Poetry Friday: Christmas Surprise

I'm sharing this rough draft of a poem-in-progress today because I think many of you fellow cat lovers can relate. I'm not happy with the first stanza so any suggestions are welcome. : )


Christmas Surprise

She didn't write a letter

she didn't make a list—
but that sneaky cat of mine

had a secret Christmas wish.

She curled herself up cozy
beneath the tinseled tree
waiting there for Santa
and presents brought for me.

When I woke up this morning
ready for a surprise—
it wasn't what I expected
I couldn't believe my eyes.

The bows were all chewed
ribbons torn and tattered
boxes emptied on the floor—
paper ripped and scattered.

Unashamed of what she'd done
I heard her start to purr—
I guess that silly cat believed
the gifts were meant for her.

May the season bring you

many delightful surprises!

Happy Holidays,

Linda

Choka

It's no secret that I love Japanese poetry forms. While tanka, haiku and renga have gained popularity in recent years, choka is relatively unknown. A choka is structured in the repeated pattern of 5-7-5-7-5-7-5......7-7. Many choka are more than 100 lines long. You can read more about the choka form here.

Here is my attempt at a choka.

calico kitten
in the woods behind our house
hungry, shivering—

bone thin, barely alive—

afraid she might die

I wrapped her in my jacket
carried her inside
gave her warm milk, my blanket
and a promise— to love her.

Although I tried to stick fairly close to the pattern in order to model the form for my students, I'm not happy with the last two lines. Following a structure too closely can detract from the meaning of the poem. I can't think of how I want to revise it right now, , so I'll let it rest a while.

photo: KatRya flickr.com

Daisy and Butterscotch

Daisy and Butterscotch are the best listeners. They like to sit beside me on the sofa and watch me write on my laptop. They're very patient as I read each new rewrite of my poems. They especially like the poems about them. Here's a tanka I wrote about Butterscotch.


my cat sits watching
waiting for me to come home
I open the door
to the sound of his purring—

unconditional love

Butterscotch is almost ten years old, but he still runs to the door every time I come home. I know he's happy to see me.