Prompt posted on December 6, 2023
Hey friends, do you know The Skeptic’s Kaddish Website? It’s a lovely website
where bloggers gather every Wednesday to work on W3 Poetry Prompts.
I invite you to click the link to see the details
and, um, this week, I’m the PoW (Poet of the Week)–cool huh?
I. Here’s the prompt poem that got me this honor
A hay(na)ku series by Selma Martin
II. Here are the prompt guidelines for this week
note: Submissions are open for 5 days, until Monday, December 11, 10:00 AM (GMT+2)
- Imagine a person from an old memory looking in on you through an open window;
- You’d all but forgotten about this person, but today their presence has
given rise to this memory; - What do you see? What’s going on?
- You’d all but forgotten about this person, but today their presence has
- Write this as a Memory Poem:
- Purge this memory out of your system; allude to the memory; banish
the memory;
- Purge this memory out of your system; allude to the memory; banish
- Poem length: 100 – 300 words;
- The poem must end with these words: “Let him/her look”
A Memory Poem?
A memory poem reflects on and celebrates personal memories and experiences,
often evoking feelings of nostalgia, joy, or sadness.
Example
“Time does not bring relief; you all have lied” by Edna St. Vincent Millay (118 words)
III. Submit: Click on ‘Mister Linky’ found at The Skeptic’s Kaddish Website
Open the post outside of the WordPress reader.
At the bottom of the post which looks just like these three points, you’ll see a
small rectangular graphic with the words ‘Mr Linky’. Click on that to submit.
Here's my contribution to the W3 Prompt #84 (197 words)
LET HIM LOOK She saw the phantom outside her window elongate, shorten, and again unroll finally, at the dimming of the light she let the recall dive inside her soul. He kept her home from school that day, cleaning floors and cupboards--baffling! She can't recant what the girl's fault was to have earned herself such drubbing Then with the precision of the school bell to the floor--on her knees--he commanded "arms outstretched," he compelled, malignantly and he stacked books, the tallest with no end encyclopedias and storybooks she borrowed from the library, then the chunky dictionaries she inherited from him--unwieldy "Oh, you fiend! Son of your mother," she purred, "you knew so well I wouldn't drop those treasures-- they held the kind of knowledge I desired, that, given time, would be my propellers." As if that wasn't enough castigation for her nine-year-old frame to tolerate, he opened the door--for observation ruined her soul, made her heart agitate What did he think would inform her nature? How were his wiles like a human genteel? Now his ghost wants to see how she turned out. Let him look: she found her wings, her soul healed. *** ©selmamartin Author of In The Shadow of Rainbows
*
Thanks for reading.
I cannot wait to see what you come up with
and from the looks of it,
it’ll be difficult to pick the next PoW for next week.
- Share The Wealth: Joy is Our Natural State - May 6, 2024
- NPM Scavenger Hunt – Poems from Around the World - April 30, 2024
- Day 30: NaPoWriMo 2024–Mary Magdalene At The Doctor’s - April 30, 2024
That is cool; congrats Selma!
hehe, yes, cool. Won’t you give it a try too? It’s a warm and welcoming community. You might even like it. Hope to see you inside. (don’t be shy–what’s the worst thing that can happen?) Well, it won’t happen there, but YOU decide. Happy Holidays.
Well done Selma. Congratulations 🎈🎊
Thank you, dear Sadje. I value these words. xoxo
😍
Congratulations 🎊. I follow your blog but can you follow mine. Anita
Congrats,Selma
Aww, thanks dearly. xo
Most welcome my dear friend.
congratulations, Selma. 🎉
You mean that? Aww, thanks, dearly. I know you mean it. I bless you. Happy Holidays.
blessings your way too, Selma 🙏
Happy holidays ✨🤍
Love this.
I’m so glad that the young girl grew up to be confident and strong. <3
~David
Thanks so much for appreciating this, David. Blessings.
Hi, Selma! <3
Just wanna let you know that this week's W3, hosted by the lovely ladysighs, is now live:
https://skepticskaddish.com/2023/12/13/w3-prompt-85-weave-written-weekly/
Enjoy!
Much love,
David
Hi, Selma 👋🏻
This week’s W3, hosted by the wonderful and talented Reena Saxena, is now live:
https://skepticskaddish.com/2023/12/20/w3-prompt-86-weave-written-weekly/
Enjoy!
Much love,
David
Me too …
*hug*
This looks like an interesting challenge, Selma!
hehe, yeah… Thanks for reading and commenting, dear Ingrid. Thanks for being here. I bless you.
it is, Ingrid! <3
~David
You make it look so easy, Selma. Well done
So pleased you enjoyed it. It’s not easy. You need to count syllables. And bleed a little. 😳 but we love it, right, Maria 😉 you can do it too.
Bleeding a little is part of it 😉 and yes, love it!
I know you do. You’re amazing already. Keep going, young one. Xoxo
The last lines were of so much hope and relief!
Syl. Thanks so much. Blessings. Happy Holidays
This poem is beautiful and touching. I’m glad the little girl turned out to be a strong and free woman.
🥹 I’m so glad too. Thanks for coming, Elizabeth. And I’m so grateful for the comment. Blessing. Xo 🎄
This is a painful memory and one I can trust should be banished!! Your challenge was definitely a challenge and one that really made me think!
Banished for ever! Thanks, Valerie.
Awesome write, Selma. :)) Congrats. xoxo
Aww, Jeff. You’ve been missed in these woods. Good to see you here. Blessings. Happy Holidays (Merry Christmas 🎄)
You have a powerful pen, Selma 👏❤️
✨ ✨ ✨ 🖊️ 😉
HI Selma, I really like your poem. It is very intriguing. I didn’t manage to post mine by Monday. It’s been a mad week as both my sons had major surgery on Tuesday last week. They see the doctor tomorrow. I did write one thought and I thought you might like to read what you inspired: https://roberta-writes.com/2023/12/12/roberta-writes-a-few-late-poems-reenas-xploration-challenge-309-opposites-and-w3-memory-poem-poetry/
All I can say is you’re so amazing, dear Robbie. All those prompts well executed.
And the one for W3. Wow. Yes, a splendid write. Tender. Thank you.
Thank you, Selma, I’m glad you enjoyed it. The selected poem was very funny.
I enjoyed them all —all in one place. Stupendous. Thanks for participating (even late) no matter. You rock! Xo Selma
I like picking up all the poems for a challenge in one place too. Makes finding them so much easier.
That was Selma! Me, Selma. 🎩