30 Poems in 30 Days

Well, I did it: I wrote thirty poems (or at least, drafts of poems) in thirty days! I'm pretty psyched. While I wrote a lot of junk, I'm hoping that I have a few keepers in the bunch. Now my task is to keep up the momentum. I mostly wrote during the evenings after we put the kids to bed, and my goal is to continue doing that in the coming months. 

 

I decided to post here one of the poems I wrote, which is in a form called a "triolet." This poem, like several others I wrote this month, was inspired by a prompt from the website napowrimo.net (napowrimo stands for National Poetry Writing Month). I had never heard of a triolet before, so I decided to give it a shot. Though the poem is short, it's a bit tricky to write because it has several formal requirements. There are 8 lines, all of which have 4 beats and roughly 8 syllables. Lines 1, 4, and 7 are the same, and lines 2 and 8 are the same (at first this seem to make things easy, but it's actually quite challenging to maintain the flow when you have to repeat the exact same line three times!). And then, of course, there is a rhyme scheme: ABaAabAB. So, with that explanation, here's my triolet:

 

Babywearing

 

In a sling, your heart is closer

to my heart. With you I’m wrapped.

 

I’m the walker; you’re the dozer.

In a sling your heart is closer,

beating time, my small composer.

 

I’d like to keep you always strapped

in a sling. Your heart is closer

to my heart. With you I’m rapt.

 

Though this poem is in a traditional form, most of my poems are not so structured; many, in fact, are rambling and at this point, quite messy. Still, that gives you a taste of what I've been up to these past 30 nights (that's what happens when you don't have TV or a babysitter!). But in all honesty, I enjoyed writing every night, and I do hope to continue the practice.

 

In other news, all the roses in our garden are blooming this week. It smells wonderful out there. Here are a few photos of the flowers. Yay for spring!