Hello, and welcome! This is 15 Words or Less Poems, a low-pressure way to wake up your poetry brain (guidelines here), and I’m very glad you’re here.
Here’s an itty-bitty birdie I spied while walking around the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History.
This image makes me think of several things:
- the Christmas ornaments of birds that clipped on that my Mom loved
- a kids’ climbing structure
- a birdcage
And here’s my first draft. It came out seeming a bit more melancholy than I intended, but first drafts don’t pay much attention to my intentions!
It’s your turn! Have fun and stick to 15 WORDS OR LESS! (Title doesn’t count toward word count.)
52 Responses
Good morning poets
Chirp fake carols…that’s what sparked my imagination.
Not captured
Warble
song
twitter
tweet
coo
squawk
chitter
screech
Nothing like the real thing Linda! That’s what I love about Spring.
Love this list poem, and the way your title can be taken so many ways!
I can hear and sweet this playing out so clearly!
I love those clip on Christmas trees birds, too! They make my tree come alive.
A me-size branch
Camouflaged in place
A quiet interlude
I observe in space
I really like “me-size branch” and “quiet interlude.”
Yes! Who doesn’t want a tiny little safe space like this. A blanket fort, a hidey-hole in the branches–we all want them!
Laura, it may be melancholy, but I love it! Here’s my flying-out-the-door first draft:
Perspective
Wooden perch
or twisted cage?
Supported
or imprisoned?
Will you take flight
or languish?
Molly, the title is perfect. We are all free in many ways and imprisoned in many ways. What we do with the space that we have, that we inhabit–that’s what matters. Thank you for this!
Love this. As I read your verse I was listening to my 22 yr. old cockatiel squawking for someone to come uncover his cage and open his blinds. I wonder how he feels. He has worn out 2 cages already and his third one is beginning to show wear. Since he is spoiled rotten, I don’t think he would take flight.
Love this picture, Laura!
Bare branches bounce
then still;
he lands;
listens for the whisper winds of sweet spring
Oh, love the “whisper winds of sweet spring!”
What a celebration of alliteration, Rebekeh–lovely! And each word feels well chosen.
As do I Rebekah!
Very beautiful. After our deep freeze I too am listening for the “whisper winds of sweet spring.”
Melancholy Is good Laura. My mom raised canaries and to this day we still have bird ornaments on the Christmas tree, feathered and glass. The bird in the photo seems a bit put out!
Promises, Promises
He asked for commitment
I said yes;
are you kidding,
you call this a nest?
Oh too funny. Love the story you got from the picture.
This gave me a good laugh. He better get busy! I’m going to buy a couple of new bird ornaments for my tree next year–glass? I’m going to look for that!
Very funny!
Funny! Love your take on this one!
I thought this bird looked safely tucked away, so I gave it a question:
When life leaves you
too tired to fly,
where do you hide?
That safe hiding place–a theme for today! We all need a roosting spot for when we’re weary…
I think your second sentence here is a haiku Laura.
Oh Lauren. Poor birdie. My daughter’s cat just dropped her first “gift” of Spring at the front door. Thankfully it was not a bird.
Solitary Confinement?
No twitter.
No chatter.
I am alone.
Nothing but boredom
since Mom took my phone.
LOL I love your take on the picture, and your fun rhyme.
Hahaha–now the bird in the picture looks pissed to me!
Fun poem Cindy! And boredom begets imagination.
So funny Cindy! And true! My 15 y/o could definitely relate to your phone less bird…
Clever and funny, too!
I love this Cindy. How timely and the chat and tweet, perfection.
Gorgeous pic Laura offering so many possibilities…
Framed by nature’s
organic lines
I sit poised
posing for my picture.
Hehe–of course an artist would notice all the lines and think portrait! Lovely, and I love the alliteration.
Searching for buds, blooms,
any signs of spring.
Anxiously awaiting
a seasonal cue to sing!
I like your last 2 lines- I’m anxiously awaiting too!
Love this little scene–I want that bird/narrator to burst out in song, regardless of the cues! 😀
this reminds me of how dull and gray winter is…here’s my haiku…
cold, winter days
filled with browns and grays
until…a cardinal
Dianne Moritz
Your last line is perfect…it reads red!
Thanks Jean!
Oh…beautiful! I shared a poem about a cardinal in winter on the blog at some point from a lovely old book, but now I can’t find it. So I’m savoring yours!
Thanks Laura! This is always a fun challenge.
I think Mr. Sparrow was posing for you, Laura. That’s not usually my experience!
Bird Photography
Feathers flit
through tangled branches
a flash of wings
a splash of tail
gone
Me, neither! But there were CLOUDS of sparrows flitting around in front of the Museum of Natural History, so I just stood quietly by the shrubs for a minute until they settled. It still wasn’t real happy I was there! Love your poem–that couplet with “a flash” is just perfect–and then the “gone.” When I moved by the shrub, even slowly, birds exploded out of the shrub like they’d been shot out of a cannon!
Laura your poem made me laugh. I too love the clip on birds! They are “nesting” in my basement as well .
Spring
Bird on a branch,
Ready for spring,
Vocal cords warble,
Chirp, cheep, peep, I sing.
I love the way there’s a bird there, but you’re the one singing. Lovely!
What do you see,
little chickadee?
A sprouting branch,
a chance to dance
with me?
I love the sweet yearning in this poem, Margaret!
Swatters of fathers knitting
songs of spring
woven nest of sparrow
are welcome-mats
winter is all most over
Love that image of the nest as a welcome mat for spring! And thank you for my picture that you created! I went and signed books at Red Balloon yesterday and got it! A little bittersweet as my dad down in Florida just bought some red tulips. Tulips were my mom’s favorites, and are mine. So looking at this drawing of my mom and thinking about tulips today… :>)
I did not know
the wallpaper could
make me look so real
-JanGodownAnnino, all rights reserved
This may be an odd response to this wonderful photo, but it made me think I was inside a fancy room decorated with this image in wallpaper! Glad you got to that museum, too. And I love the fun idea in yours, Laura.
Hi, Laura, your sweet illustration and description of this little, feathered singer inspired a poem.
SPRING HERALD
Itty-bitty birdie
with a wordy song to sing,
lets us know he’s
welcoming
spring.