Poetry Friday: The Progressive Poem is Here!

When I read that Irene Latham was organizing another progressive poem to celebrate National Poetry Month, I signed on right away. I really enjoyed taking part in the poem last year. I'm not able to do a month-long project on my own so I'm grateful to Irene for coming up with a way in which I can participate.

I've had fun watching the poem grow from Amy Ludwig VanDerwater's first line to yesterday's line by Margaret Simon. Each day I try to imagine where the next poet might take us on this poetry journey, and  I must say that there have been some surprises along the way!  Now it's  my turn to add a line.

I'm a little nervous as I write this because all the other lines have been so good, and I want my contribution to be just as worthy.  I keep reminding myself that writing a  single line is a lot less pressure than being responsible for an entire poem, and our Poetry Friday community is a very supportive bunch. So here goes.  I hope it works!



When you listen to your footsteps
the words become music and
the rhythm that you’re rapping gets your fingers tapping, too.
Your pen starts dancing across the page
a private pirouette, a solitary samba until
smiling, you’re beguiling as your love comes shining through.
 
Pause a moment in your dreaming, hear the whispers
of the words, one dancer to another, saying
Listen, that’s our cue! Mind your meter. Find your rhyme.
Ignore the trepidation while you jitterbug and jive.
Arm in arm, toe to toe, words begin to wiggle and flow
as your heart starts singing let your mind keep swinging


I can't wait to see where Catherine Johnson takes our poem next!

Diane of Random Noodling is our kindly hosting Poetry Friday today!