Create Art Podcast

National Poetry Writing Month (also known as NaPoWriMo) is a creative writing project held annually in April in which participants attempt to write a poem each day for one month. NaPoWriMo coincides with the National Poetry Month in the United States of America and Canada.

NaPoWriMo, or National Poetry Writing Month, is an annual project in which participating poets attempt to write a poem a day for the month of April.

This website is owned and operated by Maureen Thorson, a poet living in Washington, DC. Inspired by NaNoWriMo, or National Novel Writing Month), she started writing a poem a day for the month of April back in 2003, posting the poems on her blog. When other people started writing poems for April, and posting them on their own blogs, Maureen linked to them. After a few years, so many people were doing NaPoWriMo that Maureen decided to launch an independent website for the project.

I started writing poetry in 1988 after I had been exposed to T.S. Elliot in my honors English class in high school. In 1992 I started reading my poetry publicly at Espesso Europia Coffee Shop in Abilene Tx while I was in the United States Air Force. This continued for many years when I ran my own poetry reading at Cannova's in Loves Park Illinois and attended the poetry slams at The green Mill in Chicago Illinois. While living in Rockford Illinois I published my first book of poetry Throwing Yourself at the Ground and Missing in 2007 followed by Postcards From Someone You Don't Know in 2008 Wisdom From the Sack in 2010 and Shaving Crop Circles In My Chest Hair in 2017. You can get copies of all of these books in my merch section. In 2009 I started participating in National Poetry Writing Month which became the basis for my book Wisdom From the Sack and Shaving Crop Circles in My Chest Hair. In 2020 I started publishing my podcast version of the challenge and those can be viewed here for 2020 and here for 2021.

Today’s (optional) prompt is based on the Aisling, a poetic form that developed in Ireland. An Aisling recounts a dream or vision featuring a woman who represents the land or country on/in which the poet lives, and who speaks to the poet about it. Today, I’d like to challenge you to write a poem that recounts a dream or vision, and in which, a woman appears who represents or reflects the area in which you live. Perhaps she will be the Madonna of the Traffic Lights or the Mysterious Spirit of Bus Stops. Or maybe you will be addressed by the Lost Lady of the Stony Coves. Whatever form your dream visitor takes, happy writing!

The Call of Victory 

25 April 2022 

dedicated to Winged Victory

I was a wanderer for so many years 

Hearing a call from so far away 

I wanted to find the origin of the voice 

But in no state could I find it 

I moved from place to place 

I moved from person to person 

For so many years no one matched the voice in my head 

I often thought it was merely a dream 

One day it hit me 

The voice was not from America 

It came from some place older 

Some place that would take my heart 

So I climbed on the plane for Paris 

Not fully knowing what I would find 

My itinerary was not fully planned 

I saw the sights recommended 

And one day I went with another traveler 

She had an idea 

Walking into the Louve we tread lightly 

Viewing the great masters works on every wall 

It was there I heard the voice clearer than ever 

When I turned a corner and looked up 

There the voice was 

The stone could not contain her 

I dropped to my knees 

At the top of a staircase was the one I had been searching for 

Without arms 

Without a face 

Standing on a vessel 

Against the storms of the world 

She stood there 

I had completed the journey to find the voice 

And to find my ancestral home 

The ancients that came before 

And landed me in the residence I rented 

Had come full circle 

The journey was done 

And the temptation to never leave permeated 

But the voice changed that night 

When I slept in a rented bed 

The voice changed from someone unknown 

Someone mysterious 

To the voice of a friend 

And so that journey started on the very next day 

I headed back to the States 

And searched out the one who calls me love 

I took her to see the one I had spent so many decades searching for 

Only to see my ancient removed 

My heart sank through the floor 

And doom ensued 

But know I count the days until 

I can bring my children there 

To tell them the story of how I searched unknowingly 

For the voice in the stone 

That led me home 

To make a world for them 

To reach out to me, email [email protected] I would love to hear about your journey and what you are working on. If you would like to be on the show or have me discuss a topic that is giving you trouble write in and let's start that conversation.

• Email: [email protected]

National Poetry Writing Month (also known as NaPoWriMo) is a creative writing project held annually in April in which participants attempt to write a poem each day for one month. NaPoWriMo coincides with the National Poetry Month in the United States of America and Canada.

NaPoWriMo, or National Poetry Writing Month, is an annual project in which participating poets attempt to write a poem a day for the month of April.

This website is owned and operated by Maureen Thorson, a poet living in Washington, DC. Inspired by NaNoWriMo, or National Novel Writing Month), she started writing a poem a day for the month of April back in 2003, posting the poems on her blog. When other people started writing poems for April, and posting them on their own blogs, Maureen linked to them. After a few years, so many people were doing NaPoWriMo that Maureen decided to launch an independent website for the project.

I started writing poetry in 1988 after I had been exposed to T.S. Elliot in my honors English class in high school. In 1992 I started reading my poetry publicly at Espresso Europia Coffee Shop in Abilene Tx while I was in the United States Air Force. This continued for many years when I ran my own poetry reading at Cannova's in Loves Park Illinois and attended the poetry slams at The Green Mill in Chicago Illinois. While living in Rockford Illinois I published my first book of poetry Throwing Yourself at the Ground and Missing in 2007 followed by Postcards From Someone You Don't Know in 2008 Wisdom From the Sack in 2010 and Shaving Crop Circles In My Chest Hair in 2017. You can get copies of all of these books in my merch section. In 2009 I started participating in National Poetry Writing Month which became the basis for my book Wisdom From the Sack and Shaving Crop Circles in My Chest Hair. In 2020 I started publishing my podcast version of the challenge and those can be viewed here for 2020 and here for 2021.

Today, I’d like to challenge you to channel your inner gumshoe, and write a poem in which you describe something with a hard-boiled simile. Feel free to use just one, or try to go for broke and stuff your poem with similes till it’s . . . as dense as bread baked by a plumber, as round as the eyes of a girl who wants you to think she’s never heard such language, and as easy to miss as a brass band in a cathedral.

The Donkey In Me 

24 April 2022 

20 times a day 

I seek the solitude of being an uncool kid 

Knowing what it is doing to my body 

Not caring for the smell it leaves behind 

Hiding my breath in mints and gum 

When my parents did it 

I hated it 

I didn’t want to give them a kiss 

Because of the stench 

And here I am 

Being as stupid as a jack ass 

Because I am too scared 

To lose my pacifier 

I find myself wishing for the past some days 

Misremembering that the old times were not the good times 

And making the same mistakes in life 

Thinking it will work this time 

But it just happens again and again and again 

Waiting for the time it changes 

I try to climb a mountain 

But I am not a billy goat 

My hooves weren’t made for these stones 

The one thing I know to do is push forward 

Even if the load is too much 

Looking at the carrot 

But not looking closely to see the rot 

Thinking the goal is what will bring happiness 

When I don’t know where to find the goal 

I am as stubborn as a mule 

And I thought that used to be a good quality 

But being unbending is not what the great ones taught us 

Bend but don't break were the words that should have guided me 

But my long hair filled ears 

Didn't catch what was actually said 

To reach out to me, email [email protected] I would love to hear about your journey and what you are working on. If you would like to be on the show or have me discuss a topic that is giving you trouble write in and let's start that conversation.

• Email: [email protected]

National Poetry Writing Month (also known as NaPoWriMo) is a creative writing project held annually in April in which participants attempt to write a poem each day for one month. NaPoWriMo coincides with the National Poetry Month in the United States of America and Canada.

NaPoWriMo, or National Poetry Writing Month, is an annual project in which participating poets attempt to write a poem a day for the month of April.

This website is owned and operated by Maureen Thorson, a poet living in Washington, DC. Inspired by NaNoWriMo, or National Novel Writing Month), she started writing a poem a day for the month of April back in 2003, posting the poems on her blog. When other people started writing poems for April, and posting them on their own blogs, Maureen linked to them. After a few years, so many people were doing NaPoWriMo that Maureen decided to launch an independent website for the project.

I started writing poetry in 1988 after I had been exposed to T.S. Elliot in my honors English class in high school. In 1992 I started reading my poetry publicly at Espesso Europia Coffee Shop in Abilene Tx while I was in the United States Air Force. This continued for many years when I ran my own poetry reading at Cannova's in Loves Park Illinois and attended the poetry slams at The green Mill in Chicago Illinois. While living in Rockford Illinois I published my first book of poetry Throwing Yourself at the Ground and Missing in 2007 followed by Postcards From Someone You Don't Know in 2008 Wisdom From the Sack in 2010 and Shaving Crop Circles In My Chest Hair in 2017. You can get copies of all of these books in my merch section. In 2009 I started participating in National Poetry Writing Month which became the basis for my book Wisdom From the Sack and Shaving Crop Circles in My Chest Hair. In 2020 I started publishing my podcast version of the challenge and those can be viewed here for 2020 and here for 2021.

And now for our daily (optional) prompt. Today I’d like to challenge you to write a poem in the style of Kay Ryan, whose poems tend to be short and snappy – with a lot of rhyme and soundplay. They also have a deceptive simplicity about them, like proverbs or aphorisms. Once you’ve read a few, you’ll see what I mean. Here’s her “Token Loss,” “Blue China Doorknob,” “Houdini,” and “Crustacean Island.”

Unwanted Solicitation 

23 April 2022 

When I pick up the phone 

I can tell by the tone 

That the person on the other end 

Is trying to be a friend 

But they want to sell me 

On some loan with a fee 

And I tell them 

That they are not welcome 

To call me again 

Opps I lost another potential friend 

When they knock on my door 

I find it a bore 

That the person outside 

Is stepping away from the door to hide 

Does your grass need 

Our special anti-weed 

It's safe for pets 

And will get rid of spider nets 

When I tell the fool 

I don’t need their liquid tool 

I like my spiders 

They are an excellent source of fiber 

They turn around and leave 

Giving me time to breathe 

Walking in the bulk store 

They walk up to me and implore 

That I need to get new windows 

And when I ask for a price, they blow 

Maybe you need a new deck 

And I say what the heck 

I give them the number 

To the plumber 

Whom I just met 

And made my floors wet 

Maybe they can be friends 

While I listen to music peacefully in my den 

To reach out to me, email [email protected] I would love to hear about your journey and what you are working on. If you would like to be on the show or have me discuss a topic that is giving you trouble write in and let's start that conversation.

• Email: [email protected]

National Poetry Writing Month (also known as NaPoWriMo) is a creative writing project held annually in April in which participants attempt to write a poem each day for one month. NaPoWriMo coincides with the National Poetry Month in the United States of America and Canada.

NaPoWriMo, or National Poetry Writing Month, is an annual project in which participating poets attempt to write a poem a day for the month of April.

This website is owned and operated by Maureen Thorson, a poet living in Washington, DC. Inspired by NaNoWriMo, or National Novel Writing Month), she started writing a poem a day for the month of April back in 2003, posting the poems on her blog. When other people started writing poems for April, and posting them on their own blogs, Maureen linked to them. After a few years, so many people were doing NaPoWriMo that Maureen decided to launch an independent website for the project.

I started writing poetry in 1988 after I had been exposed to T.S. Elliot in my honors English class in high school. In 1992 I started reading my poetry publicly at Espesso Europia Coffee Shop in Abilene Tx while I was in the United States Air Force. This continued for many years when I ran my own poetry reading at Cannova's in Loves Park Illinois and attended the poetry slams at The green Mill in Chicago Illinois. While living in Rockford Illinois I published my first book of poetry Throwing Yourself at the Ground and Missing in 2007 followed by Postcards From Someone You Don't Know in 2008 Wisdom From the Sack in 2010 and Shaving Crop Circles In My Chest Hair in 2017. You can get copies of all of these books in my merch section. In 2009 I started participating in National Poetry Writing Month which became the basis for my book Wisdom From the Sack and Shaving Crop Circles in My Chest Hair. In 2020 I started publishing my podcast version of the challenge and those can be viewed here for 2020 and here for 2021.

And now for our prompt (optional, as always). In honor of today’s being the 22nd day of Na/GloPoWriMo 2022, I’d like to challenge you to write a poem that uses repetition. You can repeat a sound, a word, a phrase, or an image, or any combination of things.

Modern Living Through Chemistry 

22 April 2022 

There’s a pill for everything that ails you 

There’s a pill for the side effects of the pill that was supposed to fix you 

There’s a pill for the aftermath of the surgery that was to realign your spine 

There’s a pill to help relax your mind 

There’s a pill to help you speak clearly 

There’s a pill to help you see keenly 

There’s a pill to keep you alive for a few more hours 

There’s a pill to take you out in less time 

There’s a pill that helps you digest all of your other pills 

There is a pill that makes you pee 

There’s a pill that helps your diarrhea 

There’s a pill that can help you not smell your farts 

There’s a pill that will help you deal with the cost of your pills 

There’s a pill that will make you more focused on the good in life 

There’s a pill that makes you think 

There’s a pill that helps you gain muscle 

There’s a pill that makes you write better poetry 

There’s a pill that makes you a potent lover 

There’s a pill that will stop those swimmers 

There’s a pill called the morning after 

There’s a pill that is bitter to take 

There’s a pill that is too big for your throat 

There’s a pill that tastes like cake 

There’s a pill for that 

And with all these pills 

Here I stand, again there's a pill for that too 

But I am left wondering when the pills will end 

What did we do before these pills ended up in our hands 

If this is the better life 

Or the result of living it too much 

You can take the pills 

Let nature take its course 

To reach out to me, email [email protected] I would love to hear about your journey and what you are working on. If you would like to be on the show or have me discuss a topic that is giving you trouble write in and let's start that conversation.

• Email: [email protected]

National Poetry Writing Month (also known as NaPoWriMo) is a creative writing project held annually in April in which participants attempt to write a poem each day for one month. NaPoWriMo coincides with the National Poetry Month in the United States of America and Canada.

NaPoWriMo, or National Poetry Writing Month, is an annual project in which participating poets attempt to write a poem a day for the month of April.

This website is owned and operated by Maureen Thorson, a poet living in Washington, DC. Inspired by NaNoWriMo, or National Novel Writing Month), she started writing a poem a day for the month of April back in 2003, posting the poems on her blog. When other people started writing poems for April, and posting them on their own blogs, Maureen linked to them. After a few years, so many people were doing NaPoWriMo that Maureen decided to launch an independent website for the project.

I started writing poetry in 1988 after I had been exposed to T.S. Elliot in my honors English class in high school. In 1992 I started reading my poetry publicly at Espesso Europia Coffee Shop in Abilene Tx while I was in the United States Air Force. This continued for many years when I ran my own poetry reading at Cannova's in Loves Park Illinois and attended the poetry slams at The green Mill in Chicago Illinois. While living in Rockford Illinois I published my first book of poetry Throwing Yourself at the Ground and Missing in 2007 followed by Postcards From Someone You Don't Know in 2008 Wisdom From the Sack in 2010 and Shaving Crop Circles In My Chest Hair in 2017. You can get copies of all of these books in my merch section. In 2009 I started participating in National Poetry Writing Month which became the basis for my book Wisdom From the Sack and Shaving Crop Circles in My Chest Hair. In 2020 I started publishing my podcast version of the challenge and those can be viewed here for 2020 and here for 2021.

Today’s (optional) prompt is one I got from the poet Betsy Sholl. This prompt asks you to write a poem in which you first recall someone you used to know closely but are no longer in touch with, then a job you used to have but no longer do, and then a piece of art that you saw once and that has stuck with you over time. Finally, close the poem with an unanswerable question.

Discarded Items 

21 April 2022 

You were just a year older than I when we first met 

And yet you seemed to have lived so much more than I 

We joined the military during the times of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell 

And when you left for boot camp, your girlfriend became mine 

You were drummed out of the Navy 

For showing your love for another man 

Initially I felt betrayed that you never told me 

I thought we were thick as thieves 

And then I met a man in uniform 

That poor girl didn’t have gay or bi-dar  

When I left the military 

We still kept in touch 

Me working third shift at Kinko’s 

And you bouncing around California 

I was working on my degree and myself 

You were working on your next conquest 

After a few moves and some barnacle cleaning 

I lost touch with you 

One day I was walking through the Louvre  

Not knowing what I really wanted to see 

And there at the top of a staircase was Winged Victory 

Armless Headless calming the sea 

I thought of you, my friend from long ago 

And wishing that you could have been there with me 

Just like you were with me during our first show 

Flying in scenery for Guys and Dolls 

One of the only musicals I can tolerate 

One of the many musicals you admire and know by heart 

I’ve tried to look you up with all this technology at our fingertips 

But to no avail 

Wondering if the algorithm has something against us 

To reach out to me, email [email protected] I would love to hear about your journey and what you are working on. If you would like to be on the show or have me discuss a topic that is giving you trouble write in and let's start that conversation.

• Email: [email protected]

National Poetry Writing Month (also known as NaPoWriMo) is a creative writing project held annually in April in which participants attempt to write a poem each day for one month. NaPoWriMo coincides with the National Poetry Month in the United States of America and Canada.

NaPoWriMo, or National Poetry Writing Month, is an annual project in which participating poets attempt to write a poem a day for the month of April.

This website is owned and operated by Maureen Thorson, a poet living in Washington, DC. Inspired by NaNoWriMo, or National Novel Writing Month), she started writing a poem a day for the month of April back in 2003, posting the poems on her blog. When other people started writing poems for April, and posting them on their own blogs, Maureen linked to them. After a few years, so many people were doing NaPoWriMo that Maureen decided to launch an independent website for the project.

I started writing poetry in 1988 after I had been exposed to T.S. Elliot in my honors English class in high school. In 1992 I started reading my poetry publicly at Espesso Europia Coffee Shop in Abilene Tx while I was in the United States Air Force. This continued for many years when I ran my own poetry reading at Cannova's in Loves Park Illinois and attended the poetry slams at The green Mill in Chicago Illinois. While living in Rockford Illinois I published my first book of poetry Throwing Yourself at the Ground and Missing in 2007 followed by Postcards From Someone You Don't Know in 2008 Wisdom From the Sack in 2010 and Shaving Crop Circles In My Chest Hair in 2017. You can get copies of all of these books in my merch section. In 2009 I started participating in National Poetry Writing Month which became the basis for my book Wisdom From the Sack and Shaving Crop Circles in My Chest Hair. In 2020 I started publishing my podcast version of the challenge and those can be viewed here for 2020 and here for 2021.

And now for today’s (optional) prompt. Today, I’d like to challenge you to write a poem that anthropomorphizes a kind of food. It could be a favorite food of yours, or maybe one you feel conflicted about. I feel conflicted about Black Forest Cake, for example. It always looks so pretty in a bakery window, and I want to like the combination of cherries and chocolate . . . but I don’t. But how does the cake feel about it?

Deep Dish Dreaming 

20 April 2022 

Get your skinny ass wanna be grease filled floppy self away from my man 

There is no way that you can satisfy him like I can 

I’m thick and juicy just like he likes it 

Filled with all of the toppings he craves 

You can say you were the first 

But honey I am the best 

I am the one he is dreaming of 

When he wraps his lips on what you call a crust 

He fantasizes about me 

You can’t hold all the goodness that I can 

With your slippery cheese and no taste sauce 

Remember this is my man 

Step off he wants my flakey ends 

Can you fill him up in one sitting 

Or does he need to order side dishes 

Baby girl I come equipped with all the fixins of a meal 

And you cannot compare 

My man is as true as any man can be 

You may catch his eye for a moment or two 

But when he sees something slinky as you 

He remembers how full size I am 

And baby he lays down with his queen 

To reach out to me, email [email protected] I would love to hear about your journey and what you are working on. If you would like to be on the show or have me discuss a topic that is giving you trouble write in and let's start that conversation.

• Email: [email protected]

National Poetry Writing Month (also known as NaPoWriMo) is a creative writing project held annually in April in which participants attempt to write a poem each day for one month. NaPoWriMo coincides with the National Poetry Month in the United States of America and Canada.

NaPoWriMo, or National Poetry Writing Month, is an annual project in which participating poets attempt to write a poem a day for the month of April.

This website is owned and operated by Maureen Thorson, a poet living in Washington, DC. Inspired by NaNoWriMo, or National Novel Writing Month), she started writing a poem a day for the month of April back in 2003, posting the poems on her blog. When other people started writing poems for April, and posting them on their own blogs, Maureen linked to them. After a few years, so many people were doing NaPoWriMo that Maureen decided to launch an independent website for the project.

I started writing poetry in 1988 after I had been exposed to T.S. Elliot in my honors English class in high school. In 1992 I started reading my poetry publicly at Espesso Europia Coffee Shop in Abilene Tx while I was in the United States Air Force. This continued for many years when I ran my own poetry reading at Cannova's in Loves Park Illinois and attended the poetry slams at The green Mill in Chicago Illinois. While living in Rockford Illinois I published my first book of poetry Throwing Yourself at the Ground and Missing in 2007 followed by Postcards From Someone You Don't Know in 2008 Wisdom From the Sack in 2010 and Shaving Crop Circles In My Chest Hair in 2017. You can get copies of all of these books in my merch section. In 2009 I started participating in National Poetry Writing Month which became the basis for my book Wisdom From the Sack and Shaving Crop Circles in My Chest Hair. In 2020 I started publishing my podcast version of the challenge and those can be viewed here for 2020 and here for 2021.

And now for our daily (optional) prompt! Today’s challenge is to write a poem that starts with a command. It could be as uncomplicated as “Look,” as plaintive as “Come back,” or as silly as “Don’t you even think about putting that hot sauce in your hair.” Whatever command you choose, I hope you have fun ordering your readers around.

Write This Down 

19 April 2022 

Look to your left 

Now look to your right 

Now cross your eyes and write down what you see 

Boom you have conquered writer's block 

We live in interesting times 

Where anything is just a few clicks away 

And it gets shipped to your home 

For the low low price of whatever you are willing to pay 

Try this, think about your parents 

Then think about their parents 

Then think about their parents 

Because 16 people knocked boots whom you never met 

Is the reason you are here today 

Some of us don’t seem to be as evolved as others 

Some people's branches don’t fork that much 

Even if you don’t know your great grandparents' story 

Or you can make up their stories 

Come up with your own origin story 

And write that down for your offspring 

And that is how history is made 

You can find it and have it shipped to you 

For the low low price of what you are willing to pay 

To reach out to me, email [email protected] I would love to hear about your journey and what you are working on. If you would like to be on the show or have me discuss a topic that is giving you trouble write in and let's start that conversation.

• Email: [email protected]

National Poetry Writing Month (also known as NaPoWriMo) is a creative writing project held annually in April in which participants attempt to write a poem each day for one month. NaPoWriMo coincides with the National Poetry Month in the United States of America and Canada.

NaPoWriMo, or National Poetry Writing Month, is an annual project in which participating poets attempt to write a poem a day for the month of April.

This website is owned and operated by Maureen Thorson, a poet living in Washington, DC. Inspired by NaNoWriMo, or National Novel Writing Month), she started writing a poem a day for the month of April back in 2003, posting the poems on her blog. When other people started writing poems for April, and posting them on their own blogs, Maureen linked to them. After a few years, so many people were doing NaPoWriMo that Maureen decided to launch an independent website for the project.

I started writing poetry in 1988 after I had been exposed to T.S. Elliot in my honors English class in high school. In 1992 I started reading my poetry publicly at Espesso Europia Coffee Shop in Abilene Tx while I was in the United States Air Force. This continued for many years when I ran my own poetry reading at Cannova's in Loves Park Illinois and attended the poetry slams at The green Mill in Chicago Illinois. While living in Rockford Illinois I published my first book of poetry Throwing Yourself at the Ground and Missing in 2007 followed by Postcards From Someone You Don't Know in 2008 Wisdom From the Sack in 2010 and Shaving Crop Circles In My Chest Hair in 2017. You can get copies of all of these books in my merch section. In 2009 I started participating in National Poetry Writing Month which became the basis for my book Wisdom From the Sack and Shaving Crop Circles in My Chest Hair. In 2020 I started publishing my podcast version of the challenge and those can be viewed here for 2020 and here for 2021.

Last but not least, here is today’s prompt (optional, as always). It’s based on Faisal Mohyuddin’s poem “Five Answers to the Same Question.” Today, I’d like to challenge you to write your own poem that provides five answers to the same question – without ever specifically identifying the question that is being answered.

Daily Taskings 

18 April 2022 

Before most people get up for the day 

I already know my blood sugars are high 

Fasting doesn’t seem to help 

Reporting the pain as moderate 

The pills I am taking are not alleviating 

And the pain travels from one part of my body to the next 

Fatigue is my constant companion 

It holds me close and strangles the energy 

I think it should pay rent 

My activities today, as they are most days 

Consist of working at home, housework  

Maybe if I am up to it a social engagement 

Sleep is sometimes elusive 

But last night it was good 

Only a few disruptions 

The stress that I put myself under 

Is not so bad for a Monday 

I can get work done 

Which leads me to my mood 

Overall, I am pushing through 

Happy that I am relatively well enough  

Tracking these answers daily  

Reminds me of my illness 

But on some days reminds me that I am still alive 

When you ask a seemingly simple question 

I must provide all the data points  

So you can understand  

Since only one of us has MS 

To reach out to me, email [email protected] I would love to hear about your journey and what you are working on. If you would like to be on the show or have me discuss a topic that is giving you trouble write in and let's start that conversation.

• Email: [email protected]

National Poetry Writing Month (also known as NaPoWriMo) is a creative writing project held annually in April in which participants attempt to write a poem each day for one month. NaPoWriMo coincides with the National Poetry Month in the United States of America and Canada.

NaPoWriMo, or National Poetry Writing Month, is an annual project in which participating poets attempt to write a poem a day for the month of April.

This website is owned and operated by Maureen Thorson, a poet living in Washington, DC. Inspired by NaNoWriMo, or National Novel Writing Month), she started writing a poem a day for the month of April back in 2003, posting the poems on her blog. When other people started writing poems for April and posting them on their own blogs, Maureen linked to them. After a few years, so many people were doing NaPoWriMo that Maureen decided to launch an independent website for the project.

I started writing poetry in 1988 after I had been exposed to T.S. Elliot in my honors English class in high school. In 1992 I started reading my poetry publicly at Espresso Europia Coffee Shop in Abilene Tx while I was in the United States Air Force. This continued for many years when I ran my own poetry reading at Cannova's in Loves Park Illinois and attended the poetry slams at The Green Mill in Chicago Illinois. While living in Rockford Illinois I published my first book of poetry Throwing Yourself at the Ground and Missing in 2007 followed by Postcards From Someone You Don't Know in 2008 Wisdom From the Sack in 2010 and Shaving Crop Circles In My Chest Hair in 2017. You can get copies of all of these books in my merch section. In 2009 I started participating in National Poetry Writing Month which became the basis for my book Wisdom From the Sack and Shaving Crop Circles in My Chest Hair. In 2020 I started publishing my podcast version of the challenge and those can be viewed here for 2020 and here for 2021.

And now here’s our daily (optional) prompt. This is a fun one – it’s a prompt developed by the comic artist Lynda Barry, and it asks you to think about dogs you have known, seen, or heard about, and then use them as a springboard into wherever they take you.

Obidiah 

17 April 2022 

The first and only canine that allowed me to be their caretaker for a short while 

While we were staying at the parsonage because my father couldn’t hold a job 

You were eternally happy, and I was not the kindest soul at the time 

This was an effort by my father to spite my mother 

Just another one of their never-ceasing battles 

He knew she was allergic to pet dander 

And he wanted someone to show him, unconditional love 

But it was up to me to feed, clean the mess and walk you 

It pained me that we had to keep you in the basement 

Watching you run up the stairs as I left for school 

Hearing you scratching at the door all night during storms 

But because I was afraid of the dark I never came to your rescue 

I don’t remember asking for a pet 

As I knew this domicile was temporary 

But there we were, and you came into our lives 

Nipping my father's fingers 

Licking my face for hours 

You were the only friend at the time 

And then one day after school you were gone 

My brother said I left the basement door open 

And you escaped sometime during the day 

But the locks were still in place and the screen door was rusted shut 

So, I took my beating that night 

In the shadow of the church that housed us 

We named you after a minor prophet in the Old Testament 

One of the shortest books in the bible 

It wouldn’t have mattered if I had known you were released to fend for yourself 

There wasn’t much this 12-year-old could do to keep you alive 

And I played stupid when one of the kids at school  

Told me about a stray dog that his family had taken in 

To reach out to me, email [email protected] I would love to hear about your journey and what you are working on. If you would like to be on the show or have me discuss a topic that is giving you trouble write in and let's start that conversation.

• Email: [email protected]

National Poetry Writing Month (also known as NaPoWriMo) is a creative writing project held annually in April in which participants attempt to write a poem each day for one month. NaPoWriMo coincides with the National Poetry Month in the United States of America and Canada.

NaPoWriMo, or National Poetry Writing Month, is an annual project in which participating poets attempt to write a poem a day for the month of April.

This website is owned and operated by Maureen Thorson, a poet living in Washington, DC. Inspired by NaNoWriMo, or National Novel Writing Month), she started writing a poem a day for the month of April back in 2003, posting the poems on her blog. When other people started writing poems for April, and posting them on their own blogs, Maureen linked to them. After a few years, so many people were doing NaPoWriMo that Maureen decided to launch an independent website for the project.

I started writing poetry in 1988 after I had been exposed to T.S. Elliot in my honors English class in high school. In 1992 I started reading my poetry publicly at Espesso Europia Coffee Shop in Abilene Tx while I was in the United States Air Force. This continued for many years when I ran my own poetry reading at Cannova's in Loves Park Illinois and attended the poetry slams at The green Mill in Chicago Illinois. While living in Rockford Illinois I published my first book of poetry Throwing Yourself at the Ground and Missing in 2007 followed by Postcards From Someone You Don't Know in 2008 Wisdom From the Sack in 2010 and Shaving Crop Circles In My Chest Hair in 2017. You can get copies of all of these books in my merch section. In 2009 I started participating in National Poetry Writing Month which became the basis for my book Wisdom From the Sack and Shaving Crop Circles in My Chest Hair. In 2020 I started publishing my podcast version of the challenge and those can be viewed here for 2020 and here for 2021.

And now for our prompt (optional, as always). Today, I’d like to challenge you to write a curtal sonnet. This is a variation on the classic 14-line sonnet. The curtal sonnet form was developed by Gerard Manley Hopkins, and he used it for what is probably his most famous poem, “Pied Beauty.” A curtal sonnet has eleven lines, instead of the usual fourteen, and the last line is shorter than the ten that precede it. Here are two other examples of Hopkins’ curtal sonnets: “Ash Boughs,” and “Peace.”

Simple Pleasures 

16 April 2022 

A freshly mowed lawn 

Saturday morning cartoons 

Sleeping cats and children  

Watching the sunrise for another dawn 

Seeing the smiles from balloons 

Playing records in my den 

These are the things I focus on 

These things send my heart to swoons 

No more will I be locked in a mental pen 

I don’t have to buy in on the con 

Now is when 

To reach out to me, email [email protected] I would love to hear about your journey and what you are working on. If you would like to be on the show or have me discuss a topic that is giving you trouble write in and let's start that conversation.

• Email: [email protected]