#NaPoWriMo Day 13: I Steal Glances

photograph of Mt. Rainier in a mirror on a dock on Lake Tapps
I Steal Skewed Glances of the Mountain(2020) photograph by Maria L. Berg

Today I was inspired by the Reflections series by Sebastian Magnani. I was a little bummed that I got rid of the small mirrors I picked up as part of a Thor costume project  because they would have been perfect, but, in a way, they would have been too similar to Mr. Magnani’s work. I grabbed a beautiful mirror my sister gave me a long time ago and had happy results.

A to Z Challenge

For today’s musical terms that start with the letter K, I thought it would be fun to look at some common words that have different meanings in music.

key – 1. the keys are the levers which the performer depresses to activate the action, thus producing tones. 2. Music that is based on a major or minor scale is said to be in a key. Keys are identified by their tonic (also called keynote, is the first note of the scale).
kick – A term for bass drum
kit – a drum set, also a small unfretted fiddle popular during the Renaissance

I tried to put key and kick into today’s poem, but ended up deleting those lines because they didn’t fit.

NaPoWriMo

Prompt: Write a non-apology for things you have stolen.

photograph of Mt. Rainier in a mirror on some grass
I Steal Glances of the Mountain from the Grass (2020)                  photograph by Maria L. Berg

PAD Challenge

Prompt: Write a view poem

photograph of Mt. Rainier in a framed mirror
I Steal Glances of the Mountain (2020) photograph by Maria L. Berg

The poem

I Steal Glances

I steal glances at the marvelous view
it steals seconds from what I must do

I stole a peek at the mountain just now
the left slope stolen by a large fir bough

I steal pets from the kitty next door
but I’m quite confident that’s what he’s here for

I stole a glimpse at a glint on a wave
the lake will steal my breath, but is enticing these days

I steal moments with the click of a button
and store them in files until I want to view them

I stole a plum, though it could have been mine
Not sure where that tree hits the property line

I steal ideas, pluck them out of thin air
the collective unconscious keeps putting them there

I stole a gander at a crow flying by
He flaps, then caws that he stole the sky

I steal glances at the marvelous view
while it steals my need to have things to do

 

I hope everyone finds beauty in their glances today.

Happy Reading and Writing!

#NaPoWriMo Day 12: Happy Bunny Day

multi-media collage with inkblots and photographs
Bunny Basket (2020)                                multi-media collage by Maria L. Berg

Today I had some fun rearranging the basket I created yesterday. I added my inkblot eggs and took some photos of my plush peeps bunny to add to the collage.

NaPoWriMo

Prompt: write a triolet. I wanted to see more examples of triolets so I headed over to Shadow Poetry.

PAD Challenge

Prompt: write a spirit poem

The Poem

My Adorable Nephew Fights the Virus

We’re eating healthy, he announced,
to fight the Corona virus
I waved to him from near my house
We’re eating healthy, he announced
We always do, my sister pounced
His tiny hand played space pilot
We’re eating healthy, he announced,
to fight the Corona virus.

#NaPoWriMo Day 11: Exploring Floriography

collage of photos of flowers in a woven-paper basket
Flower Basket (2020)                                                    multi-media collage by Maria L. Berg

A to Z Challenge

jam – improvisation

jubiloso – play in a jubilant or exulted manner

jentele – play in a pleasing, graceful or elegant manner

NaPoWriMo

Prompt: write a poem in which one or more flowers take on specific meanings

Floriography is the language of flowers, a coded language used in Victorian times to communicate feelings. Language of Flowers by Kate Greenaway is a glossary of the flowers and their meanings.

You might also enjoy Name that Plant where you can drop in a picture of a flower or plant to discover its identity.

I had a lot of fun with this prompt. I looked through pictures of flowers I have taken in my yard, then went out and took some more. I put those photographs in Name that Plant and learned about the plants that grow here, then I looked them up in the Language of Flowers to learn the secret code of my surroundings. I was happily surprised by the results. I printed the pictures I took and made a collage.

The flowers:

Azalea – temperance
Magnolia – love of nature
Hellebore – scandal, calumny
Heath – solitude
Dandelion – rustic oracle
Rhododendron – Danger, Beware
Camellia Japonica, Red – Unpretending excellence
Camellia Japonica, White – Perfected loveliness

PAD Challenge

Prompt: write a control poem

The poem

The Code of Controlled Emotions

In a time when a crush or a blush
Was met with a frown or a scowl
Flowers told of emotions controlled
A secret code now renowned

Today, I set out to discover the utter-
ances that my plants chant
but I rudely ignored as they implored
on the wind with their innovative jams

Camellia frills and trills at my door
Ignores the dead shed in the flowerbed
You swirl in perfected loveliness
But once unfurled beware the Hellebore

“Rhododendrons many here be, you see”
predicts the ever-present dandelion, a scion
of those pulled but a moment ago
“Best be lulled in the heath and ignore the siren”

Jentele Azalea, you calm the psalm
your secret may clear the fear while
Wild Magnolias sneak through the bushes
and surprise like beautifully died eggs

 

 

#NaPoWriMo Day 10: Hey Nah, Hey nah nah nah.

broken pieces he's marked
Without You (2019)                          bokeh photograph by Maria L. Berg                   

A to Z Challenge

interval  the distance in pitch between two notes

intonation  to play exactly on the proper pitch

NaPoWriMo

Today’s resource is a great website of poets reading their work called From the Fishouse.

I enjoyed my introduction to the site “Still Life as Rocket: 42” by Kamilah Aisha Moon

Prompt: write a Hay(na)ku

PAD Challenge

Prompt: The (blank) Who (blank)

The poem

The Lovers Who Quarantine Apart

distance
an interval
but only steps

#NaPoWriMo Day 9: Capturing Rainbow Butterflies

Capturing Rainbow Butterflies (2020) bokeh photograph by Maria L. Berg
Capturing Rainbow Butterflies (2020)                                    bokeh photograph by Maria L. Berg

A to Z Challenge

When I went to Sweden as an exchange student at thirteen, I had already been playing piano for eight years. Imagine my surprise to find that their scales had an H note. Mind- warping alternate reality.

half-step  the smallest distance possible between two notes

harmony (from dictionary.com)

  1. any simultaneous combination of tones.
  2. the simultaneous combination of tones, especially when blended into chords pleasing to the ear; chordal structure, as distinguished from melody and rhythm.
  3. the science of the structure, relations, and practical combination of chords.

NaPoWriMo

Prompt: write a concrete poem

PAD Challenge

Prompt: write an ekphrastic poem

I went to dictionary.com and typed in ekphrastic to explore the word further than my general understanding, and nothing came up, so I took a look at the entry for Ekphrasis on Wikipedia. It didn’t add a lot to my understanding of ekphrastic poetry, but I did like some of the phrases in the description such as: illuminative liveliness and rhetorical vividness. So today, I will attempt to approach liveliness and vividness with my words.

The poem

A Harmony of Rainbow Butterflies

A Harmony of Rainbow Butterflies

#NaPoWriMo Day 8: A crooked line

a new idea

A to Z Challenge

glissando – to slide: playing a very fast scale by a sliding movement

grave – very slow

NaPoWriMo

Prompt: Start with a line from another poet.

PAD Challenge

Prompt: Write a future poem

The Poem

(first line from anne carson bot)

A future voice in the dark

I am asking you to study the dark
to glimpse a future,
a glissando played grave
on the backs of eyelids

Is the crooked line imagined?
this jag in the path
weighted with time
grooved with new purpose

a texture, an echo
soft, small comforts
a distant tune of
what might have been

#NaPoWriMo Day 7: I read the news today, Oh Boy.

Collage illustration of poem
The Moon is Mine (2020) collage by Maria L. Berg

Blogging A to Z

I am not doing a great job of bringing my musical terms into my poetry, but they are still fun words to explore. Maybe I’ll use them to write little micro-fictions instead. That could be fun.

I recently read that April is also International Guitar Month, started in 1987 to promote retail guitar sales. Though I am not in the market for a guitar, I did find this fun playlist from NPR Celebrate International Guitar Month With These Guitar Greats.

This got me thinking about MoPop (It used to be the Experience Music Project) in Seattle. I headed to there website, but they don’t have virtual tours, so then I looked around for who did have virtual tours and found some fun ones:

Joe Bonamassa’s Vintage Guitar Studio Tour (this one made me say Whoa)

The National Music Museum

The National Blues Museum (this is the kind of virtual tour I had hoped to find at MoPop)

The David Gilmour (Pink Floyd) Guitar Collection

Musical Instrument Museum (this one is a little tricky to navigate, but worth the effort)

And there are more. I found an intriguing international collection at musicandenglish-interactivelearning.

I may end up spending quarantine in the Liszt Academy. Yep. This is now my mind palace. It’s amazing.

I cannot figure out how a single person can be bored. There is so much to explore. My time is flying by. I could spend an entire day in only one of these museums. Except now I’m never leaving Liszt Academy, so that could be a problem. 😉

Today’s musical terms:

fermata – a musical symbol that indicates to hold/pause on a note, played as long as the performer/director wishes

forte – loud

Fine – end of the song, stop here

NaPoWriMo

Prompt: a poem based on a news article

I cannot believe that during this unprecedented time of pandemic, when people are suffering and dying, losing loved ones and family members; medical professionals are desperate for supplies and people are bartering with toilet paper; the president of the United States thought it would be appropriate to sign an Executive Order on Space Resources. That’s right, he wants to profit from space mining. That is what he’s thinking about.

Quote from the “fact sheet” :

“Outer space is a legally and physically unique domain of human activity, and the United States does not view space as a global commons.”

So he makes a Space Force then creates a reason for there to be wars for it to fight? What a horror show. Does he think The Emperor from Star Wars was the good guy? Or does he just like his looks?

I also happened upon an article showing that we can’t even manage the National Laboratory at the International Space Center: Report criticizes management of ISS National Laboratory. I’m sure we’ll get it all sorted out before the death star is fully functional.

PAD Challenge

Prompt: pick a piece of clothing, use it as your title

The poem

The Business Casual Space Suit

The man is on a mission
Talk about an ill-fitting suit
He has a moon to conquer
and another planet to loot

The man needs a taller tower
and his snake oils are now lunar
His wreckage is universal
powders promise to get you there sooner

The man without compassion
inspires every greedy crook
but they don’t break any laws
because in space he re-wrote the book

The man is on a mission
His suit feels bulky, flattens his hair
He can’t wait to bounce on the surface
and remove his helmet when he gets there.

 

#NaPoWriMo Day 6: Vanity by any other name

Garden of earthly delight lizards
Small section of Garden of Earthly Delights by Hieronymus Bosch

Blogging A to Z

enharmonic – tones which sound the same pitch, but are written & named differently

NaPoWriMo

Prompt: “write a poem from the point of view of one person/animal/thing from Hieronymous Bosch’s famous (and famously bizarre) triptych The Garden of Earthly Delights.”

PAD Challenge

Prompt: Write a trap poem

The poem

A Giant Leap for Lizardkind

I alone among my brethren prepared for this journey
asking my mentor, Queen of the spiders
to fashion me a coat,
a protective armor to guard
my water-born fragile flesh
from the ground

At first, I was weary
of the bright reflective color
my sisters laughed at me
and shielded their eyes
but she assures me that I will
blend perfectly with the
pale flesh of the groundlings.

She thought of everything
protecting my head and neck
hiding my tail
While she spun at the water’s edge
she told me tales of the beings
I will encounter upon the land
It is important to blend in
and not be noticed, she explained
for they fear the unknown and
will lash out violently

I try to lead the way
to test the ground
perhaps mitigate the potential losses
because they would not head
my warnings and yet
are determined to leave home
but they rush ahead
as if the water they have known
boils their tails

I watch in horror as the first
of my kin are skewered
I slip into a crowd of ivory bodies unnoticed
and watch as my familiars are roasted
and devoured
I pity them

I hear a whisper
the spider queen
lowers herself on her silk strand
above me reaching
she tugs a thread at the front of my hood
near my eye it cinches tight
and she drags me up
up into her web
There was more than one predator on the land
I had trusted her
and she trapped me with my vanity

 

#NaPoWriMo Day 5: Twenty Little Moments

bokeh photography experiment with a wide angle attachment on a zoom lens
Galactic Unions photo by Maria L. Berg

I thought these prompts would be challenging, but once I decided on the abstract concept I wanted to explore for my metaphor, it really took me to some interesting places. I can see why I would visit this prompt again.

NaPoWriMo

Prompt: “Twenty Little Poetry Projects”

  1. Begin the poem with a metaphor.
  2. Say something specific but utterly preposterous.
  3. Use at least one image for each of the five senses, either in succession or scattered randomly throughout the poem.
  4. Use one example of synesthesia (mixing the senses).
  5. Use the proper name of a person and the proper name of a place.
  6. Contradict something you said earlier in the poem.
  7. Change direction or digress from the last thing you said.
  8. Use a word (slang?) you’ve never seen in a poem.
  9. Use an example of false cause-effect logic.
  10. Use a piece of talk you’ve actually heard (preferably in dialect and/or which you don’t understand).
  11. Create a metaphor using the following construction: “The (adjective) (concrete noun) of (abstract noun) . . .”
  12. Use an image in such a way as to reverse its usual associative qualities.
  13. Make the persona or character in the poem do something he or she could not do in “real life.”
  14. Refer to yourself by nickname and in the third person.
  15. Write in the future tense, such that part of the poem seems to be a prediction.
  16. Modify a noun with an unlikely adjective.
  17. Make a declarative assertion that sounds convincing but that finally makes no sense.
  18. Use a phrase from a language other than English.
  19. Make a non-human object say or do something human (personification).
  20. Close the poem with a vivid image that makes no statement, but that “echoes” an image from earlier in the poem.

All in one poem.

PAD Challenge

Prompt: write a moment poem

The poem

She Used to Say Patience is a Virtue

Patience is a convertible in orbit
where stars joyride through the void
the new-car smell slowly expanding with the universe
the squeaky, sticky leather seats never to crack or fade
the roar of the engine forever in wait
the left blinker signals its eternal turning in the key of B flat
like Misty Copeland on a piano at a Prince concert

Learning patience is not in space
not floating around with a long expansive view
It is the lagniappe of a hard life
When the rat crawls out of the hole you’re squatting over,
you either stare it down and hold back a scream,
or catch it and eat it for dinner
Why make groceries when they come to you?

Supergirl will face death again,
but for now, she will avoid
searching out the blood-rat dinner
Because patience leads to tastier meals
without most of the hair still on.
Io. Iadro. Am go swanlay.
In other words: Hello. How are you? I’m going to shower.
The goats at my house cry like children.
But the orbiting patience vrooms around all of it
not seeing or hearing the small details
only the largest changes over the ages.

# NaPoWriMo Day 4: Dreams and Wishes

double ink blot with acrylic paint
Dreamscape (2020)                             acrylic inkblot and photo by Maria L. Berg

I wrote a song called Haunting Dreams that I recorded with Maria and the Aftermath on our album Selective Memories. I uploaded it to HitRecord which is a fun site for artistic collaboration. I think it fits nicely with this theme.

Blogging A to Z

diminuendo – gradually get softer

dolce – play with a sweet tone

dynamics – variations in degree of loudness and softness, shading

NaPoWriMo

Prompt: Write a poem based on an image from a dream

PAD Challenge

Prompt: Write a wish poem

The poem

Dreams and Wishes

Dreams and wishes
echo unfulfilled desires
remnants of reaching
into the vast unknown
only to find a silent ache

Wishes like fishes
swim around in
the collective unconscious
looking for tasty bait
that will hook
and draw them wriggling
to the surface
for a last gasp
only to die

Dreams are the streams
where hope battles
against the current
guided by biological
determination to
fertilize and duplicate
and once spawned
wither and die
decay and wash away

Be diligently weary
of wishes
and find a way
to keep REM sleep at bay
for the promises
dangled by those shimmering
glimpses in the night
are but slimy scales in the light