Poetry day 4 & 5

Today, I am posting my last two poems of the January 5-day Open Write with Dr. Sarah J. Donovan's Ethical ELA. 

I'll share today's poem first, Day 5. We were inspired to take a Martin Luther King, Jr. quote and create a poem. I was truly challenged by this (and not at all content with the outcome!), because I have been so caught up in today's Inauguration of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. What an extraordinarily hopeful and healing day this has been! 

Truly dark

Martin told us
it has to get
truly dark
to see the stars 

truly dark

our precious ideals

liberty and justice

for all

has never been so

for everyone

truly dark

deep in our history

white and pervasive silence

years of looking the other way

not paying attention

inaudible allies

truly dark

these past four years

relentless

instigation of fear

spewing of hate

primacy of self

truly dark

this year of acute pain

systemic racism

disease and death

economic collapse

sending us deep into

truly dark

January 6, 2021

truly dark

truly dark

truly dark

here I sit

trying to write a poem

while overcome by tears

blessed relief

today's inaugural words

of healing unity

Martin told us
it has to get
truly dark
to see the stars 

This is a starry night

--

Day 4's Poem

For this poem, Stacey L. Joy challenges us to take a "mindful walk," and focus on one thing that you see; write a poem about this. She suggested using the "Zappai" form (which is new to me!), which has a syllable pattern like haiku - 5, 7, 5 - but has many stanzas. I chose to write about something I see whenever I visit a local park - this tree that seems to have grown into a boulder, with its roots wrapped about the rock.

Intertwined

some time long ago

a tree began to grow next

to a large boulder

or perhaps the truth

is the boulder rolled up next

to the tree and stopped

some time long ago

they grew together, truly

tree and boulder one

forever as one

imagine this, wonder, and ask

did they choose this life?

this life of such fixed

perspective, never knowing

anything else but here

so different, yet

so inseparable now

who listens to whom?

what do they speak of

when the sun goes down and they

are truly alone

do they share gossip 

of the day, the laughs and tears

of walkers and more?

maybe they grieve and

heal together, and become

wiser over time