A Life of Purpose

Sipping nectar and discussing death-
The bee and the butterfly
Contemplate for a moment
Their short lifespans
And consider their options.

They determine that
Although brief, their lives
Are full of adventure,
Satisfaction, and value,
And they could wish
For nothing more.

Sidestepping flailing humans,
Evading snapping dogs,
Avoiding becoming lunch
To any number of predators,
Consuming the sweetest ambrosia,
All the while pollinating
Some of Earth’s finest flora-

And then passing along their
Ambition to the next generation-

A life worth living indeed!

The prompt is “discussing death” from Maria Giesbrecht @theguelphpoet on Instagram. April 24, National Poetry Month 2022.

What Lies Behind the Lies

Neon dreams
Streets of gold
Rainbow’s end
Treasures hold
Sunsets on the boulevard
An ace up your sleeve
Draw another card
The win’s not far
If you just believe

Flashing lights
Blinding stars
Dizzying heights
Oncoming cars
Take a drink
Roll the dice
Make a wish
Don’t think twice
Or you might
Notice the lies
Behind their eyes

The prompt is “orange lights and other lies” from Maria Giesbrecht @theguelphpoet on Instagram. April 23, National Poetry Month 2022.

Same Old, Same Old

What about now?!
I shout into the void
What about now?
I asked, annoyed
Isn’t it time?
Didn’t I do what I had to do?
Didn’t I pay my dues?
What about now?
I sigh as I open my eyes
And find that the sky’s
The same color blue
There’s nothing new
My request’s been denied

The prompt is “what about now” from Maria Giesbrecht @theguelphpoet on Instagram. April 22, National Poetry Month 2022.

Extremities

I bit my tongue for so long
It went numb- so
I tried to write it all down
Then I switched to typing
But no matter which method I used
My asthmatic fingers
Couldn’t keep up
With all the time
I’ve been under your thumb

The prompt is “my fingers have asthma” from Maria Giesbrecht @theguelphpoet on Instagram. April 21, National Poetry Month 2022.

Unexpected

As I recall these things;
The way that you sing along
To every song on the radio
The way that you like to drive
Every place we go
The way that you repeatedly point out
The only two constellations you know
The way that you always, always
Walk too slow
As I recall these things
Now that you’re gone,
I miss these things
I unexpectedly enjoyed

The prompt is “things I unexpectedly enjoy” from Maria Giesbrecht @theguelphpoet on Instagram. April 20, National Poetry Month 2022.

Tastes Like Cherry

Oh, I kissed her alright
And that’s not all
Hands below my waist
With her back against the wall
But I didn’t know she had a boyfriend
Though she said she was straight
Just came here with a friend

She had a few drinks
And it got late
She forgot
Who she was pretending to be
And for a few moments
Got real with me

Soft pink lips
Tasted like cherry
On my tongue
When the lights came up
And the song was done
We parted ways

I knew she wasn’t the one
But from what i can recall
I still had a lot of fun

The prompt is “cherry chapstick” from Maria Giesbrecht @theguelphpoet on Instagram. April 19, National Poetry Month 2022.

Welcome to the Night

This is the first time Ali (my 3 yr old) asked me to reread a poem multiple times because she liked it. This poem is from a lovely book called Dark Emperor & Other Poems of the Night by Joyce Sidman and beautiful artwork by Rick Allen. The poem she likes is called Welcome to the Night.

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