Saturday, April 30, 2022

#TankaTuesday #Poetry Challenge #ThemePrompt #Choka #Tanka @ColleenChesebro #poetry #writingcommunity #poetrycommunity #poems #themes


Hello, beautiful readers! During last month's #TankaTuesday Weekly Poetry Challenge on theme prompts, Colleen Chesebro chose my poem to highlight, giving me the honor of choosing the next theme. After playing with a few themes, I chose to go with beginnings and endings. I knew the poets who participate in her challenges would each bring his/her own perspective to this theme, and they did not disappoint. You can read their poems here

Even though it was my theme, it took me a while to sit down and allow the words to flow onto a page. Since the pandemic began, I've found myself on a journey of healing and growth. Part of that journey has been about shifting perspectives. For as long as I can remember, I've had a strong negative inner voice. I used to try to suppress and ignore her, which only made her stronger. So, now I listen and then offer myself a new way of seeing things. It isn't always easy, but I'm celebrating my successes. So, I chose to focus on the beginnings that come after the endings.

This week, I tried my hand at a choka poem. In her poetry cheat sheet, Colleen explains that a choka uses couplets of an alternating 5-7 syllabic pattern with the last two lines having seven syllables each. She also explains that they were followed by a shorter poem called a hanka. For my hanka, I've added a tanka poem. Enjoy! :-)

(courtesy of @JoshuaWoroniecki at Pixabay)

Mother Nature sheds

old skin and begins again

each and every spring

after sunset comes sunrise

new moons bring full moons

raging fires foster growth

matter finds a way

nothing is gone forever

even love will be reborn

  

how do you see it?

perspective is everything

one must choose whether

to focus on loss and grieve

or to celebrate the new


22 comments:

  1. Love how this thoughtful poem wraps up so nicely with the final tanka. I'd be inclined to celebrate the new!

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    1. Thank you for the compliment! That is my choice as well. :-)

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  2. That was an awesome prompt, Yvette, and you'd never know by the quality of your poem that you struggled with it. It's beautiful. And I like the choka too - those extra lines are an indulgence. <3 <3 <3

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    1. Thank you, Diana! I appreciate the compliment, and I'm so happy you enjoyed the prompt.

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  3. Just lovely, Yvette 💜

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  4. A wonderful tribute to the miracle of natural rejuvenation! Well done, Yvette.

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    1. Thanks, Mark! I keep hearing the "Circle of Life" song in my head. Lol! :-)

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  5. Yvette, I really enjoyed the sentiment and the style. It flows delightfully and highlights the rebirth. Thank you.

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    1. I'm so happy you stopped by to share your thoughts. Thank you! :-)

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  6. Beautifully said about prespective, Yvette! Thank you for a great theme to work with this week xo

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    1. I'm so happy you enjoyed the theme, Denise! Thank you! :-)

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  7. Hi Yvette, you did a great job with this new form.

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  8. interesting.... do you really think it's either-or, Yvette?

    much love,
    David [ben Alexander]

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    1. Definitely not either-or, David. How can you have one without the other? But in the end, I want to focus my energy on the positive. :-)

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  9. Lovely Yvette.. firstly thank you for the prompt.. it was an interesting challenge... and inner voices are difficult to silence as they are often underlined by people around us who echo their negativity.. a lovely Choka...♥

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    1. Thank you! I am fortunate in having several stubborn, positive people who love me unconditionally and kept sharing their positive energy with me until I started seeing things through their mindsets. :-)

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  10. Yes, look for renewal each and every day.
    Look to smile, to be challenged (in a good way), and to continue to learn.
    Thank you for the theme - Jules.
    (JulesPaige from WP/Tanka Tuesday)

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    1. Thank you, Jules! I'm always focusing on the positive energy. I appreciate you stopping by and sharing yours. :-)

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I love comments, so please share your thoughts with me! :-)