Hour Two: Stillness

Stillness (Hour Two)

Between the woods and frozen lake
there is a little stretch of sand
you reach it by the pathway there
amid the rushes and the cattails
worn down and crushed beneath
the tentative step of whitetailed deer.
Between the woods and frozen lake
a tiny strand of beach
once site of  last summer’s sandcastles,
windswept, little mounds of sand
now long forgotten,
save in a dream perhaps.
Between the woods and frozen lake
a stillness hovers
a moment awaits
a change in season, whether frosty blast
or warming breeze.
Life in the balance, holding its breath.
Between the woods and frozen lake
let’s take a stroll and look up at the stars
and soak in the moment.

It all too soon will pass.

 

(credit to Robert Frost)

Text Prompt

Read Robert Frost’s poem Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening,  chose one line or phrase, and with credit, write a poem with that line or phrase in it. Prompt partially contributed by Se Johnson.

Hour One: Surrender

Surrender (Hour One)

The wave crests and crashes
down upon me
crushing me in its curl
and I am engulfed,
immersed,
overwhelmed by its strength,
unable to emerge
unable to call out
unable to surface
unable to breathe,
churning
twirling
tossed to and fro.

No sound save
a muffled burbling,
as if in a dream,
a bubbling,
the sucking of water,
a seething power
surrounding me
and I am helpless.

Storm-tossed like the shells
that scratch my skin,
scraping along the seabed.
swirling, swirling,
endlessly it seems
my lungs should burst for want of air
until at last
I am tossed up,
spewed out,
surrendered as the surf recedes
gasping, sputtering,
draining water from every orifice,
like a beached whale
upon the sand.

 

Write a poem about being in water. It can be about swimming, the shower, a bath, the rain, etc.

2022

It’s hard to believe it’s already been a year since my first involvement with the Poetry Marathon! Like last year, I am planning to complete a half-marathon. Kudos to those of you who continue to write on into the night! Preparation includes reviewing some of my favorite forms of poetry and rereading some of my favorite poets. Looking forward to it!

Intro (Testing)

Hello all! I am a first-time half-marathoner in Michigan. I am posting to make sure I know how to do this when things get started tomorrow morning. Looking forward to it! Can anyone tell me how/where to set my posts so that only fellow marathoners can view them?