Poetry Month continues!

I made luckier Wordle guesses this past week, which gave me fewer words. Fewer words meant fewer wacky associations. Fewer wacky associations meant these poems aren’t as lighthearted as the first week. Also, this past week wasn’t exactly a joy — what with threats from the U.S. president to burn the world down and all.

The few loose rules I follow when writing Wordle poems:

• I begin with my usual starter word: HEART.
• I follow the same sequence of words in the poem as I did to solve Wordle.
• I limit extra words, using only a few to flesh out the meaning/description and to improve the rhythm.
• I’ll occasionally change the tense of a word when it makes sense grammatically. I might make it plural or hyphenate.
• I add a title.

The plan is to post a new set of weekly Wordle poems every Sunday at least through April, if not beyond.

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Sunday, April 5
Inner world

Through a heart-shaped hole 
Into the wall, mouse scurries
Envoy to shyness

Monday, April 6
War Crimes

Purple Heart
No glory, only scorn
Sworn allegiance to a clown

Tuesday, April 7
Cultivars

Candy Heart, Heart Strong,
Glowing Heart peony buds 
begin tight, so dense

Wednesday, April 8
I want off this ship

My heart, so seasick 
Tossed about and craving quiet 
An inlet to port

Thursday, April 9
Self-care as the world burns

Walk for heart-health 
Take some alone time
Navel-gaze, if you must 
Smell the rose-laden vines

Friday, April 10
Party on the porch!  

In the heart of New England! 
Rainy day be damned!
Bring your parka and your Pabst! 
Carom table out back!

Saturday, April 11
Nervous system/ attachment strings

Attune the heart strings
Loosen the purse strings that bind
I don’t need a prude

Happy Poetry Month!

These fun little poems sprang out of a morning practice of playing Wordle on my phone, taking a screenshot of my sequence of guesses, and then sharing them with my marriage partner who also shared a screenshot. Because we enjoyed seeing each other’s word choices and strategies, we usually bantered back and forth via text about it. This often lead us to create sentences or little scenarios with the words. On those days when it took me five or six guesses to solve the puzzle, I made more associative and poetic connections between the words — obviously because more words but also repeated letters in the correct location opened up alliterations or strings of words that rhymed. So on March 29th, after an unlucky sequence of six guesses, I wrote my first Wordle poem. This week, I’ve given myself an unusually (and unintentionally) unlucky/lucky number of words with which to work!

Here are the few loose rules I follow:

• I begin with my usual starter word: HEART.
• I follow the same sequence of words in the poem as I did to solve Wordle.
• I limit extra words, using only a few to flesh out the meaning/description and to improve the rhythm.
• I’ll occasionally change the tense of a Wordle word when it makes sense grammatically.
• I add a title.

The plan is to post a new set of weekly Wordle poems every Sunday at least through April, if not beyond.

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Sunday, March 29
Foolish

My heart shown
Like a child
I chucked my pride and chuffed satisfaction
to be your chump

Monday, March 30
Hungry and longing 

My heart swept away
with the table scraps of fish filet
taken with hunger unmet
Fast as a comet 

Tuesday, March 31
Dirty things 

Oh, heart 
Flask strapped to my thigh 
as I wade through your swamp 

Wednesday, April 1
Attention

Your heart, so noisy 
Not picky
Ready to chase in a jiffy
some new filly
Ah, to feel so fizzy

Thursday, April 2
Ode to a rake

Dear Heart,
Are you a lover?
A poser of poses and positions?
A sower of seed?
I wait for your sober return 

Friday, April 3
How to order a burnt scone 

Today I’ll have 
Your heart shaped scone
with a side of snide 
Singed is fine, thank you 

Saturday, April 4
What About Love? / Acts of service  

Heart songs playing on my phone 
Caulk gun poised
I aim for the gap between basin 
and sandy grout