Form Poem Contest

[qimissung]

Yours is good, by the way-as are alakungfu's and pendragon's. It's just as much fun to figure out what everyone's writing about as it is to read the actual poems, imo.

[ampoule]

You guys are greater than great! What am I going to dooooooooo?????

[Pendragon]

It's just as much fun to figure out what everyone's writing about as it is to read the actual poems, imo.

I agree with this! And your poems are great!

[ampoule]

Just a reminder of our latest Form Poem Contest. We have wonderful entries from alakungfu, Pendragon, qimissung and lucidnightmares. Howzabout adding YOURS so my job of choosing will be absolutely impossible! Thank you very much.

Okay, here we go:

Double Acrostic (Place/Something it is known for)
Deadline....August 1st, 2008

An acrostic is a composition in verse in which the initial letter of each line, read down, forms a word. For THIS competition your poem must also end with an acrostic but the word will be formed from bottom to top. To make this even more difficult, or perhaps easier for some, the word formed at the beginning has to be a favorite place, like your hometown or a place you like to go, and the end word must tell something about that place. Here is my short example:

Meditation by ampoule

P...Y...Ponder places you've been merry
A...A...A beach, a party, a simple tea
R...L...Return there with your mind, the portal
K...P...Knowing there the peace you'll keep

You may use any number of lines. I hope this makes sense and I hope you will have fun with it.
Here is a good site to read all about the history of acrostics: http://www.boloji.com/potry/learningzone/pkz13.htm However, do not get confused, their double acrostic is a little different than mine.

[firefangled]

Counting failed always, the first gleaming eye
of a fox or coon, screech owls, a deer scream
raised the hair on my neck and stopped me. I
never failed to fear those yellow eyes and that
fear was the reason in October night, the moon
inches above the earth, yellow at first, as if I
envisioned what was to come, I came. A ghost,
later in the sky, the moon rendered the stalks
dead like bones, an eerie light, but I would go
slowly, over furrows, row by row, as not to fall.

[qimissung]

very impressive!

[ampoule]

I knew, I knew, I knew I would have mixed feelings about winning the last form contest because here I sit trying to think how I can get out of this job of choosing a new 'winner'. Thanks to those who participated. Your poems are all absolutely wonderful. You all met this challenge head-on and each poem touched me.

I felt a certain fear clinging to that mountainside with alakungfu, scaling the heights, but even more, exhilarated, and then humbled by the mountains themselves and the lost climbers. Amazing.

And then, in the twinkling of an eye, sand is squishing between my toes as Pendragon shows me the lovely Cape Hatteras and all that it means to him, his tryst place. Refreshing.

Still brushing the sand from my feet qimissung is there in Rome, welcoming me to walk the cool floors of art museums and galleries viewing art divine. Inspiring.

Quite unexpectedly, a side trip with lucidnightmares to an asylum. What do you mean 'not as good as you wanted'? I thought it was wonderful even through the madness. Intriguing.

I always love being lost in time and firefangled's cornfields left me in a maze of thoughts. Mystifying.

So...maybe it's because I am surrounded by cornfields and that autumn is my favorite season but I am choosing firefangled as the winner for this round. His poem appealed to all of my senses and the construction, the words planted so perfectly, like the perfect rows of the cornfield themselves.

Thank you ALL and congratulations FIREFANGLED.

[lucidnightmares]

congrats firefangled
i`m looking forward to the next contest.

[firefangled]

Thank you, Ampoule for selecting my poem. This form was a real challenge. I have a memory of being lost in forty acres of corn on a cold night in the Fall. I’m not sure it was October, and the night episode only occurred once, which was plenty. However, I did enjoy the thrill many times of wandering into the maze (hmmm) of a cornfield.

My congratulations to all the poems and poets. I enjoyed reading them all.

I have been trying to think of a form as interesting and enjoyable as the Double Acrostic and I was having a difficult time. I have been reading Mark Strand’s Darker, which has several Litanies. So, this is the form I choose for the next challenge. I think it should be interesting.

Everyone has probably heard a Litany at one time or another. It is a poem built on a pattern of repetition. Nearly every line begins with the same word. Typically, litanies are used to convey praise, to curse, to implore another or one’s self to do something, or beseeching forgiveness to name a few. The Sermon On the Mount is a Litany. The association of one line to another in a Litany can be very obscure or very obvious, but the art of the form lies in that association and the language the poet uses to convey it. Here is an excerpt from Mark Strand’s Giving Myself Up as an example:

I give up my eyes which are glass eggs.
I give up my tongue.
I give up my mouth which is the constant dream of my tongue.
I give up my throat which is the sleeve of my voice.
I give up my heart which is a burning apple.
I give up my lungs which are trees that have never seen a moon.

You can see why Litany is used in prayer. It has a tendency toward fervor by nature. There is no other requirement of the form than this repetition and its imaginative use.

Good luck to all entries!

[TheFifthElement]

What an interesting form, very fun. I could write and write these.

Swallow


I swallow the kiss of a secret lover.
I swallow the hand reaching out for another.
I swallow the joy from a toddler’s smile.
I swallow the watch with the broken dial.
I swallow the dreams of a newlywed bride.
I swallow the memories from a dying man’s eyes.
I swallow the hope of a new generation.
I swallow the pause in a long conversation.
I swallow the what, the how, and the why.
I swallow the stars from a crisp autumn sky.
I swallow the essence of a good man’s soul.

I swallow the Earth then spit it out again, whole.

[Pendragon]

Marriage Litany

I give you my hand; I will work to support you.
I give you my eyes; they will not wander to others.
I give you my ears; I will listen to your every sigh.
I give you my tongue, to forever sing your praises.
I give you my arms, to enfold and comfort you.
I give you my chest, as a place to lay your head at night.
I give you my feet; they chased you with laughter.
I give you my heart; it beats only to love you.
I give you my all; I cannot grant you more…

Pendragon
© 8/2/08

[AuntShecky]

What's the deadline for the "Litany" contest?

[firefangled]

What's the deadline for the "Litany" contest?

Thank you, Aunt Shecky! I forgot that is part of the requirements. The deadline for submission is August 24th.

[firefangled]

Fifth and Pen, thanks for getting things off to a great start. These fit the form exactly. Great entries!

[alakungfu]

Venture All

Venture into the depths alone.
Venture into the lesser known.
Venture into the reefs you dare.
Venture into the vast somewhere.
Venture into the tropical regions.
Venture into the foreign legions.
Venture into the echoing sound.
Venture into the safer ground.
Venture into the stock and trade.
Venture into the life you've made..