pictured words

a simple pairing of pictures and poetry
May 2, 2021

Resumé of a Ten-Year-Old Who Wants to Volunteer at a School for Refugee Women and Children

Photo and hair by Nina Bass Blatnik

She spent the entire afternoon asking me relevant, insightful questions about the school’s students, staff, and mission. How do you teach babies and preschoolers a second language? What countries do they come from?  What languages are spoken? Which is the most common?  (She made note of Arabic, and couldn’t wait to ask her mom if she can begin studying it via Rosetta Stone or Duolingo).  Would I please contact the volunteer coordinator to see if it is acceptable for a ten-year-old to volunteer to help the adults care for the children? Are masks required? Is there a dress code?  Is there a form her parents could complete and sign, giving her permission to volunteer there?  Even if they can’t let her volunteer yet, can she take a tour of the school, and meet the staff?  Oh, and would I please tell them she is mature for her age?

Eager native sprout
seeks to share energy to
root and bloom transplants.

© Marie Elena Good, 2021

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April 24, 2021

WHAT IF?

Photo credit: Keith R. Good

We humans tend to look back,
often
having trouble reconciling the life
we live
with the life we naively dreamed of
in the
midst of youth, mulling the likelihood that the
land of
our reality borders our kingdom of
what ifs.

© Marie Elena Good, 2021

#waltmarie form

The poem within reads:

often
we live
in the
land of
what ifs

The #waltmarie, created by Candace Kubinec, is a 10-line form of any subject. The even-numbered lines are 2 syllables, and must form their own poem when read separately. The odd-numbered lines are longer, with no syllable count restrictions.

In response to Robert Lee Brewer’s 2021 April PAD Challenge: Day 24 – Writer’s Digest (writersdigest.com) (Day 24: Write a Question poem.)

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April 20, 2021

THIS IS MY KEITH

I love, “I love you,”
daily coming from your voice –
confirmed in your eyes.

I love, “I love you,”
emitting from hand-drawn hearts
on scraps of paper.

I love, “I love you,”
proved in daily selfless acts,
both little and vast.

I love, “I love you.”
But I treasure the daily
non-verbal “I do.”

© Marie Elena Good, 2021

Happy Anniversary, Keith.  30 years of daily thankfulness for the gift of you.


In response to Robert Lee Brewer’s 2021 April PAD Challenge: Day 20 – Writer’s Digest (Day 20: Write a love and/or anti-love poem.)

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April 18, 2021

DOUBLE EXPOSURE

Do you see yourself
in the face of your sibling?
Identical twins.


© Marie Elena Good, 2021

For today’s prompt from Robert Lee Brewer of Poetic Asides, we are asked to write an ekphrastic poem. I used this photo of my Aunt Peg (my Mom’s identical twin sister). It is a double exposure, showing my mom’s smiling face in the face of Aunt Peg. Identical twins do seem a sort of “double exposure” in the first place, don’t they? Love this photo.

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April 17, 2021

Untitled 17-syllable “waiting” poem

Image by Robert Allmann from Pixabay

“Father, forgive them. They know not what they do.” ~ Jesus Christ of Nazareth (Luke 23:34)

Tortured at their hands,
my Messiah didn’t wait
for apologies.

© Marie Elena Good, 2021


In response to Robert Lee Brewer’s 2021 April PAD Challenge: Day 17 – Writer’s Digest (Day 17: Write a Waiting poem.)

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April 14, 2021

A Walk in Mid-April

Photo by Keith R. Good

We walk around the park’s pond,
eyeing mallards and geese,
clear blue skies.
Tree blossoms of white, pink, and purple
dapple sunlight on the greening grass
and manmade path at our feet.

Lilacs scent the breeze,
as does the pleasing sound of
improving English
from my brave and delightful friend.
She speaks of her sweet/smart girls,
(the youngest of which, with her large dark eyes and
dark golden curls, holds tight her momma’s hand,
and her little bag of chips),
Syrian war,
and lost and scattered family.

© Marie Elena Good, 2021

In response to Robert Lee Brewer’s 2021 April PAD Challenge: Day 14 – Writer’s Digest (Day 14: Write a “from where you’re sitting” poem.)

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April 12, 2021

“RACE CARD”

Photo by fotografierende on Pexels.com

We need new mantras –
new voices of conviction.
We are not playing.

© Marie Elena Good, 2021

In response to Robert Lee Brewer’s 2021 April PAD Challenge: Day 12 – Writer’s Digest  (Day 12: 6-word poem [were given 6 words from which to choose at least 3 to include in the poem])

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April 10, 2021

I’LL GET IT!

Image by PublicDomainPictures from Pixabay

This used to be yelled
in a sing-song way
in every household
every day
when we would all clamor
to answer the call
of the one lone phone
that hung on the wall.

© Marie Elena Good, 2021

In response to Robert Lee Brewer’s 2021 April PAD Challenge: Day 10 – Writer’s Digest  (Day 10: Write a  Get Blank poem)

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April 9, 2021

CITRUS

Lemonface by Deanna Marie Metts 🙂

She’ll never slice me,
squeeze, or zest me, if you just
sketch me a sweet face.

© Marie Elena Good, 2021

In response to Robert Lee Brewer’s 2021 April PAD Challenge: Day 9 – Writer’s Digest (Day 9: Write a PERSONA poem)

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April 8, 2021

UNTITLED 17-syllable metaphor

Photo by Alex Andrews on Pexels.com

You are a lightyear.
I, millions of light seconds,
lined up and waiting.

© Marie Elena Good, 2021

In response to Robert Lee Brewer’s 2021 April PAD Challenge: Day 8 – Writer’s Digest (Day 4: Write a Metaphor poem).

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