A weekend with friends
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| The Picnic by Thomas Cole (1846) |
We might be talking about a mini-vacation, a celebration, or a protest.
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| Protesters in Portland, Ore.Jordan Gale for the NYTimes |
Picture it. You are not alone. You are with like-minded people who are passionate and creative. You are plunging into a treasured destination or into non-violent persistence. You might picture a much needed vacation, or a much needed moment to voice your concerns. (Of course, you may be writing about a weekend with friends that doesn't include you.)
I invite you to focus on an event that was (or would be) a break from everyday routine. One with friends.
For Inspiration:
Make me laugh over coffee, make it a double, make it frothy so it seethes in our delight. Make my cup overflow with your small happiness. I want to hoot and snort and cackle and chuckle. Let your laughter fill me like a bell. Let me listen to your ringing and singing as Billie Holiday croons above our heads. Sorry, the blues are nowhere to be found. Not tonight. Not here. No makeup. No tears. Only contours. Only curves. Each sip takes back a pound, each dry-roasted swirl takes our soul. Can I have a refill, just one more? Let the bitterness sink to the bottom of our lives. Let us take this joy to go.
From Misery Islands (CavanKerry Press, 2014)
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We Are Remarkably Loud Not Masked By Juan Felipe Herrera
young Jesse Washington —
even though you on the wooden stick
cross of fire bitten charred cut & burned 5 minute jury
April 15, 1916 Waco, Texas shackled & dragged — lynched
You live on
Trayvon Martin face down
red juice on the lawn clutching candy rushing home
the hoodie the hoodie the prowler shooter said
upside down shredded night
because of you you
we march touch hands lean back leap forth
against the melancholy face of tanks & militia we move
walk become
we become somehow
Eric Garner we scribble your name sip your breath now
our breath cannot be choked off our
skin cannot be flamed totality
cannot be cut off
each wrist
each bone
cannot be chained to the abyss
gnashing levers & polished
killer sheets of steel
we are remarkably loud not masked
rough river colors that cannot be threaded back
hear us
Freddie Gray here with us
Jesse Washington Trayvon Martin
Michael Brown the Black Body holy
Eric Garner all breath Holy
we weep & sing
as we write
as we mobilize & march
under the jubilant solar face
Copyright Credit: Juan Felipe Herrera, "We Are Remarkably Loud Not Masked"
from Notes on the Assemblage. Copyright © 2015 by Juan Felipe Herrera.
More poems on friendship:
On Friendship by Kahlil Gibran
This Evening Let’s by Adrienne Rich
In the House with No Doors by Sarah Kay
(Please add more. I'm surprised at how few I know about friends being together.)
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Please link one poem that is your response to this prompt.
After you link your poem, please visit others,
and
Don't forget to include this link in your post.
Thank you Susan - will be back in the morning - Jae
ReplyDeleteGood morning, poets! Today's focus on time with friends drew me down many precious paths before I chose one. I hope you enjoy working with this prompt, too! Have a marvelous week.
ReplyDeleteA timely prompt, Susan. Being remarkably loud and non-violently persistent is definitely called for now. It took me down a path too, to a march our village held in honour of a young local woman and George Floyd, both killed by police around the same time. Sigh. And it is hard to think things are much, much worse now, for so many innocent people.
ReplyDeleteSigh. I hope it is not as bad in Canada as it is here!
DeleteNot yet. But we have a fanatical right wing rising with a trump-like leader trying hard to become prime minister. He almost got elected but when people saw what was happening in the US, many changed their vote.
DeleteA lovely prompt Susan. It gave me an opportunity to honor my dear friends in a poem. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteSuch a beautiful poem! Thank you!
DeleteIt's been a tough day as it's the anniversary of my father's death, so my husband took me to a wonderful garden belonging to a local country house for a long walk. I didn't have time to write a new poem, but I have linked up one from June this year, which I think might fit the bill. Thank you, Susan, for a flexible prompt and that lovely poem by January Gill O’Neil.
ReplyDeleteIt's important to take the day's grief and its offerings. Glad you stopped by here.
DeleteYour prompt brought back memories of friends gathering to drum, dream and simply connect in a peaceful setting.
ReplyDeleteI loved your poem! It brought back memories for me.
DeleteQuite an inspiring prompt! After I wrote the poem I did, I realize I could write two additional ones. Truedessa, your poem inspired another possible poem in my mind (which I did not write - but could).
ReplyDeleteThanks for telling me, Mary. I love it when a prompt does its work.
DeleteThank you, Susan. My "Friends" poem was last week, "Friends becoming Lovers", is this week's offering!
ReplyDeleteThank you for both poems. Today's song is especially lovely.
DeleteMarja! You have written the most beautiful sacred poem, and your site won't let me comment. Bravo!
ReplyDelete