And then she tried a poem

So another one of the assignments for this #braveblogging course was to write a poem.

I balked at first.

I am not a poet, I have never studied poetry, wouldn't really know the first thing about writing a poem. But in the spirit of bravery, I thought I'd try. And it was a bust. Forced, trite, silly. So I trashed it. Still, I was determined to write a poem. Suddenly it felt like a double dog dare I had to take.

I tried again the next day and decided to write a poem about how to write a poem. I still have no idea whether it's a poem, but I had fun with this one, so I kept it.

       how to write a poem

start with lowercase letters

add a few

line

breaks

insert something poetic in the beginning,

and shift the text to the right,

when describing something you must look closely to see.

like dust motes, or morning dew drops, or a cracked vase.

bring in some tension, if you like.

call it heartache.

maybe it was your favorite vase

the one your grandmother left you

and now it’s gone

smashed

but now you have room for something joyful.

Like the memory

of sugar-filled summers and dancing on the hot blacktop driveways

of the midwest

that burned your feet while

she taught you to polka

with her giorgio-scented bosom

she was only four-eleven.

now you can teach your sons

who will grow at least a foot higher.

perhaps you mention the vase again here

it is your poem, after all.