A new April morning, a new prompt for a poem. My thoughts had gone hither – or was it thither? – to roam. And so I zipped off a quick five-seven-five, to keep my NaPoWriMo challenge streak alive. I tapped the blue button to publish my poem. At just that same moment I heard a loud groan. “Oh, hey there, Muse.” Quickly, I closed laptop lid. “Too late!” Muse cawed smugly. “I see what you did!” “You can toss words like salad; even frost them like cake. Count the syllables, divide lines, but it still does not a haiku make.” “You thought you could do this Na-Po-gizmo sans me. But this faux form space filler shows an obvious need. I’ve sat on that bookcase ‘tween Webster and Roget, my rhyming riffs roiling and ready to play.” “Are you through with the pep talk?” My sarcasm seethed. “I’ve muddled through without you, although not with ease. A sonnet on sunshine, triolet carved with care, and a shanty so swashbuckling you can smell the salt air.” “You’ve been absent for months now, with nary a sneer. My quill pen has molted; a goner, I fear. My blog has been starved, on it’s penultimate gasp, the only sound left: a lone cricket’s rasp.” “I took a hiatus,” Muse confessed with chagrin. “But I did it for you, so it’s hardly a sin. In the Andes I found adverbs; (in Morocco, great stew;) In Europe, interjections like, ‘Ach!’ and “Mon Dieu!” “Just stop!” I admonished. “Your excuses are worn. But at least ‘twixt us two today's poem has been born. Perhaps you will deign to remain here awhile?” “Just like the old times,” Muse agreed with a smile.
Day Twelve of National Poetry Writing Month. The prompt from NaPoWriMo.net:
… write a poem that addresses itself or some aspect of its self (i.e., “Dear Poem,” or “what are my quatrains up to?”; “Couplet, come with me . . .”) This might seem a little “meta” at first, or even kind of cheesy. But it can be a great way of interrogating (or at least, asking polite questions) of your own writing process and the motivations you have for writing, and the motivations you ascribe to your readers.
I didn’t quite follow the prompt, but hey, my muse isn’t always cooperative. Other posts featuring Muse:
What Rhymes with Stanza? 