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.
The leaves are all gone now from our beautiful maple, so I’m enjoying it through photos retroactively:>)
This image makes me think of several things:
- nature doesn’t work on our schedule
- so many missing puzzle pieces still about the way some things work
- robot trees
And here’s my first draft. (I actually love technology, but sometimes…)
Note: I am at NCTE in St. Louis, so I won’t be able to comment on poems today. Hopefully, I’m seeing some poetry friends in person, though!
It’s your turn! Have fun and stick to 15 WORDS OR LESS! (Title doesn’t count toward word count.)
41 Responses
What an intriguing combination–technology and trees! Love it, Laura, especially that “byte of birch”! Here’s my effort–
Midlife
Accumulating change
creates a puzzle
I ponder missing pieces.
How very interesting, from your title to end. I get a sense of regret, or perhaps renewed effort to fill in the gaps. You’ve packed a lot in three lines.
Boy, can I relate. It seems i spend too much time trying to find those missing pieces!
Parts of pictures,
perfectly patterned
puzzle pieces
put in places
in our hearts
I like all your p sounds, and that last line of comfort.
Ahhhh…fun p‑words and I love that ending.
Laura, enjoy every moment of NCTE! I am just home from AASL and still feel fully charged with the energy I gained from all I learned. My poetry friday blog post tomorrow is all about the places I found poetry. Yay!
It’s funny, when I come here on Thursday mornings, I usually skim your poem so as not to get to taken with an idea that’s not mine. Today, the word retroactively caught me. Now that I’ve drafted and come back to read yours—unprogrammable sky! LOVE.
Retroactive
Energy revived
Retrograding
Backward flow
Retrospective
Thinks about the past
Retrorocket
Forward blast
How extremely clever with your retro words and definitions. I like how you carry us forwards at the end.
This was a pleasure to read with all the retro words.
Definitely love all the retro words!
“Unprogrammable beauty” is just what it is!
I see the beauty here though It looks to be disappearing as each pixel Is being sniffed out.
Boxed In Beauty
Her radiant smile
Removed
One trial
At a time.
Oh, this is so sad.
Powerful, Donna, and so sad.
*snuffed, not sniffed…(posted via phone)
So sad and poignant. I want to find a way to “un-snuff” those experiences.
I think this qualifies for the TLD November challenge! Well done in a few words.
I like the beauty in your blend of nature and technology, Laura. Todays picture reminded me of watching TV when a storm blocks the signal.
satellite service disrupted
frozen picture
pixilated
Pixilated is such a fun word to say!
Funny how things change…as kids we dealt with static, fuzz, vertical hold, horizontal hold…pixelation, not so much!
Lauren now I’ll know what to say when my service is disrupted…“Pixilated” great word!
Pixelated is such a great word!
Good morning. This picture made me think of my first drive across the US. Of course I was traveling from east to west but I can mentally rotate the photo and make it work. The memory of looking in the rearview at darkness and then ahead to sunlight and blue sky is still vivid, yet leaves me with a sense of forever chasing the light.
Life Choices
Light elusive
dark ensues
erase regrets
push forward
into life.
I like that pursuit of light into life.
Love the ending of your poem, Laura. How true!
TURNING OVER A NEW LEAF
Her checkered past
left some aghast
but that’s behind.
There’s peace of mind
at last.
Love checkered past for this image. Very nice.
Love that checkered past–and her refusal to let it define her future!
Oh, fall leaves! I’ve raked a lot of leaves in the past month. I’ll bet you guys have, too.
Leaves fall
like puzzle pieces—
hard to assemble
red, red, red
on the forest floor.
—Kate Coombs
Oh my, that’s a lot of puzzle pieces! I like this image of trying to assemble them all.
Laura this is an interesting way to look at an image today. I enjoyed your digital point of view. My eye seemed focused on the white squares, which reminded me of MRI scans, and inspired my poem.
“Don’t Get Old…”
Winter is upon me;
cold limbs creak.
White matter lesions
puzzle my thoughts.
What a haunting view of old age. I get chills reading about those “white matter lesions/puzzle my thoughts.”
Have a wonderful time
poem By Jessica Bigi
On the back
Of every leaf
Maps of the world
All life’s secrets
Are in the wind
It does often feel that the maps of the world and all their secrets are scattered in the wind.
I adore this.….just beautiful. If only we could gather all the secrets.
Enjoy NCTE! As I looked at this picture, I was drawn to the gaps–and reminded that we must sometimes let old things go before something new can grow–and that I don’t like waiting for it it happen.
WAITING
Falling leaves
reveal gaps
that must
wait
through
winter
before
next year’s
growt
blooms
anew.
I believe you have a powerful message here of letting go of imperfections to allow for growth. Nice. Frustrating when those changes seem to take forever.
I love this photo–such a cool and unusual effect! And a byte of birch made me smile..
Fall Fury
maple spits her leaves
whipping smacking slamming
refusing to check the box marked
autumn beauty
Your maple has such personality! What a dynamo!
This tree has personality plus! Love the spirit!
Ha, that stubborn maple. I think I love her!
Anticipation
A lingering wind
whispers stories into air.
Golden leaves listen,
storing words for winter’s sleep
-Pamela Ross
Laura: I hope you and all our mutual friends are enjoying the wahoozies out of NCTE. I keep hearing it’s the place to be this weekend. {}
I want you to know how much I love your poem this week. I read your work before I saw the poem. It’s like trying to listen to the song without seeing the video first. The technical jargon blends in so effortlessly and seamlessly, so much I didn’t know you were playing with these digital-oriented words based on your photo.
I love your homage to poet-tree. xoxo