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Two Voices

Sally8 Comments

Hey kiddo!
[blah, blah, blah, ditto, ditto]
You’re not even listening but–
What?!

I listen!
You go on about this sin
And that sin — What? I have not
Got

Time — Excuse,
Excuse, excuse! Please produce
Evidence! Evidence? I
Try

To explain —
You’re not listening again.
I found the wrapper! [big eyes,
cries]

You’re busted.
The sad thing is I trusted
You. Sorry, Mom. C’mere, bug —
{{{{hug}}}}

This is my attempt at the W3 challenge this week. Poet of the Week Violet (congrats, Violet!) challenged us to write a poem in two voices.

  • Two voices. Two perspectives. Tension lingers in the air.
  • Can they find common ground? Will the conversation spark understanding or fracture further?
  • You decide.
  • Write a poem—any form, or none at all—that captures the heart of a difficult conversation.

This is an Irish form – Deibide Baise Fri Toin – that I’m slowly figuring out. 3-7-7-1 syllables. Line 1 and 2 rhyme on two syllables, lines 3 and 4 rhyme on one.

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4th of July Thoughts on America

Sally4 Comments

One of the places I work has a wall of photographs of significant people who have been a part of that place. One of the photos is a man named Samuel Nelson.

In the mid-1800s, from teeny-tiny Cooperstown, Samuel Nelson rose to the Supreme Court of the United States. He served from 1845 to 1872 on that court and sided with the majority on arguably the worst decision that court ever made, Dred Scott, in which they ruled “that Americans of African descent, whether free or slave, were not American citizens and could not sue in federal court. The Court also ruled that Congress lacked power to ban slavery in the U.S. territories. Finally, the Court declared that the rights of slaveowners were constitutionally protected by the Fifth Amendment because slaves were categorized as property.” (from The Supreme Court: The First Hundred Years) The Dred Scott decision was overturned by the 13th and 14th amendments to the Constitution, which abolished slavery and declared all persons born in the United States to be citizens of the United States.

When my children were younger, we listened to a Brite Music CD (actually, I think our first version was on cassette) called “Take Your Hat Off When the Flag Goes By” by Janeen Brady. They learned the foundations of our government through the songs. One song is just the preamble to our Constitution — and I’ll bet that most of my older kids could still sing it. “We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men (and women) are created equal.”

The song (from Take Your Hat Off) that I’m thinking about these days is called “Checks and Balances.“

“The government works like a great gigantic triangle.
No one holds all the power; that’s made quite clear.
There are three branches of power in the great big triangle.
That’s why a dictator never could make it here.
Checks and balances, checks and balances, checks and balances.”

Probably ten or twelve years ago, I read Ron Chernow’s biography of George Washington: Washington: A Life. One of the things that stood out to me from that book was the way George Washington, as the first president, surrounded himself with people of varying opinions. It made our government stronger to have these strongs minds batting ideas back and forth as they came up with the principles that have guided us for two centuries.

This week’s Supreme Court ruling on presidential immunity should alarm any American of any party. It yields waaaaaaay too much power to the president. Checks and balances are lost. Do we need another amendment to the constitution to overturn it?

Then, of course, we have a man who has said he would be dictator on his first day in office. Oh, you may think he’s trying to be funny and you may actually believe it’s just about closing the border — but look at how he dealt with people IN HIS OWN PARTY who weren’t cowtowing to him. Can I mention Liz Cheney here?

The denigrating name-calling ostracizing nastiness reeks of narcissism and despotism.

I say all this as a Republican. I am conservative. But Donald Trump scares me a lot.

We are in deep trouble.

poetry · Uncategorized

Letter from a Yellow Pen

Sally5 Comments

Dear Writer,
I know my ink is lighter,
Sometimes hard for you to see.
Be

Fair, okay?
I can and I will display
Brightness in the words you choose!
Lose

Your bias.
I’m asking that you try us —
Lemon, saffron, mustard, maize —
Gaze!

Your choices
(Which can vary like voices
From soprano down to bass)
Grace

Your paper
In shades that play and caper
Like shards and flickers of light —
Right?

Use yellow,
My dear reluctant fellow!
You will find that you can see
Me.

Love,
Your yellow pen

This is an Irish poetic form called Deibide Baise Fri Toin. 

The poem is made up of quatrains with an aabb rhyme scheme. Syllable count 3-7-7-1. Lines one and two rhyme on a two-syllable word; lines three and four rhyme on a monosyllabic word.

The prompt on January 4 from the 64 Million Artists creativity challenge was to write a short letter to yourself from the perspective of an object that you use, or maybe misuse everyday. Honestly, I NEVER use my yellow pens. I have a basket full of a variety of pens in a variety of colors.

My favorites are brown, green, grey, and blue — earth, ocean, sky.

My least favorite is red. It feels too corrective — probably going back to my school days.

I like yellow. I just can’t always see what I’ve written when I use yellow.

Did I use yellow on January 4? Heck, yes, I did!

My pen basket
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The Giant’s Nose

Sally14 Comments

“See the nose?” Michael said, pointing at the distant pointed mountain.

Brodie nodded.

“Remember the rhyme?” Michael asked.

Brodie shook his head.

Michael crossed his arms, all know-it-all like, and recited,”‘If anyone goes, in the giant’s nose, he’ll decompose.’ That means he’ll rot. We don’t want to go there.”

Brodie’s eyes were big and somber. He pointed at the two small mountains, and held up his hands in a questioning way.

“Those are the Frog’s Eyes,” Michael told Brodie. “There’s a rhyme about them, too — ‘The Frog’s Eyes hide a prize. A good disguise is advised.’ Did you bring a disguise?”

Brodie held open his rucksack and showed him some bandanas and hats.

“They’ll have to do,” Michael said, and shrugged. “Okay, now first — ‘Follow the path around the lake; whatever you do, don’t make a mistake.'”

Michael led the way, his eyes down, focusing on keeping to the wide trail. Brodie lagged behind, looking at the mountains that were growing closer. Unfortunately, the Giant’s Nose was looming nearer, while the Frog’s Eyes were not.

Finally, Brodie ran and tugged Michael’s sleeve. He pointed at the Giant’s Nose. He pointed at the Frog’s Eyes. He pointed at the trail and drew a line with his hand indicating that the trail was leading to the wrong mountain.

Michael frowned. “Did we make a mistake? We followed the path!”

Brodie pointed to a boulder ahead. These words were etched into it:

“Beware following words that rhyme.
They are wrong half the time.”

This post brought to you by the Unicorn Challenge. The rules are simple:

Use the photo
250 words max
More than that
Get the ax

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A Hell of a Scary Crack

Sally12 Comments

I think you need to read yesterday’s Blather to understand what’s going on here. In short, this strange, strangely-formatted poem, is because I could hear it, almost like a song with three distinct voices. This is in response to the W3 prompt which called for using a line or two from Leonard Cohen’s Anthem.

Gosh, I apologize. If you were to meet me in person, you might think I’m normal. However, after reading this, you won’t think that at all.

Okie-dokie — Here goes:

Must be a hell of a scary crack

That’s how the light gets in
That’s how the light gets in

A hell of a scary crack

That’s how the light gets in
That’s how the light gets in

I was sittin’ with my coffee
In the hotel breakfast room
When a homeless guy walked past me
He was headin’ for the food, for the food

Must be a hell of a scary crack

That’s how the light gets in
That’s how the light gets in

Mmm… it smelled so delicious
He closed his eyes just to drink the smell in
But his hands were a’trembling greatly
Like a leaf at the end of a willowy limb

Must be a hell of a scary crack

That’s how the light gets in
That’s how the light gets in

Hunger moves a man to do a scary thing
He’d been thrown out before, thrown out before
Still he braved it all again
When he saw that crack in the door, crack in the door

Must be a hell of a scary crack

That’s how the light gets in
That’s how the light gets in

Lights and smells both beckon
But not to those who have everything
If we aren’t hungry, we miss them
We miss it all, yes, we miss it all.

Must be a hell of a scary crack

That’s how the light gets in
That’s how the light gets in



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Japanese Knotweed

Sally17 Comments

Reynoutria Japonica, you’re cruel –
Hand-pulling up your stem, I miss the root.
I think I need to find a better tool

Hey, dandelion digger — maybe you’ll
Dig deeper in the soil… Ah, shoot!
Reynoutria Japonica, you’re cruel!

A trowel – yes – and sitting on my stool
Still doesn’t do the job. There’s no dispute –
I think I need to find a better tool.

The things they never teach us while in school
That even shovels fail to execute —
Reynoutria Japonica, you’re cruel.

Get the backhoe! Fill it up with fuel!
Destroy the entire garden in pursuit!
I think I need to find a better tool.

No — I’ll study you and find what makes you cool.
Whoa! You fight plaque? And gingivitis to boot?!
Reynoutria Japonica, you rule!
I think I finally found my better tool.

This is such a work of fiction and not even a true villanelle. (I didn’t verbatim repeat lines A and B in the final couplet.)

Let it be said that I hate Japanese knotweed whose scientific name is Reynoutria Japonica. I do yearly battle with it and never win. I don’t even feel like I make any progress.

I do believe that leaning in and looking for positives is the best way to deal with difficult situations.

But I still hate Japanese knotweed. But, trust me — I’m not going to use knotweed to fight gingivitis. I would much rather give Oral B my money.

This is my submission for this week’s W3 prompt: Write: A) a sonnet, OR: B) a villanelle on the theme of: an animal, plant, or object, describing its qualities or what can be learned from it.

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23 Words from ChatGPT

Sally5 Comments

Warning: I’m going to go way over my limit today.

I was going to cheat by asking ChatGPT to give me a profound quote of 23 words. What it gave me was 13 words and they weren’t terribly profound. I shouldn’t have been surprised — I mean, it’s not a person. What does artificial intelligence know about profundity? I thought that it would at least be able to count.

My oldest daughter had introduced me to ChatGPT on our road trip. For her work, it can be invaluable. It can summarize sections of Medicare policy that would take her hours to review. I played around with it and asked it about some local historical research I had been working on and it was less than helpful.

Over and over this evening I asked for 23 words. Not a single 23 word anything.

When I asked for funny, they were funny. Here are some of the best ones (word count in parentheses):

  • Yesterday I saw a guy spill all his Scrabble letters on the road. I asked him, ‘What’s the word on the street? (22)
  • I used to play piano by ear, but now I use my hands. (13)
  • Why don’t scientists trust atoms? Because they make up everything. (10)
  • Did you hear about the kidnapping at the playground? They woke up. (12)
  • “Time flies like an arrow; fruit flies like a banana.” – Groucho Marx. (12)
  • Whenever I try to eat healthy, a chocolate bar looks at me and Snickers. (14)
  • Parallel lines have so much in common. It’s a shame they’ll never meet. (13)

Finally, I asked it to count the words in a sentence. It couldn’t.

Here are two screen shots to illustrate my point

So I asked to show me how it arrived at 23 words in one of the sentences it had given me:

Does this make sense to you?