Poem in Your Pocket Day

Walk around with a poem in your pocket, do ya?  Well, there is a day celebrated throughout the United States and Canada just made for folks such as yourself…

That’s right, April 27th is THAT DAY!  The American Academy of Poets continues to enjoy National Poetry Month (April) by inviting you to join them, by sharing your poetry, or your favorite poetry all day!  Visit http://www.poets.org for suggestions as well as to find out what others are doing in your area!

 The beautiful thing about sharing poetry is that sharing poetry is a beautiful thing! 

 YES! I am sharing a poem with you, here… This is one I wrote for one of the Ministers in my church in honor of his 50th birthday… As this was written back in the 1990’s he has since forgiven me…

Oh, How Nifty to be Fifty

To have the freedom to say exactly what you mean

And the right to be loud, and cause public scenes

And the fashion sense to wear colors that don’t quite go together

And the forgetfulness to dress inappropriately for all types of weather

And to understand they put rails in showers

And to enjoy doing absolutely nothing for hours and hours

And to appreciate creamed spinach and toast with chipped beef

And to be able to ride the bus without having to give up your seat

And to plan vacations for warmer climate states

And to be the reason most drivers tailgate

And to be truly rewarded for your half century

With major discounts through AARP

And while you’re younger than your children and older than your folks

You’re at the right age for public ridicule and to be the butt of cruel jokes

And yet you may be thinking of all the paybacks you could send

Remember, living well is truly the best revenge!

(c) Annette Rochelle Aben 2017

Okay, I showed you mine, now show me yours! 

Poem In Your Pocket Day April 18th

The premise behind this day was to give people the opportunity to share a bit of themselves with others using poetry as the vehicle.  Of course for the writers, it would be kinda cool to share something that they, themselves wrote but you can always just carry your favorite by anyone in your pocket. How cool, to have a poem at the ready to recite or hand to someone you meet along the way.  Perhaps someone needs cheering or you are having coffee with a friend and you want them to hear your latest creation; then whip that poem out and take the floor! (of course if you take the floor, you had better be ready to replace it)

So, I have decided to keep a particular poem in my pocket today. This is from the very first book I ever self-published, Perspective, it’s all about replacing one thought with another. It doesn’t have a title but that’s okay, neither do I.

the smiling wind courted the laughing tree

oh, the magic that came to be

dancing leaves flirted from branches so lithe

pure joy’s celebration coming alive

bashful breeze played hide and seek

shifting in a flash from bold to meek

curious clouds floated gently down

as the clear blue sky pulled itself around

wind’s song grew stronger

and tree’s dance lasted longer

then slowly, softly, the wind came to rest

in tree’s glorious crown it decided to rest

sun beamed blessings heartily

upon the courtship of the smiling wind

and the laughing tree

(c) 2009, 2015 Annette Rochelle Aben 

What poem do you have in your pocket today?

http://www.amazon.com/author/annetterochelleaben