Search This Blog

Sunday, July 9, 2017

Waking up

From Paul: Write a poem that begins with you waking up.

24 comments :

  1. Morning has Broken

    a paw softly taps my cheek
    then more insistent as I ignore the
    cat who had been selected to wake me

    I open one eye see the sunlight
    through the window and know it is time as
    a paw softly taps my cheek

    i slide my legs to the side of the bed
    reach over and scratch the ears of the
    cat who had been selected to wake me

    After my morning ablutions I head to the kitchen
    Where the cats sit on the table and wait
    A paw softly taps my cheek

    To remind me it is time to feed them
    As they deny that any of them is the
    Cat who had been selected to wake me

    Purrs feel the air as the eat
    Happy and content they thank the
    Cat who had been selected to wake me
    A paw softly taps my cheek

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I love the cat who had been selected to wake me.
      I like the form, the semi-villanelle, but I'm not sure "a paw softly taps my cheek" is quite strong enough to hold up under the repetition. And of course, I hate adverbs anyway. Well, not altogether. And I do think you need an adverb here. But maybe if it's not always the same adverb. Form should work for you - you're not working for it. Don't forget this poem tells a story -- it's moving forward in time. Slightly changing that refrain line each time could add to the sense of story. And maybe even switch to the past tense for the last stanza.

      Delete
    2. I love your villanelle. I could just picture your family of cats sitting around you on your bed with the "chosen" one tapping your cheek waiting for you to respond. Great imagery!!!

      Delete
    3. Bonnie, I really enjoyed your "villanelle". I will get used to the names of these form poems eventually. I like how you make the cats talk among themselves and deny waking you and then purr while they eat, thanking the one that tapped your cheek"

      Delete
  2. How lovely and clever is this! You have caught the repetitive of he cas together will the telling of the story. Good Job!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I Woke Up This Morning

    here we are, another chance to make thing right
    another chance to fight the good fight

    what we do and the things that we say
    in the end will sum up our day
    and if we fail to make thing right
    some might say we lost our sight

    seeing is believing, and we can believe in love
    for love is wonderful and lifts us above
    above the groveling hate that sickens our earth
    from people taught to hate from the moment of birth

    I leave you with this thought that we all can try
    to live and love and not make others cry
    we travel through a place so grand and diverse
    so try to make a difference in others universe

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. good advice Paul. we should all wake up ready to make the world a better place for others. I believe in random acts of kindness.

      Delete
    2. I love your positive attitude. I agree with everything you had to say in this very lovely poem. Each new day does give us a new chance to make things right. Good job!!!

      Delete
    3. Lovely rue words and sentiments. Happy thoughts!

      Delete
  4. I actually have a pretty new one on this theme.

    APPETITES

    A young man wakes up
    wonders where
    he is but knows
    breakfast can't be far
    it never is

    a woman wakes up
    thinks of coffee and beignets
    it's snowing outside
    she has been making love
    to a man older than she is

    an old man stretches
    it's past dinner
    but there are cookies
    with his grandson and where
    they left off
    in the story of King Arthur


    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I like the idea of three stories rolled up into one poem. Each stanza is a story unto it own self. And the imagery is great in each separate story. So much so that you get a peek into a life. Enjoyed

      Delete
    2. Tad, like Linda said, each stanza is a story. I like that idea. I especially liked the last one where the old man is reading the story of King Arthur to his grandson. Great imagery. Terrific poem.

      Delete
    3. each wonderful vignette stands alone and combined they tell a story of life. love the images.

      Delete
    4. Yes, nice enjoyable movement as the story and the poem unfold.

      Delete
  5. I heard someone singing
    it turned out to be me
    I woke up with a song in my heart

    I couldn't remember the words
    and I completely lost the tune
    but a glorious feeling was with me all day

    even though it was raining
    and everything was drenched
    I felt the newness and the glory of the hour

    I felt new paths to follow
    I counted fresh ways to go
    I realized today was a brand new start

    I walked out in the rain
    the sun began to shine
    I felt this was an omen for the days to come

    sometimes things look glum
    dark and gloomy with despair
    but there's always a shining chance on the other side of dreams

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I really enjoyed this refreshing poem. I especially loved the last line. It sounded real nice when read aloud. Actually, I remember the day you woke up singing some kind of gibberish. I wish I could have helped you remember what you were singing but I couldn't understand it.

      Delete
    2. a lovely write even though the last verse loses the rhythm and doesn't fit as well as the other verses. what fun it must have been to wake up singing. i often wake up smiling but I don't remember ever waking up singing.

      Delete
    3. Loved it! Actually I thought that last line was rather a good wrap-up for the rest of the poem.

      Delete
  6. As I Woke Up

    As I woke up this morning
    I knew my sleep was done,
    I looked out of the window
    and saw the morning sun.
    I saw the skies of azure,
    the trees of lovely green,
    the sight I saw was filled with light
    as bright as could be seen.

    I sat and gazed upon it
    this morning I could see
    and thanked the day aborning
    that it was given me.
    I thanked the Lord in Heaven
    I thanked the angels too
    I prayed for all my kinfolk
    and friends so kind and true

    I asked to be of service
    however I might be,
    I smiled and blessed the moment
    to know that I was free.
    I rose into the morning
    and moved along my way;
    how wonderful it was to be
    alive and me this day.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Tasha, I really enjoyed listening to this poem. It has nice rhymes and beat to it. Also I like the way you describe earth...beautiful.

      Delete
  7. A simple poem and a true one, actually...

    ReplyDelete
  8. What a beautiful sentiment!!! Every morning when I open my eyes I thank god for another day on this earth. So I know what you mean!! Life is such a miracle and I always feel I'm living on borrowed time. Your rhyme and rhythm are right on...

    ReplyDelete
  9. i like that you didn't over rhyme and that the rhyming doesn't feel forced so it reads smoothly

    ReplyDelete