Day 8 ~ “Octopoem” for #NationalPoetryMonth “30 Poems in 30 Days”

Perfect for Day 8: let’s try a fun little poem that has 8 lines. It’s called an “Octopoem.” It looks pretty easy to write:

Pick a topic of your choice and describe it in EIGHT lines. Each line can be as long as you choose and does not need to rhyme or anything of that nature.

HOWEVER, the only thing you DO need to follow is the order of the descriptions you use for each of the 8 lines about your poem.

An octopoem has 8 lines describing the topic (or pet or person, whatever):

line 1: color
line 2: season
line 3: place
line 4: weather
line 5: clothing
line 6: furniture
line 7: TV show
line 8: food

Here are a couple of examples I have written ~

He’s just a good ol’ boy ~ my Jim

His eyes are blue and they twinkle.

Any season that is warm makes him happy.

He loves to be anywhere that his family is nearby.

He’s an Arizona boy because he likes it hot.

He’s not a fussy dresser – in fact, I struggle to get him to buy new clothes.

Our rocking chair is his favorite place to sit, but lying on the couch is a close second.

Any TV show is fine because he’s going to be asleep soon anyway!

He’s not a food snob. The man will eat almost anything I offer.

      © 2018 Stephanie Abney

My Grandson, My Friend

His favorite color is green.
He is a breath of fresh Spring air.
He loves to be wherever I am.
We love to play in the rain.
If it's green, it's clean and ready to wear.
When I can't find him he's usually hiding behind a chair.
If “Wild Kratts” is on, we are good to go.
He likes to eat everything as long as it is a peanut butter sandwich.

© 2015 Stephanie Abney

PLEASE REMEMBER ~ any poetry found on this blog, written by me, is my personal property and may not be used without my permission, other than sharing it as an example in a lesson or to read it to someone. The same goes for any poems that are shared in the comments of this blog or elsewhere online as a result of this challenge. They are the creative property of the person who writes them. These poems are their original work and no one may use them without their permission. It is understood that they own the copyright for to them as soon as they post them. Thanks so much!

Also, 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 on your blog or your FB wall or wherever AND LINK BACK TO THIS BLOG POST for others to come here to read the instructions. I’ve spent considerable time researching the poetry forms and writing them up to share with you. Thanks for respecting my work.

Do You Love Your Car Enough to Write it a Love Letter?

So, I'm taking a college writing class this semester and one of the assignments was to write a love letter to an intimate object. Now there's a thought-provoking idea. WHAT do you love enough to presume to tell it so? I considered the matter and then wrote the following letter -- to my car:

 Love Letter to My Shinny Blue Toyota Camry

Dear Toyota Camry,

I was thinking about you the other day and how you have always been there for me. I realized that I’ve never told you how grateful I am. You’re the best, you know that? You make my life so much better.

Sweet Camry, you transport me safely from one place to another. You even cool the car down on hot Arizona days. I love that. All I have to do is push a little button on my key fob and you unlock the door for me. You’re so thoughtful. You offer me a variety of my favorite music at the touch of a button, and you even do so in stereo. You seem to have enjoyed the books on CD, LDS Conference talks and all my Christmas CDs. Remember when I listened to all five of the Fablehaven books by Brandon Mull on my way to and from work? You were so patient.

Fablehaven Series

I’m not sure if you know how much I appreciate what a confidante you are. You have endured my private rants, listened to me sing off key, and witnessed many of my most sincere prayers. Of course, I have to keep my eyes open, but while I’m alone in the car, without other distractions, I can go over quite a bit with my Father in Heaven.

We have made beautiful memories together. Some of my best grandparenting moments have been shared with you. Our grandchildren are so much fun, and you have transported them on numerous occasions, even to far away destinations. Remember the road trip you and I took with Jim and two teenage granddaughters in July of 2013? We went to Sigurd, Utah for the Dastrup Family Reunion. We played all kinds of word games and laughed a bunch. The girls got to see a silly side of grandma and grandpa they might have missed. Remember when Rebekah asked, “When is the next reunion?” That was a great trip. We made precious memories. You took us there in comfort and safety. Thank-you, sweet Camry, for being a part of our lives.

 Oh my goodness, last summer we had that blow-out on the way to Nevada. You helped Jim safely guide us to the side of the road where we took out the spare tire, for the very first time. It had been there for years. Yet, by some miracle, you had preserved it, and we made it safely back to Kingman where we ended up replacing all four tires. I’m sorry if I neglected you.  You have certainly been mindful of us. The tire guy was shocked that the spare tire was in such great condition. He called it a miracle. Your support gave us a happy ending.

Yes, I really do love you, sweet Camry. I love your shiny blue color (and how well you have retained it). I love your ease of handling and your safety features. I love that you seem to enjoy being part of our family. You’ve taken me to nearly every important place I have needed or wanted to go during our years together. Whether it was to church, the temple, to the grocery store, to visit family, or to go to the movies, you have been there.

You are one of a kind. In writing you this little love letter, I have come to appreciate your service to me and my family even more. You are a marvel; a cute, smooth driving, shiny blue marvel. You hold a special place in my life and in my heart. I’m really grateful. I think I’m going to treat you even better from now on. We can look forward to a future that holds more road trips, more giggles, and perhaps a few tears, but definitely more memories . . . together.

Thanks for all you have done for me. I love you.

Love,

Stephanie

Day 29 ~ 2015 “Pyramid Poem” for #NationalPoetryMonth “30 poems in 30 days”

It’s hard to believe the month of April is almost over. We just have today and tomorrow – there are so many more poetry forms out there. It’s been hard to choose which ones to share each day. In fact, I’m writing a book with dozens of poetry forms in it and I will post on here once it’s ready and how you can get a copy. In the meantime – what about today?

Oh, but first, what about tomorrow? There are some things you should know: April 30 is not only the last day of #NationalPoetryMonth – but it is “Poem in Your Pocket” Day. The idea is that on “Poem in Your Pocket Day,” people throughout the US will celebrate by selecting a poem, carrying it with them, and sharing it with others throughout the day as schools, bookstores, libraries, parks, workplaces, and other venues, including FB and Twitter (#pocketpoem), ring loud with open readings of poems from pockets. I’ll tell briefly about its history tomorrow, but for now – be thinking about a poem you would like to carry in your pocket tomorrow – it could be one of your own original ones or just a favorite poem of yours. 

OK, also tomorrow’s poetry form is the “Credo” so be thinking about what you believe in and I’ll give you a format to follow for it.

NOW, on to today: Let’s write a “Pyramid Poem”

This is quite simple, if you follow the rules ~ it’s one of those “parts of speech” poems, great for classroom teachers. It’s a poetry form that I have not introduced before in previous years. It has some repetition in it, which is part of its charm. Here we go:

When all is said and done – if you center the words (which I realize you can’t do in the comment section – but when you save it for yourself, center the words so the poem is in the shape of a pyramid.

Here is the format ~ one word for part of speech indicated on each line BUT THE CATCH IS ~ once you have selected a word for NOUN – it needs to be used EVERY time a NOUN is called for in the poem, same for the adjective you choose and so forth (syllable counts, word counts and rhyming are not requirement, although some may occur, but using the same word for a particular part of speech IS a requirement: 

Line 1: noun 
Line 2: adjective noun 
Line 3: adjective noun verb 
Line 4: adjective noun verb adverb 
Line 5: adjective noun verb adverb prepositional phrase

Here’s an example I found online at www.scholastic.com/ but no author credit was given:

 

Clouds
Puffy clouds
Puffy clouds float
Puffy clouds float sleepily
Puffy clouds float sleepily across the horizon

And here is my example:

Children
Sweet children
Sweet children play
Sweet children play happily
Sweet children play happily at Grandma's house
                                                                       © 2015 Stephanie Abney

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.

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.