Colleen’s 2019 #Tanka Tuesday #Poet of the Week & Honorable Mention(s), No. 141, #PhotoPrompt

Posted on by Colleen M. Chesebro

Welcome to the Tanka Tuesday Poetry Recap featuring the Poet of the Week and any honorable mention poetry that really caught my eye. If you would like to participate in this challenge, you can learn the rules in the menu item called Colleen’s Weekly Tanka Tuesday Guidelines.

Congratulations, and many thanks to all the participants! Please visit the challenge post comments HERE, where you’ll find the links to everyone’s poetry. Stop by and say hello! ❤

What a wild week of poetry fun! From all the buzz, everyone seemed to enjoy the photo prompt. I have to tell you that I never thought this prompt would generate the interest that it has.

Imagine my surprise when Janette Bendle from her blog, What She Wrote Next, linked her short story up to this challenge. This story was heart rendering and I had to share it! Click “Save Me” to read the story. ❤ It just goes to show that inspiration takes many forms.

I thought this image would leave lots of room for imagination. After we all got over the shock of all the song titles the photo reminded us of, we got down to work. I really enjoyed the range of interpretations. Poets, you are all amazing! ❤

The Poet of the Week and Honorable Mention Poets will be published in the 2019 Poet of the Week Anthology, which everyone will be able to grab as a FREE PDF in January 2020.

Each week, I like to highlight a poet who I call the Poet of the Week, who has shared an exceptional message, or shown impassioned creativity through words or form. Poetry is all about perception, so don’t be shocked if you don’t feel the same way about a poem that I do.

The Poet of the Week

This week, I’ve chosen Jane Dougherty as the Poet of the Week for her Butterfly Cinquain poem featured below. I enjoyed Jane’s no nonsense approach to finding a bottle “littering” the beach. Her choice of a butterfly cinquain, also visually adds to the whimsical theme of her poem. The shape reminded me of a bottle!

Not sure how to write a Cinquain poem? Find out more HERE.

“Litter,” #Butterfly #Cinquain

Bottle,
stoppered, some would
pounce, hope for a message,
keen to share nefariously
someone’s
romantic story. I pick you
up, put you in the bin,
search for coloured
pebbles.

© 2019 Jane Dougherty

Honorable Mention(s)

With a completely different take on the prompt is Merril D. Smith with her Haibun/Tanka below. Merril’s Haibun prose shares a fascinating story she gleaned from the news. Her Tanka portion below, really adds to the prose but doesn’t repeat what she already stated. This is a perfect example of a Haibun/Tanka.

Not sure how to write one for yourself? Click HERE to learn more.

“Message in a Bottle,” #Haibun #Tanka

I read the news—an Alaska man finds a bottle with a fifty-year-old message inside. The Russian sailor’s note conveys friendly greetings. They drift through Cold War seas, through glasnost and perestroika to shores not yet submerged by the rising seawater of melted glaciers. The man shows the message to his sons.

Past meets the future
carried on time’s tumbling waves
ebbing and flowing
lives tide-lifted and lowered
as moon-silvered sea rolls on

© 2019 Merril D. Smith

ALL!

36 thoughts on “Colleen’s 2019 #Tanka Tuesday #Poet of the Week & Honorable Mention(s), No. 141, #PhotoPrompt”

      1. To be completely honest, Colleen, when I first saw the photo I didn’t notice the piece of paper in it, just that it was a very new, lemonade style bottle. If it had been an ancient dark green wine bottle clouded by contact with sand and pebbles, I might well have looked closer.

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          1. That would be an honour! Maybe you could make that part of the challenge that the poet of the week picks the next image. Do you need one from Pixabay, a modern photo, or will another type of image from another source do?

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            1. That’s what I was thinking – the Poet of the Week from the last photo challenge gets to pick the next image. That would give them plenty of time to find a photo too! The photo is up to them, Pixabay, one of their own photos or another source, as long at give credit to the photographer.I don’t think it will work for the synonyms because I do those posts ahead of time. But, for the photo challenge it would be amazing! I can’t wait to see what you come up with!! ❤

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                1. So the third week in September is the 17th. Email the photo a few days ahead of time so I can add it to the post. I’m so excited. This way, the poets of the week can be more involved. ❤

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  4. Congratulations to Jane Dougerthy Poet of the week and and Merril D Smith for her honourable mention. As ever so many great entries. Thank you as always to our grasious host Colleen 💜💜

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          1. Almost, my finger is not right yet I have a scan on second of September, hopefully all will be well. How are you keeping well now you’ve settled in to your new home 💜💜💜

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            1. I’m settling in well. I’ve been walking almost every day which is amazing. I’m getting used to the heat. I’ve even had some time to plant a small garden. I’m working on Fairies, Myths, & Magic II – The Winter Solstice. It’s a book of poetry and short stories. Keep healing. I’m sending you love. ❤

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  5. I thought the middle part of Jane’s poem – “someone’s” – was the perfect cinch between the two larger pieces in the butterfly poem. It changes the tone from wondering to something more concrete.

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