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Photo: Laura Purdie Salas
Wake up your poetry brains with 15 Words or Less (guidelines are here)!
Three things this makes me think of:
1) Mermaid family reunion
2) Sculptor who wants his statue to live
3) Giant who skips boulders across a lake
And here’s my first draft!
On the Way to Mermaid Prom
SO excited!
Painted nails.
Polished scales.
Bejeweled tails.
Seakelp veils.
Enchanted whales
(and princes)
–Laura Purdie Salas, all rights reserved
Now it’s your turn! Have fun? and stick to? 15 WORDS OR LESS!?Poetry elves will be deleting comments?containing poems longer than 15 words.?(Title doesn’t count toward word count:>)
214 Responses
OCEAN
Gossamer waves
Wisps of mist
Pebbles of diamond
Sands of time
I LOVE your poem, Ms. Salas! The format is so cool; those little two word phrases really struck me as different. SUCH a cool picture!
Oh, my. Look at what you did in just 11 words. This is stunning. Those first two lines especially grab me–almost completely concrete, gorgeous nouns. Wonderful work. Glad you liked mine. I bolted up at 5 a.m. and realized I hadn’t done a 15WOL post for today, so it was a rushed affair:>)
Lovely images. I like your second line best.
Love the ‘sands of time’-just think how long she’s stayed there, greeting all!
And guess what? I love “Pebbles of diamond,” so now you know every line is a winner! Lovely poem, Amelia.
Beautiful poem, Amelia! I especially love the word choices and all the “s” sounds in the first two lines.
Awesome, Amelia!
Just lovely, Amelia! Wisps of mist and Gossamer waves. I like it all.
OCEAN
Gossamer waves
Wisps of mist
Pebbles of diamond
Sands of time
I LOVE your poem, Ms. Salas! The format is so cool; those little two word phrases really struck me as different. SUCH a cool picture!
Oh, my. Look at what you did in just 11 words. This is stunning. Those first two lines especially grab me–almost completely concrete, gorgeous nouns. Wonderful work. Glad you liked mine. I bolted up at 5 a.m. and realized I hadn’t done a 15WOL post for today, so it was a rushed affair:>)
Lovely images. I like your second line best.
Love the ‘sands of time’-just think how long she’s stayed there, greeting all!
And guess what? I love “Pebbles of diamond,” so now you know every line is a winner! Lovely poem, Amelia.
Beautiful poem, Amelia! I especially love the word choices and all the “s” sounds in the first two lines.
Awesome, Amelia!
Just lovely, Amelia! Wisps of mist and Gossamer waves. I like it all.
Waves
My tail,
strong, beautiful,
waves below the sea
Here, above
I wave to you.
This is my first time to join the 15 words or less. It’s harder than it looks. My first draft was 22 words, so then I just cut, cut, cut. Makes you get to the meat of the message.
I enjoyed imagining the mermaid prom with you.
So glad that you played this week. I love that you got the double wave in there. And how waves apply to a mermaid anyway, so there are really three waves going on in my head, even if one is unspoken:>) And yep, 15 words is pretty dang short, isn’t it? I like what you did with yours!
I also like the play on waves.
I like your waves! Nice contrast.
It’s such a wonderful thing to imagine mermaids as real, isn’t it? I like the part about the tail.
So great to see you here, Margaret! (Warning: 15WOL poems are addictive.) Your juxtaposition of waves and wave is very effective– a “strong, beautiful” poem.
Yes, they are addictive. I’m missed nary a one in the past 6 years. Actually, I’m not sure of the years, but it’s been at least 6 years that I’ve been participating. When did you first start the challenges, Laura?
2007. Holy moly!
I, too, like all the different images of the waves. Neat poem!
Very peaceful, Margaret.
I like how you made your mermaid have a life below the sea, too. Welcome, Margaret to this nice group! When I can get here, I love the challenge. Most times I spend a long time working, but I have gotten a little braver sharing quick writes sometimes…like today!
Waves
My tail,
strong, beautiful,
waves below the sea
Here, above
I wave to you.
This is my first time to join the 15 words or less. It’s harder than it looks. My first draft was 22 words, so then I just cut, cut, cut. Makes you get to the meat of the message.
I enjoyed imagining the mermaid prom with you.
So glad that you played this week. I love that you got the double wave in there. And how waves apply to a mermaid anyway, so there are really three waves going on in my head, even if one is unspoken:>) And yep, 15 words is pretty dang short, isn’t it? I like what you did with yours!
I also like the play on waves.
I like your waves! Nice contrast.
It’s such a wonderful thing to imagine mermaids as real, isn’t it? I like the part about the tail.
So great to see you here, Margaret! (Warning: 15WOL poems are addictive.) Your juxtaposition of waves and wave is very effective– a “strong, beautiful” poem.
Yes, they are addictive. I’m missed nary a one in the past 6 years. Actually, I’m not sure of the years, but it’s been at least 6 years that I’ve been participating. When did you first start the challenges, Laura?
2007. Holy moly!
I, too, like all the different images of the waves. Neat poem!
Very peaceful, Margaret.
I like how you made your mermaid have a life below the sea, too. Welcome, Margaret to this nice group! When I can get here, I love the challenge. Most times I spend a long time working, but I have gotten a little braver sharing quick writes sometimes…like today!
Your poem makes the statue sparkle for me. Love polished scales/bejeweled tails. I couldn’t help but notice the little duck at the bottom right.
Mis-Imprint
Ever more anxious,
I circle and quack.
All Mother does
is wave at others.
Didn’t even notice the duck. Poor thing. I just added to its insecurity! 🙂
Wonderful to include that duck’s ‘voice’. I would guess they do circle around and sometimes waddle up on the rock!
Thanks for helping me to notice the duck too, Ellie! Your poem reminds me of what often happens when mothers bring their kids to the local supermarket. Well done!
I noticed that duck, too, though didn’t write about it. I love how you focused on the duck and the predicament you put it in!
Awwwwww…I didn’t see the duck. Kind of blends in with the rocks. There were ducks all over when I took the picture. That is so forlorn. Kind of wrenching…
That poor little ducky. I, too, did not notice the duck. Glad you brought it into the poem. Reminds me of the times when I would be on the phone and my young son would do all he could to get me to pay attention to him! Be present, mom!!! A good message for a duckling and for us.
Your poem makes the statue sparkle for me. Love polished scales/bejeweled tails. I couldn’t help but notice the little duck at the bottom right.
Mis-Imprint
Ever more anxious,
I circle and quack.
All Mother does
is wave at others.
Didn’t even notice the duck. Poor thing. I just added to its insecurity! 🙂
Wonderful to include that duck’s ‘voice’. I would guess they do circle around and sometimes waddle up on the rock!
Thanks for helping me to notice the duck too, Ellie! Your poem reminds me of what often happens when mothers bring their kids to the local supermarket. Well done!
I noticed that duck, too, though didn’t write about it. I love how you focused on the duck and the predicament you put it in!
Awwwwww…I didn’t see the duck. Kind of blends in with the rocks. There were ducks all over when I took the picture. That is so forlorn. Kind of wrenching…
That poor little ducky. I, too, did not notice the duck. Glad you brought it into the poem. Reminds me of the times when I would be on the phone and my young son would do all he could to get me to pay attention to him! Be present, mom!!! A good message for a duckling and for us.
When mermaids survive
their very first dive
they get a high five!
As they should, Cindy. Just like birds learning to fly or children learning to walk. High fives all around, I say!
I like all the rhymes and the feeling of celebration.
Hehe–this makes me picture mermaids learning to dive kind of like chicks learning to fly…
Sort of like the rock mermaid is the queen checking on every new mermaid’s progress and prowess.….
When mermaids survive
their very first dive
they get a high five!
As they should, Cindy. Just like birds learning to fly or children learning to walk. High fives all around, I say!
I like all the rhymes and the feeling of celebration.
Hehe–this makes me picture mermaids learning to dive kind of like chicks learning to fly…
Sort of like the rock mermaid is the queen checking on every new mermaid’s progress and prowess.….
Great idea for your poem, Laura — rather witty, for a rush-job! Some other nice ones here, too. Like you, I only had a few minutes to come up with something…but decided to go in a totally different direction:
Rush Hour
Waiting, waiting,
Without brassiere
What?s a girl gotta do
To catch a cab ?round here?
- Matt Forrest Esenwine
Laura, at first I misread the words in your title as Mermaid Porn, so, thanks for the inspiration! (I love the poem, by the way.)
Upon Receiving an Invitation to the Mermaid’s Wedding
One has to wonder
at the logistics
of that first night
of wedded bliss.
Diane Mayr, all rights reserved
I just laughed at your mis-reading, Diane. Your poem makes me wonder…
Oh Diane … I do so enjoy your muse. Your poem gives new meaning to wearing “white tie and tails” too, huh.
😉
Glad not to read your mermaid porn comment before coming up with a poem–would have made it hard to write a PG-poem! Your comment and poem made me laugh..
I never thought about that before… and now I’ll probably wonder about it whenever I see a mermaid, LOL!
Oh, this is the best laugh I’ve had all day! Happy to oblige. I love how you use very proper, formal language to to ponder a question that would be surrounded by snickers and hand gestures!
Very fun sense of humor, Matt. And including the wave for a cab‑I only thought of greeting!
Lordy, you make me laugh, Matt!
Too funny!
Snorting Fresca here. I love your different direction! Now I kind of want to write a Mardi Gras poem featuring her. Uh oh, we’ll have a naughty mermaid collection before long!
Her tail got caught
in thick seaweed;
she didn’t catch
a single bead.
You’d think a gal
like Ariel
at Mardi Gras
would do so well.
Next time she wants
to see the Quarter,
she’ll have to try
to leave the warter.
Hehehehehehe. Poor Ariel. I love “You’d think…so well.” Perfect!
LOL
Great idea for your poem, Laura — rather witty, for a rush-job! Some other nice ones here, too. Like you, I only had a few minutes to come up with something…but decided to go in a totally different direction:
Rush Hour
Waiting, waiting,
Without brassiere
What?s a girl gotta do
To catch a cab ?round here?
- Matt Forrest Esenwine
Laura, at first I misread the words in your title as Mermaid Porn, so, thanks for the inspiration! (I love the poem, by the way.)
Upon Receiving an Invitation to the Mermaid’s Wedding
One has to wonder
at the logistics
of that first night
of wedded bliss.
Diane Mayr, all rights reserved
I just laughed at your mis-reading, Diane. Your poem makes me wonder…
Oh Diane … I do so enjoy your muse. Your poem gives new meaning to wearing “white tie and tails” too, huh.
😉
Glad not to read your mermaid porn comment before coming up with a poem–would have made it hard to write a PG-poem! Your comment and poem made me laugh..
I never thought about that before… and now I’ll probably wonder about it whenever I see a mermaid, LOL!
Oh, this is the best laugh I’ve had all day! Happy to oblige. I love how you use very proper, formal language to to ponder a question that would be surrounded by snickers and hand gestures!
Very fun sense of humor, Matt. And including the wave for a cab‑I only thought of greeting!
Lordy, you make me laugh, Matt!
Too funny!
Snorting Fresca here. I love your different direction! Now I kind of want to write a Mardi Gras poem featuring her. Uh oh, we’ll have a naughty mermaid collection before long!
Her tail got caught
in thick seaweed;
she didn’t catch
a single bead.
You’d think a gal
like Ariel
at Mardi Gras
would do so well.
Next time she wants
to see the Quarter,
she’ll have to try
to leave the warter.
Hehehehehehe. Poor Ariel. I love “You’d think…so well.” Perfect!
LOL
I don’t mean to be negative. Just going with my first thoughts.
Help
Murky waters
oily sands
my water friends
and I need
a helping hand.
That’s lovely, Matha. No apologies needed! I often post melancholy poems myself. Going with your first thought is exactly the point!
I don’t mean to be negative. Just going with my first thoughts.
Help
Murky waters
oily sands
my water friends
and I need
a helping hand.
That’s lovely, Matha. No apologies needed! I often post melancholy poems myself. Going with your first thought is exactly the point!
Mermaid
Mermaid sings
to the wide blue sea.
Whale sings back
in harmony.
?Kate Coombs
All those magical sounds. Makes me wonder if we do hear a mermaid now & then?
Love it!
Love the rhythm and music of your words and the image they paint!
How I’d love to hear that ethereal song!
I would like to hear that song! 🙂 Great image!
Beautiful–I love whale songs, and I’m hearing a shiny, silvery, beautiful duet in my head right now.
Oh, Kate, I love how you brought in whale music and mermaid songs. Lovely poem!
Mermaid
Mermaid sings
to the wide blue sea.
Whale sings back
in harmony.
?Kate Coombs
All those magical sounds. Makes me wonder if we do hear a mermaid now & then?
Love it!
Love the rhythm and music of your words and the image they paint!
How I’d love to hear that ethereal song!
I would like to hear that song! 🙂 Great image!
Beautiful–I love whale songs, and I’m hearing a shiny, silvery, beautiful duet in my head right now.
Oh, Kate, I love how you brought in whale music and mermaid songs. Lovely poem!
I love your two-word phrases, and rhyme, Laura! I kept thinking of the locked-in mermaid, no more ocean for her! Here’s mine:
Personal Ad-Sunday Times
Retired,
aging mermaid,
wishes less strenuous work.
Friendly work environment,
ocean-related.
This is so clever, Linda! But you left out the part about ‘dress code: casual’. 😉
This made me smile! 🙂
Heheh–GREAT idea, Linda. Kind of sad to think of an aging mermaid, though:>)
I love your two-word phrases, and rhyme, Laura! I kept thinking of the locked-in mermaid, no more ocean for her! Here’s mine:
Personal Ad-Sunday Times
Retired,
aging mermaid,
wishes less strenuous work.
Friendly work environment,
ocean-related.
This is so clever, Linda! But you left out the part about ‘dress code: casual’. 😉
This made me smile! 🙂
Heheh–GREAT idea, Linda. Kind of sad to think of an aging mermaid, though:>)
Great photo choice! Love the fun word play in your poem, Laura.
Thanks!
Great photo choice! Love the fun word play in your poem, Laura.
Thanks!
STOOD UP
You pledged.
I waited.
Love seemed–
Uncomplicated.
But damp, all
alone,
I turned
into
stone.
Andria W. Rosenbaum, all rights reserved
Love the pause before uncomplicated…and the sad stony ending! Very nice.
^ I agree with Buffy. I also like your rhymes.
Love the rhythm here, Andria, & that ending, wonderful!
This is stunning, Andria. I wouldn’t change a single word or dash. And the title! Love.
Perfectly stoney!
I’m marveling at how you managed to tell such a complete story with so few words! Brilliant.
STOOD UP
You pledged.
I waited.
Love seemed–
Uncomplicated.
But damp, all
alone,
I turned
into
stone.
Andria W. Rosenbaum, all rights reserved
Love the pause before uncomplicated…and the sad stony ending! Very nice.
^ I agree with Buffy. I also like your rhymes.
Love the rhythm here, Andria, & that ending, wonderful!
This is stunning, Andria. I wouldn’t change a single word or dash. And the title! Love.
Perfectly stoney!
I’m marveling at how you managed to tell such a complete story with so few words! Brilliant.
What I want to know is where I can pick up a sea kelp veil for my next fancy affair? What a fun poem, Laura. Brings back memories… sort of. 😉
A Mermother?s Lament
IMOGEN,
pearl of my eye,
STOLEN
by a sailor?s heart.
The one that got
AWAY.
? Michelle Heidenrich Barnes, all rights reserved.
Yes, a kelp seaveil is just the accessory we all need. “Pearl of my eye” is a great phrase for mermom’s lament.
I love “pearl of my eye”, and how you emphasized the focus of the lament with the capital letters.
Love this, reference to Cymbaline, Michelle? My younger granddaughter’s name is Imogene- I will keep this for her, in her scrapbook!
Thank you, Linda, for sharing this with your granddaughter. That makes me very happy. 🙂
And you’re right, remarkably, this does have similarities to the Imogen in Cymbeline. I wish I was erudite enough to think of that connection ahead of time, but unfortunately, no. See my reply to Laura’s comment for more of an explanation.
THanks, Michelle. OK, I love this poem and the mini-poem tucked within it. I adore that kind of sleight of hand! Also, is Imogen a specific person? I Googled and kept coming up with stuff to do with The Little Mermaid and Imogen Thomas, but I’m unclear on who she is. Or did you just make up the name? Enquiring minds want to know! Thanks! P.S. I also love pearl of my eye. Changing up the common phrase to use a sea reference is genius.
Thanks for your nice comments, Laura– they mean a lot coming from you!
Re: the name Imogen, I chose it for two reasons… neither of which are Shakespeare-worthy (see my reply to Linda’s comment above). I loosely based my poem on the Hans Christian Andersen tale, but unlike the original story, I wanted to give the mermaid a name since the poem speaks in the mother’s voice. “Ariel” was out of the question (too Disney). Imogen seemed to possess a mermaid quality to it, plus I like how it’s similar to the word “imagine”. Also, I’ve been listening to a lot of Imogen Heap lately (I highly recommend her album, SPEAK FOR YOURSELF), and she also has a dreamlike quality to her music. Strange and wonderful how it all just comes together!
I’m not familiar with Imogen Heap–I guess I’ll be searching YouTube tonight! I like that you called her mother a mermother. It takes the mind off into a whole other direction–mergranny, meruncle, mercousin, merbro…
Oooh, thanks for the backstory! So fun to learn these little details. So Imogen Heap isn’t actually connected with Little Mermaid? On Google, the search results kept coming up with her attending the premiere or something, so I actually thought she was a voice for it:>)
Wonderful and I love the word Mermother.
What I want to know is where I can pick up a sea kelp veil for my next fancy affair? What a fun poem, Laura. Brings back memories… sort of. 😉
A Mermother?s Lament
IMOGEN,
pearl of my eye,
STOLEN
by a sailor?s heart.
The one that got
AWAY.
? Michelle Heidenrich Barnes, all rights reserved.
Yes, a kelp seaveil is just the accessory we all need. “Pearl of my eye” is a great phrase for mermom’s lament.
I love “pearl of my eye”, and how you emphasized the focus of the lament with the capital letters.
Love this, reference to Cymbaline, Michelle? My younger granddaughter’s name is Imogene- I will keep this for her, in her scrapbook!
Thank you, Linda, for sharing this with your granddaughter. That makes me very happy. 🙂
And you’re right, remarkably, this does have similarities to the Imogen in Cymbeline. I wish I was erudite enough to think of that connection ahead of time, but unfortunately, no. See my reply to Laura’s comment for more of an explanation.
THanks, Michelle. OK, I love this poem and the mini-poem tucked within it. I adore that kind of sleight of hand! Also, is Imogen a specific person? I Googled and kept coming up with stuff to do with The Little Mermaid and Imogen Thomas, but I’m unclear on who she is. Or did you just make up the name? Enquiring minds want to know! Thanks! P.S. I also love pearl of my eye. Changing up the common phrase to use a sea reference is genius.
Thanks for your nice comments, Laura– they mean a lot coming from you!
Re: the name Imogen, I chose it for two reasons… neither of which are Shakespeare-worthy (see my reply to Linda’s comment above). I loosely based my poem on the Hans Christian Andersen tale, but unlike the original story, I wanted to give the mermaid a name since the poem speaks in the mother’s voice. “Ariel” was out of the question (too Disney). Imogen seemed to possess a mermaid quality to it, plus I like how it’s similar to the word “imagine”. Also, I’ve been listening to a lot of Imogen Heap lately (I highly recommend her album, SPEAK FOR YOURSELF), and she also has a dreamlike quality to her music. Strange and wonderful how it all just comes together!
I’m not familiar with Imogen Heap–I guess I’ll be searching YouTube tonight! I like that you called her mother a mermother. It takes the mind off into a whole other direction–mergranny, meruncle, mercousin, merbro…
Oooh, thanks for the backstory! So fun to learn these little details. So Imogen Heap isn’t actually connected with Little Mermaid? On Google, the search results kept coming up with her attending the premiere or something, so I actually thought she was a voice for it:>)
Wonderful and I love the word Mermother.
On the Brink
Tadpole sprouts legs,
yearns to leap;
Mermaid scans shore,
flees for the deep.
I like the contrast between the two creatures — though when I first started reading, I thought the mermaid was going to wish she could sprout legs like the tadpole.
Oh, nice to include other ‘ocean‑y’ things, Buffy. Good rhythm too!
FUn examples of those between-worlds creatures. Should be ya because that description fits just about every teenager!
Maybe the tadpole yearns to leap because the mermaid wants to eat it for breakfast! Oh, I’m terrible, I know… unlike this poem which is quite delightful. 🙂
On the Brink
Tadpole sprouts legs,
yearns to leap;
Mermaid scans shore,
flees for the deep.
I like the contrast between the two creatures — though when I first started reading, I thought the mermaid was going to wish she could sprout legs like the tadpole.
Oh, nice to include other ‘ocean‑y’ things, Buffy. Good rhythm too!
FUn examples of those between-worlds creatures. Should be ya because that description fits just about every teenager!
Maybe the tadpole yearns to leap because the mermaid wants to eat it for breakfast! Oh, I’m terrible, I know… unlike this poem which is quite delightful. 🙂
What a fun poem, Laura! I can just picture that prom. 🙂
ALWAYS WET
Water-logged,
soggy,
drenched, no lie?
dreaming I could
sit in the sun
and drip dry.
fun, to imagine a mermaid sunning herself! Guess they tire of the endless watery habitat! I like the first person aspect too.
Yes, she does look like she’s sun bathing. Nice!.
Aw, I feel bad for the mermaid now. I always have thought it would be lovely to be a water creature, but I’m rethinking that! I esp love lines 1 and 2 and the words drenched and dreaming!
This sounds straight from a movie, lovely!
Reminds me of summer, which already seems so long ago!
What a fun poem, Laura! I can just picture that prom. 🙂
ALWAYS WET
Water-logged,
soggy,
drenched, no lie?
dreaming I could
sit in the sun
and drip dry.
fun, to imagine a mermaid sunning herself! Guess they tire of the endless watery habitat! I like the first person aspect too.
Yes, she does look like she’s sun bathing. Nice!.
Aw, I feel bad for the mermaid now. I always have thought it would be lovely to be a water creature, but I’m rethinking that! I esp love lines 1 and 2 and the words drenched and dreaming!
This sounds straight from a movie, lovely!
Reminds me of summer, which already seems so long ago!
What way to wave
When first you’re seen?
The only way
Is like a queen.
Oops…should be, which way to wave!
Spoken like one who knows! 🙂
But of course. 🙂
Perfect, Diane! That rock does look like a throne.
She does kind of look like she’s on a parade float, doesn’t she:>) Ha!
Cute!
What way to wave
When first you’re seen?
The only way
Is like a queen.
Oops…should be, which way to wave!
Spoken like one who knows! 🙂
But of course. 🙂
Perfect, Diane! That rock does look like a throne.
She does kind of look like she’s on a parade float, doesn’t she:>) Ha!
Cute!
Maid of stone
made of stone
Maid on throne of stone in Maidstone
Clever play on words! That last line makes a great tongue twister too… not that I had any problem. 😉
Love this wordplay!
Thanks, Laura.
Maid of stone
made of stone
Maid on throne of stone in Maidstone
Clever play on words! That last line makes a great tongue twister too… not that I had any problem. 😉
Love this wordplay!
Thanks, Laura.
Stone maiden,
locked away.
One hundred years.
Don?t delay!
Return the wave.
Simply.
Generously.
Save.
Now you’ve got me intrigued! I want to hear all about the evil spell that captured her in that stony state.
Well, isn’t that gorgeous. A little kindness works wonders:>)
Stone maiden,
locked away.
One hundred years.
Don?t delay!
Return the wave.
Simply.
Generously.
Save.
Now you’ve got me intrigued! I want to hear all about the evil spell that captured her in that stony state.
Well, isn’t that gorgeous. A little kindness works wonders:>)
I’m made of rock
That’s the thing
Kind of hard
For me to sing
- Anne McKenna
Well, yeah, if you want to bring harsh reality into it:>) Love the voice here, Anne–good to see you!
I’m made of rock
That’s the thing
Kind of hard
For me to sing
- Anne McKenna
Well, yeah, if you want to bring harsh reality into it:>) Love the voice here, Anne–good to see you!
STATUE OF NO LIMITATIONS
Despite
Rain,
Snow,
Sun,
Thunder,
Or a
Disrespectful
Crowd:
My granite
Smile
Remains
Unbowed.
© Charles Waters 2013 all rights reserved.
STATUE OF NO LIMITATIONS
Despite
Rain,
Snow,
Sun,
Thunder,
Or a
Disrespectful
Crowd:
My granite
Smile
Remains
Unbowed.
© Charles Waters 2013 all rights reserved.