The Daily: 13 March 2024

Most of my poetry flows from discovering some new word. Today it was etiolated. I was looking for a synonym of pale and found this gem. It is almost onomatopoeic. You can feel its meaning on your tongue. Drawn and wan and stretched thin from lack of sun. I saw images of hands when I spoke it and immediately connected those hands to a life.

I love new words… and I love that there will always be new words to love. They just keep miraculously creating themselves. And here is what happens when I find them…

i notice his hands
as they dance with his words
skin etiolated and soft
nails in rigorous trim
nary a mark inscribed by time’s passage
he is given to pointing
finding fault in innumerable stars
naming misfortune a lack of ambition
for none work so hard as he
says he with his smooth hands
and winking sneer
none so deserving
of these overdetermined silver spoons
his ocean is privilege
unseen and unknown
and so
he pronounces patronizing solutions
drawling suave aphorisms
in maddening insouciance
as if his tender soles
could ever know the jagged paths
or follow footsteps
toiling over mountains of raging tears
he thinks he has overcome
with his baby smooth fate
and when faced with mirrors
he moves on
dropping profligate hours
like copper coins
into the well of oblivion
racing ennui to what end
for santa muerte awaits
even the fortunate few
she must prize hands like his
and only in her kiss
will he understand
it was all just a roll of the dice

Wednesday Word

for 13 March 2024

penny-loaf

This week began with Penny-loaf Day. I decided to throw this word into my All Poetry contest just to see what folks would make of it. I think I might have set myself up for quite a lot of iambic tetrameter and possibly limericks. I can not think of this word without hearing sing-song rhythm and rhyme… Hopefully, someone will rise above it… Or maybe the March contest will just be silly.

In any case, if you choose to ramble on about warm buns in springtime, you can respond in the comments below or go visit the All Poetry contest for March. Your response can be anything made from words. I love poetry, but anything can be poetic and you needn’t even be limited to poetics. An observation, a story, a thought. Might even be an image — however, I am not a visual person, so it has to work harder to convey meaning. In the spirit of word prompts, it’s best if you use the word; but I’m not even a stickler about that. Especially if you can convey the meaning without ever touching the word.

If you have nothing to say, that’s fine. But if you’ve read this far, then I’ve made you think about… penny loaf.

©Elizabeth Anker 2024