Of the many genres of writing that I enjoy to read, create and share, poetry is one of my favorites. I've been penning pieces since my teen years. To date, I've actually published and sold 8 titles of poetry books.
With this being said, I excitedly welcome you to join me in celebrating National Poetry Month!
Poetry has evolved from being that boring class/subject matter that many of us were forced to study in school with archaic language and abstract ideas, folks. It has indeed evolved. It has been popularized and mainstreamed. Movies have frequently featured central characters who are poets; there are national poetry competitions; and poetry has even been included and embraced at presidential ceremonies and prestigious gatherings.
Established originally in 1996, by a proclamation from former President, Bill Clinton, National Poetry Month seeks to recognize the artistic contributions of poets and "spoken word" artists around the world.
In celebration, below are a few poems I've written, for your reading pleasure. Hope you enjoy. Please feel free to comment. Be gentle.
MS. JOYCE
Gentle
Her voice,
Gentle
By choice,
Well-traveled
And poised,
The years
Have served her well,
She’ll gladly share her wisdom
If you sit with her
A spell,
Her wise counsel
Born of heart
And soul,
Valuable, like gold
90 years old--
A teacher
Beyond the classroom,
A cherished mother
An animal lover,
Gifted pianist,
She feeds unspoken needs
Through loving deeds,
Through planting seeds
For tomorrow’s harvest
A rich and fruitful legacy
Matriarch of her family
LOVE THY NEIGHBOR…?
Neither friend
Nor enemy--
Bound by our shared lines/ of property,
This
Our only commonality--
Regretfully,
Some days
We share forced pleasantries,
Some days
They challenge me,
Infringe on
My sanity,
Disregard
Respectful boundaries,
Some days
Good ones
Seem to be
An anomaly,
Some days
They cause difficulty
To honor biblically
The mandate
To love thy neighbor,
Heaven help me!
M.I.A. ON SUNDAY?
I don’t need a
Dwelling place
A designated space
A “sacred”
Physical building
To express the depths
Of my feelings,
To honor He
Who “dwells” in me,
My body
Is a temple
Where we meet daily,
Intimately
Mind, heart and soul
His virtues I routinely extol,
God often speaks to me
Through nature’s beauty, imagery and divinity,
Through the pleasure I derive
From my favorite song’s melody,
His goodness
I can “taste and see”
Even when you don’t find me
Present
At church--
Please don’t find it odd
No matter my G.P.S. location or destination
I AM always with my God...
LIFE IS LIKE A TANGO...
Life
Is like a Tango,
A never-ending dance
Seems too often
We take one step forward
And some mishap
Takes us two steps back
Stay on your toes,
Never lose your footing
Thanks for reading!
Image credits: Pixabay.com
Your poetry is delightful, Jen! The lovely tribute to Ms. Joyce, what a treasure she must be. Sounds like we all need a Ms. Joyce in our lives.
ReplyDeleteI can relate to the neighbors’ poem. How true! We’ve had good and not so good ones over the years. A current good one is putting their house up for sale as we speak. Happy for them in their retirement, sad to lose them as neighbors.
MIA, I wholeheartedly agree! We always have His presence within. Good things to meditate on.
And Tango, well, it’s all about perspective, right? We are blessed, always, and can move forward with eyes to see the good and how our future steps are ordered.
Thanks for sharing! :)
Karen,
ReplyDeleteI greatly appreciate your time and thoughtful feedback. You're a blog follower that every blogger wishes for. It takes so little to mean so much. :-)