Whatever

nov 21 whenever  was the prompt, but i looked at it once and then ruminated on 'whatever,' so that's what i wrote instead.  not sure it's worth keeping, but if i do, it needs a title.

"Whatever you do,

don't give away the ending,"

we say of books, movies,

the punchline of a joke.

The prize, the crown,

the finish line -- all come

at the end of effort.

Whatever you do

don't let go of hope,

the soul's anchor.

bh

nov 2011

too late

November 18 prompt was 'too late.'  this little poem may not seem too hopeful at first glance. i think it may qualify if we take it as encouragment to be honest in our relationships.

too late

don't tell me
not to worry
i have already seen
your eyes

bh
nov 2011

deadly

the prompt for November 14 was 'deadly/dangerous.'  i didn't have any good ideas until Carrie suggested writing about brown recluse spiders!  unfortuntely, i have direct experience with the same.  i was bitten on my inner thigh by one in 1999, while living in Lubbock.  we saw a few in Shreveport but they didn't seem to be a huge problem, although the piney woods region is prime recluse territory. after moving into this house in March, i began to find a few and first thought they had tagged along in packing boxes from Louisiana.  the exterminator, and later friends, assured me St. Louis is also a favorite habitat.  so, my 'deadly' poem follows. 

Deadly

hiding in dark corners

not large but venomous

having distinctive markings

yet difficult to identify

biding silently until bestirred

then attacking, often unseen

leaving a festering wound

how very like the brown recluse

is resentment

bh

nov 2011

you may wonder how this fits on a blog about 'hope.'  to my way of thinking, recognizing and dealing with our faults is a hopeful thing.  if i'm to move forward in life, in hope, i can't be stuck in unforgiveness.  shine a light on it!

big numbers

the prompt for 11 november was numbers.  not my strong suit, but ...

ten thousand times ten thousand...

and thousands of thousands

singing praise to the Lamb
will not exhaust
the greatness
of His goodness
power and glory.

Let me add one voice,
not to burnish His brightness
but to be in the number,
receiving and reflecting
light of love and life.
Worthy is the Lamb!

Revelation 5

bh
nov 11

i'm only a couple of days behind in writing poems for the prompts.  *puff, puff*

paranormal

'paranormal' was the prompt for the poem-a-day challenge today.  i'll use that for the title of this poem.

I know it doesn't make sense
to be able to sleep well
when there's little money in the bank;
to enjoy a meal with friends
when a family member is dying;
to hum while working
at a dead-end job.
But there is a peace
past understanding.

"You will keep him perfect peace
whose mind is stayed on You,
because he trusts in You."
Isaiah 26:3  ESV

word power

day 2 poem got some good feedback from my critique group, but also some suggestions for reworking, so i'll wait awhile on that one.

the prompt for day 3 was 'sort of.'  my poem is not an original idea, but there aren't any of those, are there?  ;)  i considered using Proverbs 18:21 as an epigraph but decided the poem is pretty short for that.

imago dei

sort of like God
spoke the worlds
into existence
our words
by pen or tongue
call forth life
or wreak destruction

bh
nov 2011

hopeful

been a long time since i tried to blog regularly.  i had a webpage over 12 years ago, before the noun blog or the verb to blog was very current.  i tried to update it about twice a month with a new poem.  and then i had a page on an early 'social media' site called xanga.com, where my niece got our far-flung family involved, and it was a great way to keep up with family doings before we all moved to facebook.

now, i'm supposed to be developing a 'web presence' to 'build a platform' for my writing and editing projects. maybe this will be it.  i know that i always want my writing to have a kernel of hope. so, i chose a part of a poem by Emily Dickinson to be the title of this blog.  i have hope because of my faith. my faith is who i am.  i can say with the Apostle Paul, 'for me to live is Christ.'

i have a group of poet friends with whom i post and critique in email.  some of us are trying to do a poem-a-day challenge in November, with prompts from Robert Lee Brewer, the poetry editor of Writers Digest. i'm hopeful that i can keep up! and as much as possible, i'm going to try to make the prompts serve my personal theme of hope. i may not post every day's poem here, but quite a few of them will likely show up. today's prompt was a choice -- either 'procrastination' or 'getting it done.'  here are my poetry exercises for November 1.

procrastination

there's always plenty of time

to give up
worry makes its own place
no effort required
the path of least resistance
so i'll wait until tomorrow
to despair

******

(untitled)

procrastination

habituation minimalization
obfuscation abdication
isolation stultification

inclination visualization
maturation reunification

cooperation opitimization
hullabalation jubilation

liberation

bh
november 2011