Joke's on Him - #dVerse #HaibunMonday #haibun #GroundhogDay #poem #poetry #poetrycommunity #writer #writingcommunity @YvetteMCalleiro

Hello, beautiful readers! This Monday's dVerse Haibun Monday challenge is hosted by Frank J. Tassone. He encouraged us to focus on Groundhog Day, which was celebrated this past weekend. For those of you outside of the USA, this is a tradition where a celebration is held to see if a groundhog sees his shadow. If he does, he predicts six more weeks of winter. If he does not, it predicts an early spring. 

For those unfamiliar with a haibun, it is a poem that consists of prose and a haiku. The prose is usually written in the present tense and focuses on an experience. Haiku are always nature-based and should use a kigo word (connected to nature or seasons). I decided to have a little fun with it.

(created with Microsoft Copilot)

Joke's on Him

As I lounge here, watching this overweight fur ball get pulled out of a fake tree trunk, I can't help but wonder what all the hoopla is about. Those men in cosplay top hats and tuxedoes pull him out of that hole full of hay to raise him up in the freezing air. And all those people cheering for him! What a joke! That fatso lay on a carpet without getting up off his belly. Then those men tried to say he predicted more winter by seeing his shadow. Puh-leeze! I see my shadow every day, and we almost never have cold weather! That fur ball needs to find a way to escape and come down here, so I can get him in shape.

traditions abound

winter will give way to spring

Gaia will decide

Want to write a haibun about Groundhog Day? Join us here.

Consequential Choices - #FFFC #haibun #poem #poetry #poetrycommunity #writer #writingcommunity @YvetteMCalleiro

Hello, beautiful readers! This week, Melissa's Fandango Flash Fiction Challenge provides us with the photo below and encourages us to write flash fiction or poetry based on it. I chose to write a haibun, which is a combination of a paragraph of prose and a haiku. The prose tends to be non-fictional or autobiographical, but mine is definitely fictional.

(image credit; Toa Heftiba on Unsplash)

Consequential Choices

He stands frozen in place, staring at a woman's purse, with its scattered belongings. The paramedics hoist the dead woman's body into the back of the ambulance. His brain says to collect the purse and give it to them so her family can have it. But he can't move, can't stop staring at the purse, a purse that belongs to a young woman. A woman that will never hold it again because he was too busy sending a text instead of watching the road.

tragic distractions

tornadic consequences

treasured life destroyed

Are you inspired to create a piece for this photo? Join us here.

Green - #WDYS #whatdoyousee #haiku #weeklypromptscolourchallenge #green #poetry #poem #poetrycommunity #writer #writingcommunity @YvetteMCalleiro

Hello, beautiful readers! Today, I am combining two prompts that mesh well together. The first is from Sadje's What Do You See? prompt, where she provides an image to inspire us to write. The second is from Sue W and Gerry C's Weekly Prompts Colour Challenge. This week's color is green.

I decided to write a haiku. A haiku is a three-lined poem with a syllabication pattern of short-long-short. In my case, I used 5-7-5. Haiku are written about nature in some manner.

(image credit; Aditya Chinchure @Unsplash)

such sparse greenery

nature struggles to survive

among concrete blocks

Would you like to write a poem for these challenges? Click the links below:

What Do You See? Prompt

Weekly Prompts Colour Challenge

A Mother's Joy - #reverseetheree #etheree #son #motherslove #corruptleaders #spinthebottlepoetry #poem #poetry #poetrycommunity #writer #writingcommunity @YvetteMCalleiro

Hello, beautiful readers! Today, Robbie invites us to write a reverse Etheree for her Spin the Bottle syllabic poetry challenge. A reverse Etheree has ten lines with a syllabic pattern of 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1. We could choose any topic we wanted.

My first thoughts were of my son. He is taking online classes at his university for this first year as a way to save money by living at home. In August, he will move to campus to get the full college experience. I am beyond proud of the young man he has become, and I am excited for his journey, but I am also going to miss having him around.

(image created by Microsoft Bing Image Creator)

A Mother's Joy

sound of first cry filled my heart with love

his monkey crawl showed innovation

his laughter made sound waves of joy

discipline brought excellence

life's lessons made him strong

now, ready to go

on own journey

leaves nest but

always

son

My other thought went dark. There are many benefits to stronger technology and AI, but when put in the wrong hands, it is destructive. We are living in a time where the powerful and greedy want full control, and their vision of the world only enriches themselves. 

(created by Microsoft Copilot)

Corrupt Leaders

manipulation controls narrative

deceit, half-truths litter the airwaves

lack of fact-checking hurts nation

greed and need for power reign

civil servants serve selves

chaos, lies resume

trust distinguished

uncertain

future

now

Would you like to write a reverse Etheree? Join us here.

Be the Wind - #tanka ##Xploration #poetryprompt #poem #poetry #poetrycommunity #writer #writingcommunity @YvetteMCalleiro

Hello, beautiful readers! For Reena's Xploration Challenge #366, we are invited to pull a word or line from two short excerpts from the Booker Prize-winning book "Orbital" by Samantha Harvey. Here are the two excerpts:

I decided to write a tanka inspired by the lines: "We're windblown leaves. We think we are the wind. We are just the leaf." A tanka is a five-lined poem with a syllabication pattern of 5-7-5-7-7 and tends to have a pivot point. My pivot is in the fourth line.

(image created using Microsoft Copilot)

windblown leaves scatter

unable to change their course

mindless compliance

choose to be the wind, not leaves

take charge of your destiny

Would you like to write a poem inspired by the excerpts? Join us here.