Day 20 Tobago oil spill reaches Bonaire

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Bonaire Island in the Carribean (image courtesy of keycaribe.com)

Napowrimo.net Prompt: “Our optional prompt for the day challenges you to write a poem that recounts a historical event. In writing your poem, you could draw on your memory, encyclopedias, history books, or primary documents.”

The Poem:

TOBAGO OIL SPILL REACHES BONAIRE,

the headline blasts to the world,

but the world doesn’t hear.

Mangrove, fish, and coral

choked with flowing oil from capsized barge.

The sea hears, the shore hears,

the mangroves hear,

the fish hear,

the coral hear.

Mangroves live in salty water.

Mangroves live in harmony

with ebb and flow of the tide,

in harmony with fish,

in harmony with coral,

in harmony with humans.

Mangroves protect & buffer

homes on the coast &

hoard the carbon we spew.

Mangroves know the oil

in the depths of their souls.

Jacquelyn Markham (4/20/2024)

The Story behind the poem:

Because my latest book of poetry, Rainbow Warrior, is a collection of eco-poetry with some focus on environmental issues like oil disasters and nuclear testing, I am going to write a short poem on one of these historical events. Unfortunately, only too often do we hear about an oil spill and very often, we don’t hear at all.

In doing my research today, I realized that April 20 is the anniversary (if that’s the right word) of the devastating Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill, April 20, 2010. According to Reuters news source, it was the worst accidental offshore oil spill in history, killing 11 workers and releasing 134 million gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico.

I addressed the Deepwater Horizon Oils Spill deeply in my poem, “Myth of the Infinite Sea,” first published in 2012 in the Anthology of Appalachian Writers, Vol. IV, Shepherd University, and included in my collection, Rainbow Warrior, published  by Finishing Line Press (2023).

This link details major oil spills in US since 1969.  There are far too many!

So, this is how my poem about a historical event came to be. The event was the oil spill in the Caribbean, impacting the islands of Bonaire and Tobago, first spotted on February 7, 2024 and still leaking as of February 26. The oil was causing a “serious threat to both humans and nature.” (Source: https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/oil-spotted-bonaires-east-coast-could-come-tobago-local-media-2024-02-26/

Jacquelyn Markham, poet & writer, author of Rainbow Warrior, Finishing Line Press (2023), Peering Into the Iris: An Ancestral Journey and China Baby, among other titles.

Mangroveshttps://earthwiseradio.org/podcast/mangrove-trees-and-climate-change/

Day 19 Pandora’s Box

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Maureen Thorson at Napowrimo.net has really come up with a prompt to surprise! She writes: “This one comes to us from Moist Poetry Journal, which posted this prompt by K-Ming Chang a while back: What are you haunted by, or what haunts you? Write a poem responding to this question. Then change the word haunt to hunt.” I am going to give both versions.

Pandora’s Box of Promises

No ordinary missives,

these miniature works of art

expressions of undying love & desire,

india ink on parchment, sometimes goauche

or Windsor Newton watercolor.

Love gone underground, this pile of letters

stored in an ornate box haunt me,

haunt me not to read, but to burn

in huge flames of banishment

at the dark phase of the moon.

If not turned to ashes, this parlance

will become a legacy I don’t want

to leave behind. Every time

I open the credenza,

Pandora’s box haunts me!

Jacquelyn Markham 4/19/2024

Pandora’s Box of Promises

No ordinary missives,

these miniature works of art

expressions of undying love & desire,

india ink on parchment, sometimes goauche

or Windsor Newton watercolor.

Love gone underground, this pile of letters

stored in an ornate box hunt me,

hunt me not to read, but to burn

in huge flames of banishment

at the dark phase of the moon.

If not turned to ashes, this parlance

will become a legacy I don’t want

to leave behind. Every time

I open the credenza,

Pandora’s box hunts me!

Jacquelyn Markham (4/19/2024-revision with hunt)

Day 18 What I Long to Be

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And on this 18th day of our challenge, Maureen at Napowrimo says: “Today, we’d like to challenge you to write a poem in which the speaker expresses the desire to be someone or something else, and explains why.”

What I Long to Be

I long to be a new version of me.

I long to be a rockin’ rock star who

tours the world and sings to packed crowds,

with a legacy that lasts a half century.

I long to be much taller & thinner, much more stylish.

I long to write novels & sell them to

moviemakers who turn them into series.

I long to have a productive green garden,

an immaculate yard, and a spotless house,

clean sheets every night, no ring on the tub.

I long to be strong & courageous, climb

rocks like a pro, &  nothing too heavy for me to lift!

No mountain too high for me to climb!

I long to know no fear—not in the dark of night

or on the busiest expressway that crosses the city

or the highest suspension bridge.

An elevator up to the 100th floor, no problem.

No anxiety, no jitters, no vertigo.

I long to be a famous philanthropist & give money away,

an environmentalist who saves the manatees & the whales.

But, since all of these longings are far from my reach,

I long to be the best me I can be!

Jacquelyn Markham (4/18/2024)

Day 17 La Vie en Rose: Villanelle

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Napowrimo’s Prompt: “Today, we’d like to challenge you to write a poem that is inspired by a piece of music, and that shares its title with that piece of music.”

Because we are focusing on music today, I decided to write a villanelle, a form that dates back to Italy during the 16th century. Villanelles were songs, so it seemed a good fit. The form enjoyed a revival during the 19th century and to brush up on the form, I studied a villanelle by Oscar Wilde, titled “Theocritus” (check it out here). The villanelle consists of 5 tercets & a quatrain with a specific rhyme scheme, sometimes restricting syllables, but apparently not always. If you want to learn more about Oscar Wilde’s poem, you can find a fascinating article by the Guardian on the poem:https://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/aug/29/poem-of-the-week-theocritus-villanelle-oscar-wilde

You will notice the repetition of two refrains selected from the first stanza.

La Vie en Rose: A villanelle

“I thought that love was just a word/They sang about in songs” (Edith Piaf)

When I hear La Vie en Rose,

I want to stroll through Paris in the rain.

Do you, like Edith, believe in love?

Nymphs and fawns in fountain spray,

in Champs-Élysées, leaves skitter black with rain,

when I hear La Vie en Rose.

Rose-colored glasses at twenty did betray.

Still, I want to see a love-filled world.

Do you, like Edith, believe in love?

My music box played the song every day.

Love escaped me but not the pain

when I hear La Vie en Rose.

Whether Paris, Rome or the place you stay,

love and desire are in your domain.

Do you, like Edith, believe in love?

Rose petals fall away—

dried, brittle, crumbled once again

when I hear La Vie en Rose.

Do you, like Edith, believe in love?

Jacquelyn Markham (4/17/2024)

Day 16 Remembering Neruda

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Day 16 moves us into the second half of the month, and yet, summoning the muse becomes a bit difficult–at least it has for me today. Nevertheless, my memory has joined the muse again and I have composed a poem.

Maureen at Napowrimo.net always reminds us the prompt is “optional,” but I do like to try to follow along with other poets.  It’s interesting to see the many different perspectives. And, sometimes making an effort to try something new results in a good poem!

So here it is: “today, we challenge you to write a poem in which you closely describe an object or place, and then end with a much more abstract line that doesn’t seemingly have anything to do with that object or place, but which, of course, really does. The “surprise” ending to this James Wright poem is a good illustration of the effect we’re hoping you’ll achieve. An abstract, philosophical kind of statement closing out a poem that is otherwise intensely focused on physical, sensory details.”

Remembering Neruda on the tavern terrace in spring

Jasmine & clematis drape a trellis in fragrance,

Nina Simone’s voice casts a spell on the night

while the server whose favorite poet is Pablo Neruda

(he has told me, noting I write poems on my placemat)

pours wine with a flair & a golden stream

swirls into my glass. Nina’s spell gives way

to Stevie Wonder’s funky beat on this tavern terrace

as cool as the spring evening laden with scent.

I recopy the poem I have written about the night & offer

it with my tab to the dark-eyed waiter who returns

to his Chilean home in the morning.

Was it Neruda’s poems of love or despair

that he held in his memory?

Jacquelyn Markham (4/16/2024)

Jacquelyn Markham, poet & writer, author of Rainbow Warrior, Finishing Line Press (2023), Peering Into the Iris: An Ancestral Journey and China Baby, among other titles.

Day 15 Little Stamp from Aruba

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Today’s prompt from Napowrimo.net asked us to get inspired by stamps!

It took me awhile as first I went to the National Postal Museum and there was so much to learn! Next, I tried the recommended @StampsBot. Like Maureen said, there was an amazing “wide, wonderful, and sometimes wacky world of postage stamps” out there! But, still, difficult to zero in on just one. Curious how many stamps from other countries feature cats. I don’t recall any US stamps giving cats so much attention. In the end, though, it was this gorgeous palm tree and sunset that caught my eye. And now, I want to go to Aruba!

It also reminded me of a painting I did en plein air, years ago on a nearby beach. I gave it as a wedding gift to some dear friends.

Poet’s painting of island sunset.

And here is my little poem inspired by this lovely stamp from Aruba:

On this little stamp from Aruba

a fireball drops into the sea

a palette of orange red & yellow

sinks deep into the waves

yet stays in sky & palm fronds

not wanting to give up

the glorious day in Aruba

on the turquoise Caribbean

or even the quiet day

at the shore nearby

Jacquelyn Markham (4/15/2024)

Aruba from https://www.aruba.com/us

Day 14 Passiflora Incarnata

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image credit: https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/passiflora-incarnata/

Today, I was remembering. . .

Passiflora Incarnata

Remember the day we met

Remember the day we parted

Remember the in-between

Remember the sycamore trees in December

Remember the lilacs in May

Remember the limestone walls & palisades

Remember the blank canvases & the gesso

Remember the studios scented in terpentine & oil

Remember the easels in gardens with light

Remember the gardens with duets in song

Remember the gardens in cold November

Remember the passiflora incarnata in June

Remember the meditations under the moon

Remember the pentimento of our days.

Jacquelyn Markham (4/14/24)

Napowrimo.net Prompt: Today’s (optional) prompt asks you to write a poem of at least ten lines in which each line begins with the same word (e.g., “Because,” “Forget,” “Not,” “If”). This technique of beginning multiple lines with the same word or phrase is called anaphora, and has long been used to give poems a driving rhythm and/or a sense of puzzlebox mystery. To give you more context, here’s an essay by Rebecca Hazelton on her students’ “adventures in anaphora,” and a contemporary poem that uses anaphora to great effect: Layli Long Soldier’s “Whereas.”

PAD 13 Rhyme Play: Perched in a tree

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Perched in a tree, feeling free

As I perched in a cottonwood tree, feeling as free

as a bird who could fly, I thought I heard a flute

song far far from me—like smoke in the sky,

the melody went by.  It seemed so close to me,

I could kiss the fingers of the one who played flute,

but alas, then, it went mute and I heard only the noise of a car!

It was far from me, but still, it jarred my bliss

in this peaceful spot that wasn’t cold nor was it hot.

It was until the car, pure bliss. Oh what a bitter pill

to lose the trill of the flute and the melodies of Bach,

traded for zoom, zoom, zoom of the car.  And that car

was not far at all from my blissful state in the tree!

Jarring me, giving me jitters when moments ago

I felt only bliss and a kiss of the breeze that

carried the song of a mockingbird and a flute.

What glee! What bliss! To be so free! To close my eyes

to feel like a soft kiss the notes of the flute

and the birdsong! Until the car, smoke, and the noise

made it fly from me as I perched in this cottonwood tree!

Jacquelyn Markham 4/13/2024

Jacquelyn Markham, poet & writer, author of Rainbow Warrior, Finishing Line Press (2023), Peering Into the Iris: An Ancestral Journey and China Baby, among other titles.

And here’s the prompt for today’s poem:

Napowrimo.net: “our optional prompt for the day asks you to play with rhyme. Start by creating a “word bank” of ten simple words. They should only have one or two syllables apiece. Five should correspond to each of the five senses (i.e., one word that is a thing you can see, one word that is a type of sound, one word that is a thing you can taste, etc). Three more should be concrete nouns of whatever character you choose (i.e., “bridge,” “sun,” “airplane,” “cat”), and the last two should be verbs. Now, come up with rhymes for each of your ten words. (If you’re having trouble coming up with rhymes, the wonderful Rhymezone is at your service). Use your expanded word-bank, with rhymes, as the seeds for your poem. Your effort doesn’t actually have to rhyme in the sense of having each line end with a rhymed word, but try to use as much soundplay in your poem as possible.”

Day 12 A Tall Tale

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Jacana-image credit: wwwthespruce.com

The Woman Next Door: A Tall Tale

There once was a woman who lived

on a street called Bob O’Link

just beyond an avenue named Jacana

after the bird who walks on lily pads.

She stayed in a small Cape Cod of red brick

with no distinctive architecture, but

neat windows up high, & a room to paint the moon,

overlook for neighbor’s trimmed

& landscaped yard. Her house sat on a grassy lot

with two twig dropping maples, a semicircle of

dwarf hollies & a spindly rhododendren.

The little brick house appeared nothing unusual,

but inside, a river ran through the basement,

rising high after the rain.

The witch woman in a flowing gown,

or priestess if  you prefer, molts

in cycles with the seasons & phases of the moon.

photo by poet

She chants, burns sage in an Abalone shell,

raises energy & draws down the moon

to make her good magic.  Ancestors

visit her in dreams & visions.

She paints & writes her own mythology.

Shaman Jacana transforms, hopping

from lily pad to lily pad, always

searching her next home.

You see, she’s got gypsy in her soul.

            Jacquelyn Markham (4/12/24)

And, the prompt that started all of this!

Napowrimo.net: “And last but not least, our optional prompt. Today, we’d like to challenge you to write a poem that plays with the idea of a “tall tale.” American tall tales feature larger-than-life characters like Paul Bunyan (who is literally larger than life), Bulltop Stormalong (also gigantic), and Pecos Bill (apparently normal-sized, but he doesn’t let it slow him down). If you’d like to see a modern poetic take on the tall tale, try Jennifer L. Knox’s hilarious poem, “Burt Reynolds FAQ.” Your poem can revolve around a mythical character, one you make up entirely, or add fantastical elements into a real person’s biography.”

Day 11 The Painted Desert Glowed

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Courtesy of Stef Dunn Photography

Painted Desert Memory

The painted desert glowed rose red in the sunset

when we drove west &  you were so young

with your auburn hair.

Jacquelyn Markham (4/11/2024)

Today, Day 11 of the poem-a-day challenge in honor of National Poetry Month, 2024, we were encouraged by Napowrimo.net to write a one line poem: “our optional prompt for the day honors the “ones” in the number 11.”

Maureen Thorsen writes: “Today, we’d like to challenge you to write either a monostich, which is a one-line poem, or a poem made up of one-liner style jokes/sentiments.” This prompt sends us to Writer’s Digest where we find a different prompt and an example of monostich (a one line poem) by Robert Lee Brewer.

Regret

by Robert Lee Brewer

I hold a chip bag that only holds crumbs.

That’s a sad story, Robert, but I think mine is even sadder or at least nostalgic!

By the way, if you want to check out the prompts at Writer’s Digest, curated by Robert Lee Brewer, you can find them here:

Robert’s prompt for today is: “For today’s prompt, write a memory poem. The poem could conjure up an actual memory that you have from your childhood, or last week, or earlier this morning. Or the memory could be made up. Or the memory is just a starting point for a completely different poem. Your memories, your poems.”

I combined the two prompts for a one-liner memory poem.  Hope you like it!

Rainbow Warrior

Jacquelyn Markham, poet & writer, author of Rainbow Warrior, Finishing Line Press (2023), Peering Into the Iris: An Ancestral Journey and China Baby, among other titles.