Thursday, February 21, 2013
Homonym Poem
Brenda Hillman wrote a brilliant poem called"Cleave and Cleave" which examines these words that sound and can be spelled the same but have opposite meanings. I'd like you to think of two words that are homonyms but mean different things. , e.g. lie and lie, stone and stone, bear and bear, write and right. Here is a complete list.
Think of an emotional situation in memory that these homonyms might speak to, then imagine yourself "encountering" each of these words separately, in concrete examples- e.g. you are writing your name on a blackboard as a child, over and over; the sun is spilling in the window, fading the slate as you write. you start to think about your "right" to be yourself, and you look at your self, the clothes you are wearing, your hands, etc...Then bring both words together at the poem's conclusion, like Hillman, who dramaticized the words' opposite meanings by ending with two strong sentences: You might say, e.g." I will write my name over and over on the glass." Then, "I will disappear: my right."
This poem is taken from The Practice of Poetry by Behn and Twichell.
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Bennet Daniels
ReplyDeleteHour: 3
2/21/13
Homonym Poem
My goal was to sear the meat on the skillet
And as if he was a seer, my dad told us of his new idea
The birds of the valley flew so low that you could see their cere
The longer we stayed, the sere became more apparent
The sun made us sear in the high mountain valley
As we talked about the seer we once met
A bird landed and used the cere in his beak and killed himself dinner
I began to realize the seer of the nature around us
As if I were a seer, I predicted the rest of the trip
How we would all sear in this unbearable heat
And less sightings of birds and their ceers’
And as our group, I realized, we are all part of the world’s sere
One day in the park as I was walking along
ReplyDeletewearing a bracelet and singing a song
I was then stopped by a man I'd not seen
who said that my wristband was inappropriate and obscene.
I asked him whyand he said, "Because!"
"It promotes cancer and other bad stuff!"
He took it right off and threw it away
then leaned down to me and said "Oh, by the way..."
"The music your're listening to is all wrong!"
"Here! listen up, to a much better song!"
He quickly then shoved a new song in my ears
which was lame, it was stupid, and was a pain to hear
I asked him why I must listen to this bad little song
and he said "It's not bad if you just sing along!"
But that didn't suffice with me, not in my head!
I tapped my foot, and he finally said...
"I am from a group from the band of banned wristbands and rock bands"
We go throughout town catching hoodlums who have planned
to corrupt the young minds of children up here
by listening to stuff which they should not hear!
I sat there, puzzled, thinking "this isn't right!"
I can listen to whatever I want, it's my constituional right!
I marched down to the court house and said "This ain't legal!"
You shouldn't take music from folks like a seagull!
The people agreed, and made a new law
banning the band of banned... you know by law
They no longer operated for now they stand
as the banned band of banned wrist bands and rock bands!
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ReplyDeletestare at the bus driver
ReplyDeletewho demands a fare
while people around
sit and stare.
He has raised the price
since I have last ridden this bus
and soul is cold as ice.
The money that is with me
is not enough for the new fare
so he left me in the street.
The world is not fair
I think as I stand on my feet.
Blue- A feeling of deep sorrow
ReplyDeleteBlue-The color of the ocean or the sky
Blue
As I tread across the beach I see the ocean with dark treachorus waves
one big mass of deep dark blue
all the feelings welled up inside me cannot be described in any other way than blue
the gloomy blue that you find in a sweater that’s not warm enough to keep out the wind
or the blue you find in tear filled eyes just waiting to overflow
I don’t want the world to see me mean and angry and sad and blue
but then my friends make the blue a bit lighter
kinda like a deep turquoise
when I feel okay but with masses of mossy sadness still lying on my shoulders
suddenly with each smile it’s like a big heavy blue quilt has been lifted off of me
and then I can stop lurking in my shadows and live in the moment
I start to notice a sky blue
a blue that goes on and on dissapearing into something beautiful
a sunset
where all the pink’s and yellow’s and red’s parallel my joy
until I realise there was never blue at all
affect - change
ReplyDeleteeffect – result or consequence
It starts with a spark
A person
Only one is needed
They have an idea
They tell others
They affect them
Now others have that idea
And it spreads
And spreads
Until someone thinks
That that idea should be acted upon
Now there are uprisings
Rebellions
And soon
A revolution starts
And the upper power
Falls
And now that idea
That was created by one person
Becomes a reality
The ending effect
That one person
They affect others
And a new era
Is the ending effect.
Dual Duel
ReplyDeleteThere are two
Two men
Two pistols
Two bullets
Two reputations on the line
Only one can survive
It is a matter of honor
Dual honor
One man may have started it
But they will both end it
There is dual skill needed
It is aggression and presicion
Guts and grit
Honor and freedom
Victory means life and restored honor
Failure means death
They stare daggers into the others eyes
Then they turn
They stand back to back
Onlookers take a step back
To be free of stray bullets
They take ten paces then turn
Two shots are fired
One man left standing
Honor in victory
Honor in defeat
Dual honor is what is left
After the duel
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteAllowed- to be permitted
ReplyDeleteAloud- audible
An angry sound
With a condescending tone
Rings out from the back of the bus
His hurtful words
Are met with silence
His terrible thoughts having been said aloud
The driver steps in
Blacks are not allowed to disobey
“Ms. Parks, give up your seat.”
But the woman doesn’t respond
Glued to the seat
She will stand her ground
Tired of intolerance
The officers file in
Take Ms. Rosa Parks away
It seems as though she will never win
When the others emerge
Stand up together
A movement has begun
Slowly but surely their voices are heard
Decades later she has won
Her story will be told aloud
To children in 1st grade
Who must understand
For the sake of their future
The importance being allowed to oppose
Ball Bawl
ReplyDeleteIt was a hot summer day
and I was ready to play
I walked up to the base
Feeling in the right place
The pitcher threw the ball
and it began to fall
the ball soared towards the base
and hit me in the face!
I began to bawl
and we got into a brawl
I picked up the ball and
threw it towards the sand
where the pitcher was laying
after he was saying
'I'm so sorry, please don't bawl"
I walked over to him and stood very tall
Giving him a hand
replying everything is fine and grand
I looked around as I climbed the trail
ReplyDeleteI almost stepped upon a snail
But as I narrowly escaped
I fell and my knee was scraped
As the blood began to flow
I looked to my left and saw a scared doe
I did not know why she had that look of fear
Until I looked further and saw a bear was near
I rose to my feet to run away
But the universe was set to ruin my day
As I ran from the bear’s terrible din
my clothes were torn from my skin
And now I stood completely bare, about to be eaten by a bear
Won and one
ReplyDeleteThe game was finally won
Even though the teams were even
It was finally done
Thanks to that kid named Stephen
Stephen was a special one,
Scoring the last goal
It must have been fun
But that kid named Cole
Also helped
because he passed the ball
The crowd yelped
As he took a fall
Cole and Steven showed
that one dude’s talents can explode
but sports conclude
that there is no “I” in “team”
Better Bettor
ReplyDeleteKarat Carrot
There stood a man in a stylish sweater
He looked around him and knew he was better
He went to the table and made his bet
Not thinking about his trouble with debt
Across from him another took a bet
The man went over and they met
They each made a deal
The winner of the bet, the money, from the other he would steal
The loser would become the debtor
The question is, who is the better bettor?
The loser looks back on that day with grief
How, he wondered, did he become a thief?
His family could only afford carrots
His family has been begging over and over like parrots
Because of the bet made so many years ago
The memory makes him weep with woe
He remembers the day when he could buy karats for his wife
He thinks sadly of his old, happy life
This man gives his wife carrots instead of karats
Because he was not the better bettor
Every day on the way home
ReplyDeleteI pass the roots of a great magnolia tree
Standing for ages
Tall and proud
Watching over me
As I take the route home
Each day I admire its beauty
Leaves and blooms
Reaching for the sky
Roots buried deep in the ground
Watching over me
As I take the route home
Sometimes I sit in its shade
Petals drifting over me
Scattered by the wind
Gently swaying
Watching over me
As I let my thoughts fly
In a kingdom far away,
ReplyDeleteThe queen’s food was stocked on a tray
She transformed into such a glutton
That every one of her shirts lost a button
She ate eight chickens and cakes
And eight beefy steaks
She even washed every meal down
With eight shakes colored brown
One day she asked the king
How she became this enormous thing
His response was full of fears,
“You ate enough for eight people for the past eight years.”
Teachers say I know all the answers,
ReplyDeleteI reply, “It’s in my genes.”
Supervisors tell me I can never bore,
I reply, “It’s in my genes.”
People comment on how I never get lost,
I reply, “It’s in my genes.”
Friends notice I always know the time,
I reply, “It’s in my genes.”
Coaches wonder how I always dress appropriately,
I reply, “It’s in my genes.”
Shoppers envy that I get the best deals,
I reply, “It’s in my genes.”
Little do they all know,
I carry a smartphone in my jeans.
I was walking down the aisle
ReplyDeleteOf the plane
When the captain said "it's going down
'Cause I didn't use my brain
We're over the ocean
But please don't raise cain
'Cause we can land on an isle
And we won't be in pain
Please move out of the aisle
And we'll be out of this hurricane"
The Moron's Oxymoron's
ReplyDeleteThree deaf wizards, began to walk and heard a fight.
While a heard of mute donkeys he-hawed all the night.
James the happy school boy cried, "Fire, fire!"
Then Jen, the blind cat, saw need for the fyer.
But a broken down tracker, roamed the week in the forest.
The weak singer belted in forticimo, a rousing chorus.
The the dog with no tail shook the Jimmy's all away.
Then the monkey told the tall tale the rest of the day.
And the worm said he saw a shooting star,
While the maiden used the saw from afar.
The kindergartner thought he knew it all, he knew the game,
From the old book he found new facts of Charlamange.
The doctors all got a horrible case of the flu.
And away the immobile in a magic carpet flew.
You might think you can read, and understand it too.
But I think you want to read this again, at the zoo.
Because too, you read like I want to read, and I do.
But I too, like to read what I've read, and start over new.
I look at the assorted products,
ReplyDeleteAs I walk down the aisle.
What I need are things I can bring,
On a far away trip of mine.
I am going to an island,
And soon enough I will be there.
I embark on a wonderful journey,
To the magical paradise.
I've arrived on the island,
All is good and well.
Everything is fine,
Except my boat which sank.
So here I am a lonely man,
Stranded on an isle.
I promise I'll try to return soon.
Once I am done thinking.
I will start shrinking,
Until I am nothing more,
Than a part of the shore.
Bluer than the blue sky
ReplyDeleteare the puddles at my feet from the rain.
Whiter than the snow
are the clouds above my head
Weather.
A unique experience,
whether metaphorical or not.
Farther from the east
is the west
Easier than to persevere
is to give up
Whether.
A unique decision,
depends on the weather.
Weather rain
or sun
Weather snow
or clouds
Whether east
or west
Whether persevere
or give up,
It’s always nicer to know
whether there will be weather
rather than
what the weather will be.
Assent - To agree
ReplyDeleteAscent - A climb
Humankind stands before a great mountain
He begins to climb
Aspiring to an ascent of the towering peak
To reach a higher purpose
To rise above his own corruption
And as he nears the top
He finds himself conflicted
He cannot assent within himself
He can neither concede nor compromise
Down he tumbles, felled
Once again by the hubris and deceit of
His own nature
And with Sisyphus standing
In his shadow
He begins once more the eternal climb
Team- a group/unit working together, group of people forming one side of a sports competition
ReplyDeleteTeem- to have many numbers in one place, to swarm, to pour out/empty
Our family, our team
We work hard for each other
Dedication teems
Standing next to our brothers
As shadows grow long
We continue
To run along
Prepared to make a debut
One team, one goal
Victory is in sight
We all play our roles
For this we will fight
We come prepared
As a team
Excitement flares
Finally we teem the field
I'll and aisle
ReplyDeleteTo my darling daughter,
I cherish the times we used to play
The backyard that held our sun filled afternoons
Your cute little smile and your small piggy-tails
I taught you to ride a bike
And how to play catch
You taught me patience, love and compassion
Sundays filled with the funnies and coffee
Saying hello to the early morning sun
The years went by
And then it all changed
I moved out and left you alone
The way that you’ve grown
You are the best person I have ever known
Life moved on and you found someone of your own
I know that I am old
Maybe a little weak and frail
You act as my steady hand
Reading the fine print when I can’t see
For all the wondrous times we have shared
I will be there on your special day
Whether in body or spirit
I’ll be there to walk you down the aisle
Love always,
Dad
My Aunt Hates Ants
ReplyDeleteOh how she hates those pesky bugs
Their worse than a slug
Those pesky critters are so small
She tries to hit them with a baseball
They crawl around on all fours
She always looks before she enters any doors
She stomps to kill those pesky critters
Every time they give her the jitters
Every time she sees them it gives her a fright
Thank god those pesky critters can’t bite
She wishes they all were dead
“I hate those pesky critters” she said
My aunt hates ants
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteDeer my Dear
DeleteThere is always that someone whom you call dear.
That person you love, who you hold very near.
You can’t live without them, or your life would be a mess.
They mean the whole world to you, now you must go confess.
Live everyday as if its your last.
Who knew life goes by so alarmingly fast?
Remember Bambi, that cute little doe?
His mother, a deer, was taken by a foe.
Do you think he knew his dear would be killed?
No, he thought their lives would be fulfilled.
The dear of his life was actually a deer.
The dear of our lives must be loved without fear.
I was walking through the trees
ReplyDeleteone situation avoided to resist
Where no one knows and no one sees
was an opportunity once missed
Voices chimed like bells ringing
listening to the forest strike
The sound of many birds singing
as I walked off through the night
Perseverance is to dream
the sound of something driven
Reason to cooperate
for there’s an opportunity once given
Whether reflected upon or decided
simply taken versus missed
Through the forest I was guided
As I continued through the mist
Bald, Bawled, Balled
ReplyDeleteBy: Alexandra Larsen
As I sat down
I said “just a trim” as I recal
Ok she said without a frown
and around she scrawled
Washing my hair
she seemed enthralled
when I sat in this overstuffed chair
as she spoke with a drawl
The scissors began moving
until her mother called
yet with those she kept groving
when I looked up my hair was mauled!
I sat there in shock!
until I bawled
“WHAT HAVE YOU DONE” with a squawk
now she couldnt stall
My hair was a mess
I was completely bald
and you would have guessed
my name was Edwald
For I looked like a boy
My fists quickly balled
but my only choice was to enjoy
the beauty of this facade
My hair was gone
first I was appalled
but I moved on
and people forestalled
No hair brushed needed
as I was so called
a model stampeded
with people who loved the bald
On the television ran a boar.
ReplyDeleteThe boar was free and wild,
Watching the beast roam around
Made me realize what I bore I has become.
I thought of traveling to Rome,
Maybe Belgium or France,
But nothing struck me,
Nothing seemed right,
So I began to write.
I wrote my sorrows,
I wrote my pain,
I wrote my happiness,
I wrote my vain.
That is how I began doing
What I am known for today.
Canvas- rough cloth
ReplyDeleteCanvass-To examine thouroughly
Canvas
As I look
at the blank canvas,
I paint a picture
in my head
I see mountains
And trees
I can picture
A nice
Little breeze
I grab my paintbrush
And start on the art
I think with my mind
And paint with my heart
I finally finish
The painting so
detailed
I canvass
the painting
Letting the images
sink into my head
I feel proud
of what I had did
going to the bar late at night
ReplyDeleteit always feels just right
i tell the bartender to hit me up
and start to down cup after cup
and drinking that good ole ale
makes me feel sick and pale
and i start to feel frail
as i am starting to get ail
There is one nun
ReplyDeletethis one nun went to Subway
Money? This one nun had none
There was an event, guess the weight of a Subway sand-wich
But how much does the the sub weigh?
This one nun guessed 2.1111 pounds
She was wrong, 2.111111 was wrong and this one nun won none.
The next day
Again, this one nun went to subway
The one nun tried again to guess the weight of the Subway sand-wich
But how much does the sub weigh?
Then this one nun looked at the employee
she was a sand witch serving a subway sand-wich
next to her stood another sand-witch serving a sand-wich too
altogether there were two sand-witches serving two sand-wiches
But this one nun wanted a sand-wich too
Money? This one nun had none
Will this one nun guess 2.212121 pounds for this Subway sandwich served by two Subway sand-witches and will this one nun have won one Subway sandwich served by two Subway sand-witches of which she guessed the Subway Sub-sandwich will weigh 2.212121 too?
I was talking to a young man,
ReplyDeletewho to rich kings was an heir
He told me something interesting:
“Humans breath air”
I found this quite peculiar,
for this fact I had not known
Its as if someone had told me,
that I could have flown!
You see,
when I was young
I learned humans breath water,
that man should’ve kept his tongue
For I am his great uncle,
and he is my heir
And since he spoke so foolish,
he shall inherit nothing but his precious air
Acts- anything done, being done
ReplyDeleteAx- an instrument with a bladed head,used for hewing, cleaving, chopping, etc.
One small deed
One big piece
A day where the world came crashing down like a knife
An act that changed a young man’s life
Hatred from others had taken over
The difficult trials moreover
He had enough with this world
He felt as if everything swirled
He planned to leave the next night
Didn’t want to put up another fight
He decided to leave a note
Explaining his quick depart
As the moon passed, and the sun rose...
He felt as if he were going to decompose
His last day at school...
He felt relief knowing soon he’d be away from the fools
In the hall that day...
A girl smiled and gave a hey
The boy began to melt inside
He waved back and lightly sighed
He realized that someone cared
A gesture undeclared
One act gave him the strength to push on
Even though he thought he had withdrawn
Small acts of kindness
Had chipped away at his heart
Like an ax hitting a tree,
Those small acts hit his heart and set him free
Rain- Water from the sky
ReplyDeleteReign- To rule / A period of time during which someone rules
Rein- A object or tool that allows one to control a horse's action
As the rain pattered down
the king thought of everything
that had happened during his reign
of the foreign kingdom
The numerous pillagings of the village
The severe flooding of the farmlands
The never ending lists of casualties from war
All during his reign
He felt like he was the only one
holding the reins to the vast kingdom
and all alone, the heavy burden
was beginning to take its toll
The king knew that his term
hadn’t been successful (to say the least)
but when you're the only one
holding onto the reins during your reign,
the rain will never, ever stop streaming down
With his title, the king demanded an advisor
to help him make his reign fruitful
His new advisor took the lead,
giving the king counsel when he summoned
Together, they made the kingdom lucrative
A place where everyone wanted to be
For when you and another join forces
The rain cloud will vanish from your sight
Beat- To strike
ReplyDeleteBeat- Exhausted
He beat the ball with all his might
striking away all the night
commitment never ceased to end
the title he was impelled to defend
The year before he tasted glory
the other team was sent home gory
commencing towards a second state title
his tedious work was totally vital
Ball after ball he beat with potency
a ball missed was a calamity
His arms soon squirmed and began to ache
he'd never desist till his arms would break
Day after day he perfected his skills
He fine polished all of his drills
His hitting was now unsurpassed by all
He was prepared to begin the brawl
On the base he continually slung
and captivated the fans who were already stunned
Hit after hit he was utterly beat
and gave a bow to the crowd and took a seat
Dew- morning condensation
ReplyDeleteDo- to preform
The suns beams illuminate the morning dew
Sparkling drops of mist that have nothing to do
Sitting around reflecting light
Speckling the grass from the rain last night
The rain had fallen
Just like the reign of Joseph Stalin
The morning dew slowly drying away
All it could do was go astray
Where would it go?
Would anyone know?
The lone dew
With nothing to do.
Air- What we breathe
ReplyDeleteHeir=A person inheriting and continuing the legacy of their predecessor
In a kingdom there was an heir,
Where a stench permeated his air,
Handicapping his ability to take his nap.
On a quest went the heir,
To discover what stench fouled his air,
To the stable outside the castle.
Their found the heir,
What so cruelly stunk up the air;
The stable boy forgot to clean the stable.
Then went the heir,
to cleanse all stink from the air,
By finding this forgetful boy.
After a long hard search the heir,
Fed up with the stench in the air,
Found this boy and set him back to work.
His mission accomplished the heir,
Breathing once again clean air,
Returned to his chambers to take his nap.