Hello everyone;
I did say "haphazardly" participating in the April PAD Challenge. This is why day one is being posted after day two.
Day 1 prompt of "write an optimistic poem"
Not Dead Yet, Me
Is it really such a tragedy
that my sentences are raggedy
words tread together by similarity?
The conversation is still defiantly
expressions of me.
Is it really such a travesty
that I wander aimlessly?
When I can travel through time so easily
…our life history
…a life lived outrageously.
Is it really such a disparity
that I have forgotten the melody
of your name? Still there’s some clarity….
I know the feelings of family
and passions intensity.
Is it really such an indignity
that something once familiar is now a novelty.
Or that simple tasks escape me.
I still dance to life’s jamboree
and sing majestically.
Is it really such a finality
even as I become more absentee?
There is plenty of life in my legacy.
Don’t bother writing my eulogy,
when there’s still time to create a memory.
©2024 Delaina Miller
Over Our Tables
Rarely the main attraction
yet often the first reached for
Arepas, baguettes, bagels, bammy,
naan, challah, chapati,
tortillas, himbasha,
lefse, focaccia, and scones.
Their crumbs fall
leaving our tables flaky
with grains leavened and not
even salty or sweet.
Loaves crisp from hot dry ovens
or rolls soft with gluten
stretched and allowed to rise
or beaten flat and charred
from raw flames.
Beyond the wars we pick,
the souls we harvest with hate,
the justified cruelty & atrocities
sworn in God’s name.
We fill our stomaches
and chase away heartaches
over our tables
of broken breads
slices
of religion,
custom
and humanity
baked in our hearths
before we pray for peace.
Written and shared for dVerse Poetics Grace is tending the bar, come pull up a chair and break some bread with us. 😉
Such a powerful write, you start casually – but I love how you carry your words so much deeper, so much into it…beautiful insight…
Thank you Abhra I am so glad that you enjoyed the depth.
Cheers,
Delaina
Very powerful piece!
Thank you!
A challenging juxtaposition!
janet
Thank you for commenting Janet;
I was worried that the transition was too drastic and the point would be misunderstood.
Cheers,
Delaina
What a nice way to go into the soul of bread.. No matter where we are we can are at that perfect point where culture and tradition intersects with ingredients and skill.
Thank Bjorn! I am glad you enjoyed the poem.
Cheers!
WOW!! I loved the inclusion of the various types of bread……..then the second half of the poem went deep and true right to the heart of things. “the souls we harvest with hate”, the atrocities justified…………I love the unexpected twist this poem took and how it ends with peace.
Thank you! I wanted to draw attention to the subsistence we give things that we feed upon. 🙂
i like how you weave the metaphor here… i wish we could more often break bread with our enemies and find peace in doing so
The world would be a better place if we would Claudia that is for sure.
Thanks for commenting.
You’ve really caught how integral bread is in our lives, in the sustaining and in the living.
Thank you 🙂
A nice blending of bread and life, “of religion, custom and humanity” Love this.
Thank you Debi!
What a thoughtful poem this is!
Thank you Mary.
Cheers!
I like how bread is made in different ways by different people ~ And I pray for that peace as well ~ Thanks for joining in ~
Thank you Grace! Also thanks for tending bar it was a great night.
Cheers!
Very nice slice of world’s breads worked into the first stanza; I did a very similar thing. Sometimes when I get off into my research for a poem, too many facts can detract, can deflate the poetics; but in your case, everything works to the advantage of the piece. The second stanza creates the real backbone of the peace, belting out the message; very nice take on the prompt for Grace.
Thank you Glenn I really appreciate your comments and feedback.
Cheers!
I like how you brought life into the theme of bread
Thank you!
Despite the kinds of bread we eat, we all pray for peace. Your perspective definitely is worthy of consideration!
Hey Mary nice to see you again! Thank you!
I too like the inclusion of so many different breads and traditions.You mentioned a lot of my favorite ones. When I started writing for this prompt, I wondered whether there are cultures that have no bread as part of their culture.
Thank you Gabriella. I don’t know if there are cultures without some kind of bread. Anything is possible though.
Oh, you just reminded me that my Norwegian husband hasn’t even thought of making lefse this year. I like how you brought in so many types of bread from difference cultures.
Thank you Victoria! Enjoy your lefse.
Cheers!
i will say, there are some restaurants we go to just because of the bread….and those we dont because of bad bread…ha…
the second stanza is really interesting…you make an interesting contrast between our atrocities…and our breaking bread across the table…and maybe filling our holes in our soul with food…
Thank you for commenting and for your feedback Brian it is much appreciated. It is true that the contrast was sharp.