First a personal note; I wrote this poem before I saw the terrible news today from Las Vegas... I am lost for how to process such a horrific event, and my thoughts are with all those touched by this unimaginable act of violence.
I've decided to post what I've written because my own personal struggle to find words has lasted so long in my battle against Bipolar Disorder, OCD and PTSD and I don't want to let any that I happen to find go to waste.
So, today is my effort for day 2 of this month's poetry writing challenge.
The prompt was "We Write Because We Must" and you were to give yourself ten minutes to free write and see where it led you. I set the timer on my iPad and the bones of this appeared on the page. I only spent about fifteen minutes afterward polishing it up.
If you're a poet or any writer who NEEDS to write to feel like yourself, I hope this poem will resonate with you.
~*~ ~*~ ~*~
"Words" by February Grace
A candle spent
left in the dark
a match head wet,
without a spark
a farmer's toil
that yields no crop;
a rainstorm
that will never stop
time wasted in
reflection, meant
to be in sweet
creation spent
a melody
yet to compose
a springtime morn
without a rose
a kite, flightless
without string
-a humbling and
a maddening thing
...the saddest plight
you've ever heard:
a poet's soul
devoid of words.
~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~
So... long time, no blogging.
I apologize. Life has been getting in the way, and family comes first.
But, I am trying something new this year. I once used to write at least one poem a day and I'm trying to get back to that, just so I am writing something if for no other reason. Also, I miss writing poetry more frequently and this could be the kick-start I need to get back into that as a habit. I am in the middle of a Bipolar med switch at the moment so my brain is fighting my efforts but I am determined to give this OctPoWriMo challenge my best shot.
So, the goal is to write one poem a day for 31 days in October and post it to your blog. Optional prompts are provided (I may or may not stick with them always, I'm sure some days I'll want to go my own way) and today I will start with a brief poem based upon their word prompts, which are as follows:
family tree
DNA
roots and branches
origin story
ancestry
heritage
Here's my first day's work, whittled down from a longer piece.
History by February Grace
A deciduous tower
this untested tree
a line of roots only
five generations deep
For missing pieces
and faceless people,
nameless records end
where my search would begin
Still the ties lie deep
stronger with each new branch
standing bare against the snow
reborn in glorious spring
~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~ ~*~
Inspiration for this poem: Goes back to the fact that I can't trace my family tree back on either side past my great grandparents. There is a lot of mystery on both sides of the family, and I wonder if I will ever really know the true origins of where I've come from... (Farthest I can trace back, I am British/Scottish on my father's side and Hungarian/Armenian on my mother's.)
That's today's poem. With any luck, I will see you again here tomorrow with another piece.
For more information on OctPoWriMo click the link here, and thank you to those putting it together!
