Poetry 101-1

Okay, I found out that you really can't post much on other pages - it's meant for "content that doesn't change often." <sigh> So my poetry will appear here and I hope you will post some of your own creations. It may well mean that I have more than one post on a given day because they often are separate thoughts or come to mind because of other thoughts that I post.

I also want to share some of the techniques I learned to brainstorm and create, mostly from an NCCAT seminar. These I will label "Poetry 101". Today, first lesson :-)

One of the first things we did was brainstorm different words for blue. Of course, brainstorming is best with a group, but you can do it yourself. Try to discipline yourself to not use a thesaurus. After we had some time for this list to marinate, we were given a chance to write. The stress was on imagery. Rhyming, while not prohibited, was discouraged.

Focus on something or someone you could describe with the colors. Don't necessarily think in terms of describing attributes (like a blue balloon), but on creating images in your readers' minds. Use as many of the words from the list as will gracefully fit into your poem. Remember, in poetry metaphors are allowed and encouraged. The following was my attempt. Please feel free to comment and critique, but bear in mind that this was an early attempt, so be gentle.

By the way, NCCAT stands for North Carolina Center for the Advancement of Teaching and they sponsor week-long seminars on topics important to teachers. It is where I found my poet's voice. I hope Beth doesn't mind my sharing this one since it's about and for her.

Blue
   Boys' color - Beth's color
       My blue girl.
Blue as bright as your eyes as they awake to a new dream
   sea-foam dreams
      azure dreams
         cobalt ice-castle dreams.
Blue as serene as the deep pools of your thoughts too deep to see the bottom
   cerulean thoughts, 
      turquoise thoughts
          sapphire stars reflected on the surface thoughts.
Blue as strong as the steel in your spirit as you face your pain
   blue-grey steel
      periwinkle steel
         forget-me-not for I will prevail steel.
Blue as deep as the melancholy that grabs your you soul when your crosses become too heavy
   midnight soul
      indigo soul
         ice cold silent keep out soul.
Blue
   Boy's color - Beth's color
       My little blue girl
          My love.