My poem for May’s Word of the Month Poetry Challenge

Hi everyone,

For years I observed the progress of two hackberries in our back yard as they grew toward each other. I have a lot of pictures to prove my fascination. I didn’t know they were preparing me for this month’s poem inspired by the word, TOUCHING.

Touching

You were younger then,
flirting when breezes
brought your eager leaves closer.

The May came
when your limb tips touched like a first kiss.
You must have felt the moment
down to your roots. 

Now you’ve grown part of each other.
you brush and rub, familiar as old marrieds.
Excitement may have diminished,
but comfort is no small thing. 

(c) 2024 David L. Harrison, all rights reserved

The word for May Word of the Month is…

Hi everyone,

Thank you to all who participated in April’s poetry challenge. I will now erase everything and prepare for your efforts in May. The new word for the month is TOUCH.

If you are joining us this month for the first time, welcome. I hope you will consider writing a poem inspired by the single word — TOUCH — and posting here on my blog. I’ve been hosting this exercise since October 2009 so this marks the 176th consecutive month that poets in all stages and from across the country have contributed to Word of the Month Poetry Challenge.

Your poem can be long or short, verse or free verse, humorous or serious…whatever your muse decides to do. What we all have in common is that we start with the same word, mine it for its stories, pick one, and write a poem. To post your poem, click on the box along the top of this page that says Adult W.O.M. Poems. Scroll to the bottom, type or paste your poem into the box there, and click. Easy as that.

If you are new to my blog, I’ll have to okay you the first time, and after that you can come and go any time you wish. I love to see new poets join us. This month maybe you’ll be one of them.

My Word of the Month poem for April

Hi everyone,

I didn’t intend to write a poem this morning but a couple of pictures I took on the patio over the weekend made me decide to. I’m going to write it as I go so chances are good that tomorrow I’ll wish I had waited to rewrite and polish before showing it to you. I think Spring is making me impatient to get on with the poem as well as the season. Anyway, here goes.

Gone now, those colorless days,
slick, wet salads
served head-down in cold water.

Gone, the assassin tongues of nights
that slipped down tunnels
to taste last breaths.

The toad serenades opportunity.
His announcement is final.
Winter is gone.

And the word for April Word of the Month is…

Hi everyone,

If you know where the first quarter of 2024 has gone, I hope you’ll explain it to me. It’s just gone. And that reminds me of the word I’ve chosen for April’s Word of the Month Poetry Challege: GONE.

According to CORY CORRADO, who has been with me in this monthly writing exercise since the beginning and who keeps careful records of every word we’ve used since the beginning back in October 2009, we used GONE once before, in August 2017. But I figure it’s safe after going on seven years to use it again.

So get going with GONE and lets see where you get with it!

The March word for Word of the Month Poetry Challenge is…

Hi everyone,

For March, I have a word that is often used in conversation this time of year — WISH. it’s a noun, a verb, a promise, a hope, a petition, an invitation. I think we’ll have fun with it this month. Let’s see what you think.