Good evening felinity assembled, Sneakers the Texian Tuxedo, here.
Yeah, I know...WTM? Where the hell y'all been, girl?
Let's just say the months since Daddy Kiril returned from the Cat Writers' Association Conference have not been the best for him, but we are all hanging in there...He and us have been in a bit of a creative funk that we are all slowly, finally, coming out of, so we hope you let us know what you think as we begin to move forward.
Happy April Fool's Day, felinity assembled!
It has been 9 years since our beloved Mr. Nikita last wrote about it, and wrote a poem based on a prompt.
This is no joke, but a very serious, vey popular, month of the year for those with the creative spirit in them, both human and critter, alike.
National Poetry Month was established by the Academy of American Poets, in 1996, as a month-long, national celebration of poetry. The concept was to increase the attention paid-by individuals and the media—to the art of poetry, to living poets, to our poetic heritage, and to poetry books and magazines. In the end, its founders hoped to achieve an increase in the visibility, presence, and accessibility of poetry in our culture.
National Poetry Month has been successful beyond all they could have hoped and has grown over the years into the largest literary celebration in the world.
Elvira, Friday and I hope this post will encourage you and your human to read poetry, and even write poetry of your own.
You may think you don't have it in you to write a poem, but you would be mistaken.
I discovered my own talent for poetry, and have been writing them ever since. So did Elvira & Friday.
If we can do it, you can, too!
To get things started....This year marks the 12th Anniversary of the Poetry A Day Challenge by Robert Lee Brewer, of the wonderful Poetic Asides Blog, at Writer's Digest.
From the intro to an email he sent out way back in 2010...
"The Basics: I provide a prompt and sample poem each morning. Then, poets write their poems in response to the prompt. Poets from all over the world can (and have in the past) participate. There is no fee, no registration, no pressure. This challenge is all about writing poetry and having fun.
Those who have participated in the past have ranged from poets who have published multiple collections to writers who have never written poetry before. It's also included many poets who haven't written poetry in years. And many poems written for these challenges have then gone on to be published in poetry journals and magazines."
That last is even more true, today, 9 years down the road.
The First Prompt has been posted, and encourages one to "write a Morning Poem. Maybe you’re a morning person, maybe not. Your poem can be about a morning. Or it can be set during the morning. And those who’ve done this before probably already know that I have no problem with you interpreting this as a “mourning poem.”
Remember: These prompts are just springboards; you have the freedom to jump in any direction you want."
If you can't do a poem every day...try to spend the month working on, and then posting when done, a poem for each prompt, or as many as you can.
You may even choose to have your human keep the links on hand for reference through out the year...for the both of you.
I know, you may not be a morning cat and nap and snooze a lot during each day...but, hey, you never know, inspiration could strike at any time!
It did me! I wrote this while Daddy Kiril was out shopping this afternoon...
MY HUMAN DOESN’T DO MORNING VERY WELL by Sneakers the Texian Tuxedo
I’m a Cat, Cats do mornings passionately.
Mornings get our day
Off on the right paw…
Or the left one, if that’s your thing.
Whatever floats your boat.
The morning routine gets
You ready for a day
Full of playing, Window TV,
Napping and snoozing…
Lots of napping and snoozing.
For Cats, a manageable Human
Is an important piece of the morning.
An important piece
Of the whole day actually,
But mornings, especially.
Everyone knows the Human
Has a job to do;
Keep Cats happy and healthy, morning noon and night,
From good food, and fun toys, to a clean litter box.
My Human doesn’t do mornings very well.
Every morning I decide
When it’s time for the day to begin.
I choose when my Human’s day starts
And if he gets to sleep in.
My Human doesn’t do morning s very well.
A few slaps of the paw upside the head
Is usually all it takes…
Except when my Human,
To the world, appears dead.
My Human doesn’t do mornings very well.
Breakfast and a clean litter box,
For me, go off without a hitch.
But getting my Human through his bath and morning poop?
Oh, my, Ceiling Cat! What a bitch!
My Human doesn’t do mornings very well.
Humans should not need reminding
That Cats are curious.
Humans should not need reminding
That their bathroom routine makes is one thing that makes us so.
My Human doesn’t do mornings very well.
Why Can’t I sit on the edge of the tub?
Why can’t I lap up bath water?
Why can’t I nibble the bar of soap?
Why doesn’t my Human lick himself clean after pooping?
My Human doesn’t do mornings very well.
My Human won’t let me help him
Fix, or even eat, his breakfast.
My Human won’t let me help him
Choose what clothes to wear, closing his walk-in closet.
My Human doesn’t do mornings very well.
My Human sometimes gets up at 4am
When I prefer much later.
What I want should not
Be up for debate, here!
My Human doesn’t do mornings very well.
I love my Human an awful lot.
Despite his faults, he’s all I’ve got!
His lap and bed are soft as grass.
For this, and more, I dearly love his ass…
Despite the fact my Human doesn’t do mornings very well!
Daddy Kiril wrote his own poem, here, as well!
NEXT UP: Poetry A Day Challenge 2: The Decision
NOTE: We will add links to each of Roberts Prompts, below, as the days go by.
April 2: Prompt #2 - Today is actually a special day: Two for Tuesday! Pick one prompt or use both…your choice!
1. Write a worst case poem. What’s the worst that could happen?
2. Write a best case poem. Take the worst and reverse it!
April 3: Prompt #3 - Write an animal poem. The poem could be about an animal. Or it could just mention an animal in passing. Or include an animal in your title and fail to mention the animal once in your poem. Your poem, your rules.
April 4: Prompt #4 - "Pick a painter, make him or her the title of your poem, and then, write your poem. Possible painters include Salvador Dali, Frida Kahlo, or Pablo Picasso. Of course, you don’t have to go with the big names. You can use more obscure painters or more contemporary ones."
April 5: Prompt #5 - "Write a stolen poem. And no, don’t steal anyone’s poem! But you can write about doing such a thing. Or stealing hearts, stealing time, stealing minds. Or steeling your mind (remember: I don’t care if you play on my original prompt). Steal away into a comfortable place to write and break some lines today."
April 6: Prompt #6 - Take the phrase “After (blank),” replace the blank with a word or phrase, make the new phrase the title of your poem, and then, write your poem.
April 7: Prompt #7 - Write a jealous poem. Maybe you’re jealous. Or maybe someone else is jealous of you–or someone else. Whether envious of another or suspicious of a partner, dive deep into this emotion today.
April 8: Prompt #8 - Write a lucky number poem. Some people have lucky numbers, some don’t.
Wherever you fall on the lucky number spectrum, you can still write a poem about the phenomenon of lucky numbers and/or luck in general.
April 9: Prompt #9 - Pick one prompt or use both…your choice!
1. Write a love poem.
2. Write an anti-love poem...or not!
April 10: Prompt #10 - "Write a lone poem. Perhaps the poem is about a solitary wanderer or person who just prefers to go it alone.
Or a lone winner, lone wolf, or some other solo individual. Or alternatively, I’ll accept poems that are about loans or that are about being alone."
April 11: Prompt #11 - "Write a dedication poem. This is a poem dedicated to a person, an animal, or an organization. Or hey, objects work too–like a poem to a rock or paper bag. Put the dedication in the title or in a line under the title (“for Mother” or “to the heart-shaped rock between the creek and the tulips”)."
Flicka said: Sneakers! here is my poem (blank verse) Good morning - cat - kiss cat on head - Good Morning special friend cat - my orange buddy. You are the best.
Posted by: dianne mason | April 02, 2019 at 03:39 AM
Nice poem, Sneakers! MOL - we aren't poets here, unfortunately.
Posted by: Summer | April 02, 2019 at 12:31 PM
Good job Sneakers!
Posted by: Ellen Pilch | April 02, 2019 at 08:26 PM