Tuesday, April 26, 2011

My Minion, almost in the style of A A Milne;s Market Square, by A.J. Ponder

My Minion


Almost In the style of A.A.Milne, "Market Square"





I had a dollar
a brand new dollar.
Mum gave me a dollar
for cleaning the hall.

I took my dollar, my fine bright dollar,
straight to the book-shop, and asked them all.
"Have you got a minion, a slave, or a servant,
'cause I really am tired of cleaning the hall."

But they didn't have minions,
at least not real ones,
and story book minions
are no use at all.

So I took my dollar down to the bakers,
and showed them my dollar, and asked them all,
"Can you make me a minion, 'cause I really need a minion.
I need a minion to do my chores and all."

But the baker couldn't make minions,
at least not real ones,
and ginger-bread minions
are no use at all.

So I went to the shop where everything's a dollar
and said, "I need someone at my beck and call,"
but they wouldn't sell a minion, no matter how small,
they didn't have a minion -- not for any price at all.

I trudged home with my dollar,
and I slammed the door,
and I stomped to the kitchen
when I heard my mother call --

"Would you like a sandwich?  A rainbow-sprinkle sandwich?
I've cut the crusts the way you like them most of all."
That's when I knew I had a minion, my very own minion,
I'd always had a minion, after all. 

 A.J. Ponder

This was a for a certain friend, who remains anonymous who was complaining there was not enough rhyming poetry.  You know who you are :D

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Remember, Remember the Babes in the Wood

I was busy murdering babies
As you do
The cherub grins
Gone.
The sapphire-eyed,
Dark skinned,
Beauties --
All dead.

It's enough to make a writer cry.
It's enough
To make
You throw away the pen
Tear apart the keyboard,
Key,
By stinking key

But, 
my babies,
I loved your family
just enough
To see you die
Forgotten,
Unloved.

Your silent tears
Echoing through
To your brothers
And sisters,
As they hang their heads
Onto the bloodied page
And weep.

There's a common author expression. "Murder your darlings" or sometimes "kill your darlings" And no, it's not about the characters. It's about our words. As authors we love our words, but sometimes they just don't fit the longer piece we were planning to put them into—and what that means for writers is that just because you've written a nice piece of prose it doesn't mean it should stay in your writing. If it doesn't fit, no matter how pretty, it should be cut. 

And that's tough. But in the end your writing will be better. But more than that, the emotional impact will be all the stronger for having written and then cut that delightful bit of prose.

Happy writing authors, and happy reading readers,

 A.J. Ponder - author page

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

The Circle of Life


We have let the snakes 
Into the hen house

Smoking cigars
And complaining
The eggs
Are not at all
To their satisfaction

"More would be
Better."

"Should we lose
One or two
Or
Wait?"

You get the score
Better lay more

After all,
There's one thing tastier
than eggs...


  A.J. Ponder 

Part of the Circle of Life series of poems:


Cheers to Ernie Ellis - just as I thought I'd never find an appropriate picture I come across this book-cover, and it's perfect.  As for the poem, well I think it probably speaks for itself.  And as always, the current Tuesday Poem is here, at the Tuesday hub. 


Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Tuesday Poem: Caught in the Middle of Too much White Space





Running
Off
And finding ideas spinning
Away
Past tightly packed Geraniums
With
No sign of stopping for breath
You
Cannot pull those threads together
Can't
Find the Coherency
You
See its lost in the blue ninety nines
See
I'm
I'm
Splitting apart  

Nothing left now                                but                              Chrysanthemums


 A.J. Ponder 


The tricky thing about this poem is that it's really three poems in one depending on how you read it,  and of course (at least for rabid fans like me) this is in part a (very strange) homage to  A A Milne's The Dormouse and the Doctor, which can be found here at http://www.poetryconnection.net/poets/A.A._Milne/14279 although I find myself that I'd prefer to wait until the official copyright is over.  That's why I have the books :).


And don't forget to check  out the Tuesday Poem -'Tuesday': an unfolding communal poem for a birthday

... all laughed except Tyr: he lost his hand: The Poetic Edda on the god Tyr hence Tuesday.