Ever heard of a "Poetweet?"

Short and Simple: "Poetweet" (AND VERY TRICKY)!!

Our ever-changing digital age continues to create new modes of communication. Have you encountered “poetweets” yet? It you are on Twitter then you most likely have but if you haven’t ventured into Twitter Land yet (and I still haven’t), then it might me new to you

What I love about limited poetry (those that are specific as to the number of words or syllables you can you use) is that they force us to “tighten things up.” The surprising thing is that, usually, when you manage to say what you mean with fewer words, it packs a lot more power. 

A fun little aside (if you happen to live in NYC) is that the mayor’s office of New York is hosting its third annual Twitter poetry "Poetweet" contest as part of National Poetry Month so if you live there, go to the mayor’s website and check it out. In fact, no matter where you live, scout around and see what kinds of similar things might be going on in your neck of the woods.

According to the “Urban Dictionary” a “poetweet” is a form of poetry which consists of exactly 140 characters. There is no reference to rhyme or rhythm, only 140 characters exactly. All words must be spelled out, no short cuts such as "ur" for "you are" or "b4" for "before." And definitely no "lol"! Normal contractions are allowed.

Here’s the example of a poetweet offered in the “Urban Dictionary”: Of all the sights I see, there is none so beautiful as your shadow. Knowing you're near, and the sun is shining is enough for me. Beautiful.

                      

Here’s my attempt:

Surrounded by grandchildren, all vying for attention. One on my lap, one sits beside me and one waits patiently. Feels like I am in heaven!!

                   © 2012 by Stephanie Abney 

The TRICKIEST part is getting 140 characters (with spaces) EXACTLY – have fun!! See ya’ tomorrow. YOUR TURN!

Desperately Seeking Heaven

Well, I’m STILL sick and I’ve been resting all week during Fall Break because I have to be well to go back to teaching on Monday… so, hopefully, by the end of the week, I will be better.

As a result of my “lounging around” I have been watching a little too much TV. I should be reading, I know, but TV is just easier. And I think there is always something to learn in every moment of our lives, even watching TV ~ yep, and I’m here to share with you my observations.
You know me, this might be a little lengthy as I set this up, but I hope you take the time to read it, because it really made me think on this “desperately seeking heaven” idea quite a bit.
I got hooked last Spring on “Eli Stone.” (It actually started midseason). I was over at my daughter’s house holding my then new little grandson so she could get something done and she said, “Mom, you would really love this new show. I’ve been tapping it. Why don’t you watch it while you hold Steven?” I protested that I didn’t want to get involved with another show and that it probably wasn’t that good anyway. She handed me the baby and turned the first episode of “Eli Stone.” When it was over, I sat there and watched the next two episodes.
She was right. I LOVED it. “Eli Stone” is sharp, funny, well-written and well-acted. I never miss an episode. Well, it started up again this week and I watched the season premiere and was not disappointed. It was fabulous. If you are unaware of this show, the premise is a San Francisco lawyer has a brain aneurysm and it causes him to have “visions” (of the heavenly kind) but they are so random and goofy ~ they are often like little mini-musicals that can range from solo performances by George Michael to elaborate production numbers by the entire cast ~ you would have to watch it to see what I mean. He gets messages that are important to him or his loved ones or even total strangers like when he predicted an earthquake and fought to get some people evacuated ahead of time. And during that vision, the song playing was “I Felt the Earth Move Under My Feet.” Getting anyone to believe him is his biggest challenge because they say he is hallucinating from the aneurysm (despite a pretty good track record) and in this week's episode his boss was in a building that collapsed. Eli knew he was trapped in the stairwell but rescuers were looking elsewhere saying he would have taken the elevator and must be on the main floor. Eli even tried to get a court order to force them to look there (they wouldn’t because they said that area was unstable and the boss wouldn’t be there anyway). I won’t spoil it in case you get to see it sometime but all’s well that end’s well.

But it got me thinking that the world is desperately seeking heaven. I mean, just look at all the TV shows and movies over the years that pertain to some heavenly connection: Touched by an Angel, Highway to Heaven, Joan of Arcadia, Heaven Can Wait, Just Like Heaven, Angels in the Outfield, Unlikely Angel, For Heaven’s Sake, The Preacher’s Wife (& The Bishop’s Wife), It’s a Wonderful Life, A Christmas Carol (& all its variations), and the list could go on and on.

Why? I think a lot of our brothers and sisters are seeking some confirmation that God is in His heaven and all is well with the world. Sadly, some don’t know where to find such comfort. Maybe we can share what we know with people who are desperately seeking heaven. I do believe that by the choices we make and the service we give, it is possible to have heaven on earth.

I want to thank all those in my life who have been there for me and I hope I’ve been able to be there for someone else when they needed that reassurance that Heavenly Father is in charge of this world and that He loves us and no one needs to feel desperate. (But I do hope they keep making those kinds of movies and TV shows because they are some of my favorites).
And I think you might want to check out "Eli Stone" ~ love it, love it.