ride again!

Renewal

 

overwhelmed by the people and world around

flabbergasted by so many things, you are drowned

for a while, you lost, a sense of yourself

your undeniably great, but thyself

for so long you have the best interest of others

for so long you have loved and made wonders

you dismiss from your mind the love for oneself

is far more important, so be stealth

it didn’t take long though, to become fully aware

and bounce back, back to your old self, never be scare

some things don’t last no matter how

some people just come and go somehow

it took you just one moment

one moment of truth…

one moment of courage …

one moment of tenacity…

and one moment of strength…

to welcome 

new challenges and a new view

and the new and renewed you

 

 

And because it’s my first year to join the annual NaPoWriMo, I say my thank you and goodbye the old poetic fashion way…

 

 

Goodbye

I didn’t think 

I’d make it this far

but you never know 

unless you try

try, I did regardless of 

and no matter what

the struggle is over

the battle is done

I rest my case

my heartaches

my mind cries

my body sobs

to say I will miss

is an understatement

a part of me dies

and I just can’t let go

a bittersweet ending

of a once beautiful thing

goodbye to the one 

that keeps me company

farewell, until then

who knows if there will be

for now, I take my hats off

I bid you adieu

I will miss you

my daily prompts

Jco

Day 29 NaPoWriMo
Today, I challenge you to write a paean to the stalwart hero of your household: your pet. Sing high your praises and tell the tale of Kitty McFluffleface’s ascension of Mt. Couch. Let us hear how your intrepid doggo bravely answers the call to adventure whenever the leash jingles.

Jco, that’s how we call you
named after the famous
soft and fluffy almost cake-like
donut we fell in love with;
friends and relatives
argue about their safety around you,
you are compactly-built,
muscular, fast, and powerful,
standing between 26 to 29 inches
at the shoulder
your body is sleek but substantial,
and is covered with a glistening
golden brown hue
they are scared of you,
if they only knew how kind
and sweet and adorable you are,
they’d love you too
I swear

you won’t eat without me
by your side
and now that we are apart,
oceans apart
I know you have learned
to eat by yourself but that 
makes me really sad

you outlived Maggi our pomeranian
and Otaku our mini pinscher
the passing of those two cute furries
I witnessed you cry
you had sleepless nights
when Otaku died
so we decided to get you
someone your kind
Macky arrived at your delight
you were energetic and lively again
but little did we realize
that you are such a spoiler big brother
gone are those days when
you wanted to be fed first
and gone are those days when
you wanted your place to get cleaned first
even in your daily bath, you wanted Macky to be the first

Now, you are aging…
you no longer run as fast
as you used to…
nor jump high as you always do…
and I don’t know what to write next…
my heart is bleeding…
just by the thought of it…

In This Tiny Room

Day 28 NaPoWriMo

 

Today’s (optional) prompt is brought to us by the Emily Dickinson Museum. First, read this brief reminiscence of Emily Dickinson, written by her niece. And now, here is the prompt that the museum suggests:

Martha Dickinson Bianchi’s description of her aunt’s cozy room, scented with hyacinths and a crackling stove, warmly recalls the setting decades later. Describe a bedroom from your past in a series of descriptive paragraphs or a poem. It could be your childhood room, your grandmother’s room, a college dormitory or another significant space from your life

 

‘Twas a small space, tiny little room
of soft pillowcases and white silky sheets
the warm-cool breeze coming between gaps
of window panes and door, I assume

 

the touch of warm yellow wall paint
adds depth to the feeling and imagination
a small writing table serves as a workstation
of lingering thoughts and a creative stint

 

quotes of world’s greatest minds and poets
pasted on the board of “dreams do come true”
and random pictures of scientific breakthrough
just  beneath the bed across the closet

 

‘Twas in that tiny little space room
that what-ifs and hows born and happen
of never “thought about it” until then
‘Twas as a silent witness along with sweet perfume

 

first tears were shed, and waves of laughter were heard
unspoken words of kindness and compassion
the rhyming of poetry, written without hesitation
’tis tiny room, dreams, and aspirations were tattooed

Now

now that you’ve seen
the worst of me
will you still hold me tight
or let go of me in a sight?

now that you’ve seen
the ugliness in me
will you still keep me warm
in your loving arms?

now that you have seen
the outrage I could make
will you understand
and stay as planned?

you don’t need to answer
your blank stare says it all

 

 

what do you see by  Sadje
https://lifeafter50forwomen.com/2020/04/27/what-do-you-see-27-27-april-2020/

Gorgeous

And now for our (optional) prompt. Today, I’d like to challenge you to write a poem in the form of a review. But not a review of a book or a movie of a restaurant. Instead, I challenge you to write a poetic review of something that isn’t normally reviewed. For example, your mother-in-law, the moon, or the year 2020 (I think many of us have some thoughts on that one!)

 

Tall, dark and handsome I swear,
that’s what you are
you are charming in many ways
it shows by the way you care

like how you always make the solid first
impression
that takes my breath away as you swoon everyone in any situation

impressive it is when you seemed to be always composed
even in the most difficult situation, never react never imposed

when mad, you barely speak up, you smile,
laugh over issues
silence for you is more effective than angry words

you make the most sincere remark when praising others
your kindness is undeniably hands down solid
I am impress

I swear my friends are head over heels crazy about you
they giggle and laugh and (sometimes flirt) yes they always do

you are a perfect gentleman, polite respectful and considerate
you even do the classic “pulling a ladies chair”
for her to sit

“protective” could be your last name, your furious when someone
else screws with me, hurt me or against me, you are for me more than anyone

you are the best, to say the least, it has been a long while
a really long while and I miss you around with your smile

you will be another year older this month, you’d love a celebration
that’s without a doubt, you always cook as preparation

happy birthday, you are the most gorgeous when you smile
and the happiest when you blow your candles with style

Happy birthday, how long has it been dad?
so long, and it still makes me sad.

 

P.S.

A poetic review of my father on his birthday

Stay

 

don’t stay for rainbows and butterflies and stars

stay even for the thunderstorms and the waves and the hurricanes

don’t stay for the smiles and the touches of laughter and the joys

stay even for the tears and sorrows and tribulations

don’t stay for the love and the care and the understanding

stay even for the indifference and the hate and the outrage

don’t stay for the beauty and the cheerfulness and the charm

stay even for the ugliness and the dejected and the hideous

just stay for whatever whys

 

P.S

Inspired by a recent poem of Gina https://alifelesslivedblog.wordpress.com/2020/04/26/all-worthwhile-poetry/ it hit me the hardest and I can’t get my chest off the line ” stay no matter why”. Sadly, some people choose to be with us or to stay with us only for good reasons and only for the best that you are. When you hit rock bottom and you falter they simply walk away. That probably is just the reality of life and the reality of human behavior.

 

 

Ode to the Philippines

This is one that we’ve used before, but one test of a  good prompt is that you can come back to it! For this prompt, you will need to fill out, in five minutes or less, the following “Almanac Questionnaire.” Then, use your responses as to the basis for a poem.

Almanac Questionnaire

Weather:
Flora:
Architecture:
Customs:
Mammals/reptiles/fish:
Childhood dream:
Found on the Street:
Export:
Graffiti:
Lover:
Conspiracy:
Dress:
Hometown memory:
Notable person:
Outside your window, you find:
Today’s news headline:
Scrap from a letter:
Animal from a myth:
A story read to children at night:
You walk three minutes down an alley and you find:
You walk to the border and hear:
What you fear:
The picture on your city’s postcard:

Oh, my dearest Philippines, your rich and diverse heritage and culture
has made you the young yet dynamic country that you are today
Manila is your heart, where the iconic Luneta park is located
it’s a hyperactive city, vibrant and vivacious
with its high temperature and high humidity, we get disconnected
your walls are adorned, screaming for freedom and equality
by these colorful graffitis reflective of the youth’s jubilant spirit
as the hope of our motherland, says our national hero; the great Dr. Jose Rizal
I too was once like these youths, yearning for change, simply change
back in the ’90s; a young college student, I thought I was
going to be a lawyer defending the poor and the unfortunate
though a greater part of my youth screams of pen and paper
in Mendiola, I trudge the University belt with a screaming mind
for change, though looking back 25 years after
no slightest idea of how that change may change
and today’s headline reminds me of how we were taught
to write news story straightforward with no running around the bush
nor even a hint of personal grievances
it’s a different story now, as COVID 19 hits the headline
running over to three months
bringing our tally of infected patients to seven thousand
and counting
our economy is in jeopardy, it hits rock bottom recently
our exports of agricultural products have halted
not even our over 200 species of mammals and world’s longest  discontinuous coastline
could be a remedy to our dying economy
oh, my dearest Philippines, you survived a hundred years
of Spanish colonization
then followed by the Japanese invasion
not to mention the American occupation
you made it through many wars
great volcanic eruptions
and the greatest typhoons
COVID is just nothing but a speck of something
that will
make you greater, better and grander as ever
dear PH, we will rise again, we will be great again
and together we stand victorious amidst COVID 19.

To All The Prompts I Love (With a Dash of Covid on Top)

Day 25 NaPoWriMo

Because it’s a Saturday, I have an (optional) prompt for you that takes a little time to work through — although you can certainly take short-cuts through it, if you like! The prompt, which you can find in its entirety here, was developed by the poet and teacher Hoa Nguyen, who asks you to use a long poem by James Schuyler as a guidepost for your poem. (You may remember James Schuyler from our poetry resource for Day 2.) This is a prompt that allows you to sink deeply into another poet’s work, as well as your own.

My phone vibrates as it usually does first wake up call at bay
Morning sunlight giving the first strong rays of the day
The first “good morning” came in along with my sip of coffee blend
Damn! it’s actually hot, “oh, dear Cappucino are you a foe or a friend?”
My dearest phone is at its prime, in the morning
Another message just in “how are you with COVID coping?”
How do we suppose to answer such a question without knowing?
“How are you?” an old friend pops in with strings of messages
“You surprise me” I butt in, “how long has it been?”, I’m speechless
Strings of conversations go on  and on
Until one says “be back when I am done”
Opps, I almost forget about my coffee on the tabletop
Damn, now it’s cold I just need to make a new cup
Another cup, another stop of what’s supposed to be
This morning I have so much to do, I will be busy as a bee
It’s day twenty  -five for NaPoWriMo and the prompt is making me crazy
Rhyming words alone is insane much more having prompts daily
I don’t know what’s with me on that April fool’s day
I write my first poem to commence, I say
My first attempt on the annual “30 days, 30 poems”, I am competitive
A challenge for the brilliant and smart, or just simply creative
“What do you see?” by the lovely Sadje is another prompt
That’s every Monday I stop by and make a duet as I stomp
Calmkate’s Friday fun is witty and indeed fun to  write
That is every Friday, ‘though time zone difference is at sight
Maria, Jade, and Rosema are three brilliant
hosts
Instagram is making a cross over through these poets
Truth must I tell, fun in writing challenges is nothing
In comparison to the lessons and discoveries, I am learning
I am on my second cup and yet again, no longer hot
As I want my coffee to be, but write I must or I’ll forget
What my heart and thoughts say, I don’t want to skip
For every challenge, I write is every bleeding pain I keep
These and many more are just distractions of the real score
That my daily grind appears worse than anything in store
As COVID 19 worsen everywhere around the globe
Whatever happens to the world we so long dearly love?
Another point to ponder as I scribble with my pen I wonder
When will this ever end, and be in loving arms with each other?

 

P.S

I mentioned the following:

Jade of  https://jademwong.wordpress.com/2020/04/23/poetry-moonlit-love/

Rosema of https://areadingwritr.wordpress.com/and

Maria of https://mariawenttotown15.wordpress.com/
Calmkate of Kates Friday fun -sailing https://aroused.blog/2020/04/25/friday-fun-sailing/
Sadje of https://lifeafter50forwomen.com/2020/04/20/what-do-you-see-25-13-april-2020-2/

Moonlight Slow Dance

 

our
eyes met
we gazed longer

 

my
heartbeats
as yours too

 

our
song playing
sweetly as ever

 

night
dimly lit
fitful silvery moonlight

 

we
hold hands
and slow dance

 

sailing

feels like
moonlight slow dance

 

P.S.

The poetic form used is hay(na)ku consists of a three-line stanza, where the first line has one word, the second line has two words, and the third line has three words.

World of Words prompt, which is a beautiful Bengali word “জোছনা” (jochona) meaning moonlight.
Hosted by Jade of  https://jademwong.wordpress.com/2020/04/23/poetry-moonlit-love/
Rosema of https://areadingwritr.wordpress.com/and Maria of https://mariawenttotown15.wordpress.com/

Linking to Kates Friday fun -sailing https://aroused.blog/2020/04/25/friday-fun-sailing/

(parasailing; Bali, December 2019)

Avocado

Today’s prompt is a fairly simple one: to write about a particular fruit – your choice. But I’d like you to describe this fruit as closely as possible.

 

My senses are at a feast by the first sight of you.
Your shining in golden jade color is what I adore about you

 

But you change from dark green color to deep purple hue when ripe
That seemed magical and interesting for me to describe

 

Your skin can go from slightly bumpy one To smooth and glossy as I make my fingers run

 

Your taste is quite unique
Depending on your ripeness and type

 

You are normally rich with thick buttery flavor
But sometimes you’re akin to a cold soup as I savor

 

Some folks don’t like you, you don’t have a sweet scent as others do
Not even a distinct taste of your own too

 

I love you on my toast with a dash of salt and pepper
A sprinkle of lemon juice and for the brave ones, flakes of red pepper

 

Asians like you sweet and creamy
I am, I like you nothing but a bit salty