DAY 24 ~ “What if . . . I might” Poem for “30 Poems in 30 Days" #NationalPoetryMonth

This is basically a “finish the sentence” type of poetry form.

This is a poem that will get you thinking of many possibilities; some thoughtful, others silly, some adventurous, or even fanciful, some surprisingly profound. Let your imagination go or reach deep into your heart. 

SEVEN LINES:

Fill in the blanks any way you want – changing the words you can create dozens of poems.

Line #1:  What if ____________________________
Line #2:  I might ____________________________

(leave a space between lines 2 & 3)
 

Line #3:  What if ____________________________
Line #4:  I could _____________________________

(leave a space between lines 4 & 5)

Line #5:  What if ____________________________
Line #6:  I would_____________________________

(leave a space between lines 6 & 7)
 

Line #7:  Ask a question.

Have fun!!

HERE ARE MY EXAMPLES – (from a few years ago)

At first, I was planning to write new ones for this year, but, as I sometimes do, I am running late and these examples give you a good enough idea. I’m anxious to see what you come up with though!! Cheers!!

The first one is silly: 

What if I danced in the rain?

I might get a little bit wet.

What if I sang at the top of my lungs?

I could land a singing contract, I bet.

What if I went back inside and sat down?

I would never know what I might do.

I wonder, would you be so bold, if it were you?

                                      © 2011 Stephanie Abney

This one is more serious:

What if I listened very carefully to the spirit?
I might be surprised at what I hear.

What if the Lord has plans I'm not ready for?
I could try to pretend I didn't hear them.

What if I listened and obeyed?
I would be more use to His children.

Do you think I'm that strong?

                               © 2011 Stephanie Abney

Day 1 “Yes, that’s ME” poem for “30 Poems in 30 Days" #NationalPoetryMonth

WELCOME to National Poetry Month!! Cheers!! Some of you reading this have been joining in now for several years, others may be completely new!! The first day of the “30 Poems in 30 Days” is always a fun one to try out a poem to get to know each other.

So, here’s just a few “notes” about what I’m doing. This is the SIXTH year that I will be running a poetry challenge here on my blog. It’s lots of fun and I am convinced that ANYONE can write poetry if they just follow the instructions and examples. I hope many of you write lots of poetry, even the flowing, lyrical, delicious, thought-provoking poetry after the style of many famous poets. But I also know that just following along in these more basic poetry forms CAN produce surprising and AMAZING poetry that is just delightful and often just as thought-provoking as any of the great poets out there.

Please remember – you may LINK to this post but you MAY NOT copy and paste my instructions or examples. It’s true, anyone can Google “How to write” this type or that type of poetry, but I have spent considerable time putting these posts together with my own voice and personality and anything I post on my blog is automatically copyrighted, INCLUDING any poetry that participants write in the comments here on my blog. So, please, just respect everyone’s creative work and we will respect yours.

A few ideas for sharing your poems: You can leave a copy of it each time (or however many times you wish) here in the comments of this blog, you can post your poems on your FB or Instagram pages, on your OWN blog, IN our FB group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/178557275869627/, or simply create your own little notebook or journal of poems for this year’s challenge for yourself and your family.

Ready? Great!! OK, here’s an easy one to start with (well, easy, except for the being vulnerable part).

Let’s get to know each other – this is simply a “Fill in the blank” style of poem.

Finish each of these lines by revealing something about yourself – it can be serious our humorous – up to you. No rhyming or word or syllable counts to worry about with this poetry form. When you are done – you will have completed a “Yes, that’s ME” poem.

Yes, that’s me

Look and you’ll see

My hair ___________

My eyes __________

My arms __________

My hands _________

My heart _________

I’m ______________

I never ___________

My friends ________

I live _____________

I hope ____________

I dream ___________

It’s all clear as can be

That’s positively, absolutely me

Here’s an example of one I wrote (just filling in the rest of the sentences) a few years ago:

Yes, that’s me

Look and you’ll see
My hair has a mind of its own
My eyes see what’s important
My arms still have the strength for lots of hugs
My hands are always busy
My heart has been broken but still beats when it should
I’m always learning
I never get bored
My friends are a nice variety
I live to do the best I can
I hope I make a difference
I dream of possibilities
It’s all clear as can be
That’s positively, absolutely me

                © 2015 Stephanie Abney

OK - your turn!! Just fill in the blanks and you'll have created your first poem for the month of APRIL 2018! It's so easy!! 

Day 24 ~ 5 W’s poem #NationalPoetryMonth "30 Poems in 30 Days"

How do you write a 5 W’s Poem?

This is an obvious poem, but can be sweet, silly, romantic, or serious, etc., depending on what you fill in.

This poem answers the 5 W’s: Who, What, Where, When & Why.

You can be serious and heartfelt or light and silly by the words you choose.

These poems have no need to rhyme, nor are the lines any particular length or meter. So, it’s a pretty simple poetry form to follow:

Line 1: Who (or what) is the poem about? 
Line 2: What action is happening? 
Line 3: Where does the action take place? 
Line 4: When does the action take place? 
Line 5: Why does this action happen?

Just a thought ~ today is National Arbor Day - got any ideas for a poem about trees?

It's also "National Poetry DAY" (as opposed to the entire month being #NationalPoetryMonth)

Here are a few examples of mine:

Poems for National Poetry Month
Are being crafted and written down,
Everywhere and anywhere,
During the month of April,
Because our words beg to be given wings. 
                  © 2015 Stephanie Abney

Jim, my eternal companion
Takes good care of me,
Wherever we are,
At each opportunity,
Because he loves me. 
                 © 2014 Stephanie Abney

My precious grandchildren
Want to come play with me,
At grandma's house,
As often as they can,
Because I'm lots of fun to play with. 
              © 2014 Stephanie Abney

This last example is the one I wrote inspired by a Christmas I will never forget for so many reasons. Christmas was my mom’s all-time favorite holiday and we lost her to pancreatic cancer exactly one week before Christmas of 1998. I was in California all month with my mom. (The rest of the family joined us for the funeral and we buried mom 2 days before Christmas). Back in Mesa, while I was gone, BJ didn’t have any money but wanted to make me a gift. I collect nativities so he decided to make one, from scratch, without a pattern, except for the vision in his head. He had leukemia and was given a freestanding woodworking workshop with electricity and power tools as his wish from “Make-A-Wish” and so he set out to create the most memorable nativity of my collection of about 50 nativities. It is so precious, as was he. Two years later, BJ lost his battle with cancer too. I cherish every reminder of who he was, what he stood for and how he loved. This one is most precious.

 
Brian James Abney
Made his mom a wooden nativity,
In his "Make-A-Wish" woodworking workshop,
For Christmas 1998 when he was 14 years old,
Because he loved his mom and she collects them. 
                           © 2011 Stephanie Abney

Okay ~ YOUR TURN ~ 

Please remember – any poetry found on this blog, written by me, is my personal property and may not be used without my permission. The same goes for any poems that are shared in the comments section of this blog. They are the property of the person who shares them. These poems are their original work and no one may use them in any form without their express permission. It is understood that they own the copyright to it. Thanks!! 

And if you choose to post your poems on your own blog – that’s awesome. But please don’t just copy and paste my daily instructions, but rather post your poem and LINK BACK TO THIS BLOG POST for others to read the instructions. Thanks for respecting my work.

Let the April Poetry Challenge Commence!!! Day 1 "Yes, that's ME" poem

Well, friends - it's April 1st and this is NO April Fool's Joke - this is a CHALLENGE to write 30 Poems (of all kinds) in 30 Days!! Who is with me?

I have run this challenge twice now (the full 30 days) and it's been such fun. If you think you can't write poetry - I'll prove to you that you can!! So many poems have actual patterns or forms to follow; some are almost "fill in the blank." 

This year I will still include many of the basic poetry forms but there are SO many kinds of poetry out there that I want to include some you may not have ever heard of before. Should be fun!!!    

OK, here’s an easy one to start with (well, easy, except for the being vulnerable part). 

Let’s get to know each other – this is simply a “Fill in the blank” style of poem.

Finish each of these lines by revealing something about yourself – it can be serious our humorous – up to you. When you are done – you will have completed a “Yes, that’s ME” poem.

Yes, that’s me
Look and you’ll see
My hair ____________________
My eyes ___________________
My arms ___________________
My hands__________________
My heart___________________
I’m________________________
I never_____________________
My friends__________________
I live_______________________
I hope______________________
I dream_____________________
It’s all clear as can be 
That’s positively, absolutely me

Here's mine:

Yes, that’s me
Look and you’ll see
My hair has a mind of its own
My eyes see what’s important
My arms still have the strength to hug
My hands are always busy
My heart has been broken but still beats when it should
I’m always learning
I never get bored
My friends are a nice variety
I live to do the best I can
I hope I make a difference
I dream of possibilities
It’s all clear as can be

That’s positively, absolutely me

      © 2015 Stephanie Abney

OK - your turn!! Just fill in the blanks and you'll have created your first poem for the month of APRIL 2015! It's so easy!! WHAT to do with it now that you have written it? 

Well, you can post it HERE in the comments (if you wish) so we can all see how great it turned out. 

You can (and should) keep a little book of your poems for the month. You can post your poem on your own blog - BUT IF YOU USE MY DIRECTIONS from this blog post, please at least link back to me here (getting permission is even better and the most considerate way). 

You can post your completed poem on your FB wall - that's always fun. Come with a cool way to display your poetry for the month and let us know in the comments. Cheers!!