Thursday photo prompt: Wistful #writephoto

This week’s prompt ~ Wistful

For visually challenged writers, the image shows the early morning mists rising over an empty moorland scene beneath a soft pink sky.

The Earth breathed a sigh

All that was human gone

Birds the only inhabitants of the sky.

The animals and her at last alone.

Mother Nature shed a tear.

Was this guilt, that she felt

Or just relief at the end to her fear.

She had shown her strength with the last blow she’d dealt!

######

Welcome to Sue Vincent’s # writephot prompt.

Colleen's 2020 Weekly #Tanka Tuesday #Poetry Challenge No. 170, #ThemePrompt

WELCOME TO TANKA TUESDAY! It’s the fourth week of the month – time for a #ThemePrompt! Last month, I selected Sally Cronin to pick this month’s theme: The Night Sky On the Monday before the next challenge, I’ll select someone to choose next month’s theme. Have fun! PLEASE support the other poets by visiting blogs .

Stars

Tinkle

Like Diamonds

In the night sky

I escape in dreams.

Seeing all I fly by

Dreams sparkle brightly always.

Stars thrown like dice scattered like rice.

Thrown just like a wager or a bet

Stars in the night sky shine like true diamonds.

Image from Pixabay.

This is part of Colleen Chesebro’s Tanka Tuesday.

The Friday Reminder and Prompt for #SoCS March 21/2020

It’s Saturday and time for LindaGHill’s Stream of Consciousness Saturday. Here is Our Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “welcome.” Use it any way you’d like. Have fun!

Shelley Krupa

Your welcome, is a polite response to someone who you have said thank you to. It’s a nice was of putting people at their ease. Eg: ” Thank you for the lift” “No worries your welcome”.

Often its the first thing you say to people who visit your house, “Welcome, do come in” or “Welcome home” You can also have a welcoming atmosphere, fire, greeting.

Welcome

We are so pleased to see you

Even though you are late

Long time no see it true

Come in theres a welcoming fire in the grate

Oh! We have missed you so much

Many years have passed

Everyone is so pleased to see you.

******

Be safe, be well and be happy.

Photo prompt round-up: Lambent #writephoto

This week’s prompt ~ Crown

For visually challenged writers, the image shows a well trodden pathway through a field of mown wheat. The path leads up a hill to a green mound crowned with jagged standing stones.

Brave New World

The path well trod leads to the stones

Feet bare or shod approach the thrones

The Gods of men look down and smile

The land is bathed in gold for a while.

For man has has been removed, taken out

By an invisible foe, who soon will die no doubt.

There is nought for it to pray upon

So soon the Gods will be alone, beast and virus gone.

This is part of Sue Vincent’s Thursday Photo Challenge.

Colleen’s 2019 Weekly #Tanka Tuesday #Poetry Challenge No. 169 #PhotoPrompt

WELCOME TO TANKA TUESDAY!

It’s the third week of the month! Time for a #PhotoPrompt

So for Colleen’s Tuesday Tanka, we have a photo prompt from….

Padre, from Padre’s Ramblings, provided the photo for this month’s challenge. What does this photo say to you? Write some syllabic poetry and tell me what you think. Make sure to give Padre credit for the use of his photo.

This week I have chosen to write a Gogyohka.

Image Credit: ©2020 Padre

Was it the red wine

Or the stars in her blue eyes

That gave her away

Elated one moment broken the next

Smashed like an empty bottle of wine.

Pack , Unpacked.

I have unpacked my suitcase

Of a tan about me there’s no trace.

I was totally beach ready,

From my toes to my heady.

My toes and my nails, sparkly green

Hands red raw from washing them clean.

I had bought beach clothes

Some of the shades matched my toes.

Tomorrow was the day we would fly

I am down but refuse to cry.

The Caribbean is now out of bounds

St. Lucia has closed her door

I agree that she has good grounds

But I did want some sun and what’s more

It’s a beautiful place, I know as I’ve been there before.

To tell you the truth, though sad

I am in a strange way glad

The foreign office said you best not go

We can’t guarantee getting you home,so

I am happy to stay in cold Blighty

Dark times, for us all, problems mighty.

So lets be kind not greedy,

Leave goods for the needy.

So I was not meant to escape

*****

This really might sound pathetic but the last three days have been very stressful. Not only the holiday but all the stress of the new Government restrictions set for our own good. Be safe be kind be happy. I am still scared.

Thursday photo prompt: Lambent #writephoto

#writephoto

For visually challenged writers, the image shows a ray of light piercing the heavy clouds above a silky body of water bordered by dark hills.

Cold, weary and completely spent

I trudged on , to the future bent.

Through the longest night of my years

I immerged from the veil of tears.

Not expecting anything heaven sent

The scene I met was glorious and lambent.

Silver and goldens rays escape the clouds

The lake aglow devoid of shrouds.

It awoke my soul and raised my heart

So full of hope this was for me, a new start.

This is part of Sue Vincent’s Thursday Photo Challenge.

Apocalypse Now?

What a state this world is in. We have a dying planet, choked up with emissions, and strangled with plastic and waste. Now I am sure the four Horsemen of the Apocalypse are here. I wrote the poem / story below some years ago. I thought things were bad then yet nothing has improved infact it’s worse. So I have revamped the story today!

IS IT REALLY  TOO LATE? 

Time was late, the day was cold  the doors of the coffee shop suddenly flew apart

The scene  from the street was enough to stop your heart.

Four horse men

Slowly and silently approached along the street.

No one could of known, this was the place they had assigned to meet.

As this strange apparition  it’s progress did make,

It left fights and hunger and  deathly illness in it’s wake.

Where once was the  normal order of life

Was suddenly killing and gorging, sickness, death and strife.

Stopping their horses and dismounting as one

They found a spare lamp post their magnificent animals to leash upon.

One of their number scanned the street “No parking meters ….sweet”

They entered the coffee shop and two fights broke out

And terrible hunger and thirst spread about.

Terrified customers died in the rush for the door

People started to sicken with rashes and pustules and what’s more there was blood and guts all over the floor.

Death motioned the others to get a table

As he addressed the barista, a sickly lad  and ordered “four Americanos and a bagel!”

The boy felt so weak as he looked in to the eyes of Death fear gripped his throat

The rest of his staff were in the same boat lost and helpless’ bereft of hope!

Setting down the tray and handing Famine his food,

“I wanted espresso “griped War in a mood.

Death raised his scythe and told him to mind his place.

For he had the last  word and was in charge of this space!

Finally with the local humans all dead

They sipped quietly on their coffee, just for now doing what their leader had said.

After a short while Conquest / Pestilence looked up

And asked “is this coffee fair trade” as he finished his cup.

Famine smirked at the joke his brother had made.

“I need another , where is the barista ”  Death answered ” He died”…… “Okay” Famine sighed

Coffee over, decisions needed to be  made

How to deal with this world’s problem. Plans had to be laid.

“I think I should simply traverse this world

And make them their missiles unfurl,”

Said War before adding “with you,  Death in my wake,

How long would total annihilation  take?”

“No “chipped in Pestilence I can spread  my cloak and make them all suffer.

I have a new toy Corvid 19

It favours the old and sick , it very keen.

You can then step in Death, as they choke  and splutter.”

War banged the table ready to fight

But Death stepped in knowing his way was right .

Looking around brothers do you not agree

They are doing an excellent job of destroying themselves without any help from you or me.”

He saw they were not happy with his interventions

So he enlightened them all with ghastly intentions .

“We need to just hover on the sidelines and leave them to fester.

It will all end soon, this planet cannot sustain forever these hopeless jesters!

They thought for a while while Death entertained them, with his  fiddle

Like Nero back when Rome was burning. but not such  giggle.

The decision was made and they all agreed

They would just make thing worse for all those in need .

They would feed the wars and starve the medical fractions,

Of knowledge and money.

They would disease the corn the milk and the honey.

Death would stalk the world in his usual way

Clearing up the mess and dead at the end of the day.

They then  left the scene of their destroying powers

Riding  off together into the west leaving death and destruction and lots of wilting flowers .

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The News papers and TV got the story the very same day.

“Police want to question four hoodies on horse back ” they say.

There is  a witness a child who manage to hide and lived to tell what they had seen.

Apparently strange horses, one white,one red, one black and one pale green?

This  made the  headlines  all over, for a day, well maybe one day more

Then it is back to Famine and  Plague in Africa and  the States and UK to step into  yet another War!

The Greens are screaming we must save Mother Earth

Unknowing that she already dancing  a dirge with Death.

.

Death sat in a corner and polished his scythe and pondered the meeting that morning,

Well he had at least tried to buy these humans ( for whom he actually cared) some time .

But even holding off his brothers, of hope there still was no sign.

He was tired of all the work he had to do,

Exhausted in fact, and his brothers were too.

The task set before them was too great for them to solve ..

Hopefully God will intervene and those irritating humans will evolve  !

As the Apocalyptic quartet rode off claiming souls

They were laughing at humans all bulk buying toilet rolls.

All that paper won’t help them survive

With plague’s new new virus, no amount of loo roll will keep them alive.

Colleen’s 2020 Weekly #Tanka Tuesday #Poetry Challenge No. 168 #SynonymsOnly

Here are your two words selected by Ruth Scribbles, from last month’s #SyllablesOnly challenge:

COMFORT & WORN

This week I have taken inspiration from when our eldest was three, he was ill and in hospital. My husband drew a picture of him sleeping in the hospital bed, clutching his beloved blanket.

Ever since he could hold it he was attached to a multicoloured blanket my mother had crocheted for him. First it was a pram blanket, then it moved to the cot finally it was dragged around everywhere. He would not go to bed without it so it had to be washed and dried as quickly as possible amid long and loud protestations!

He truly loved his blanket, sadly two of his cousins, older but not wiser, decided to hide it. We did substitute another blanket my mum had made, which did suffice but was not quite the same. I am happy to say that when he was about eight,and the old friend was only used at bedtime or when ill, went to his first cubs camp, the blanket was reluctantly left behind…he survived and pretty soon the blanket was relinquished. He still smiles if the blanket is mentioned, and he is 47years 💜

Below I have included the picture hubby drew in the hospital. Our has his blanket to his nose and a yellow Teddy.

I have written a Haiku in the shortened form of 3/5/3. I think that the shorter version is sometimes more powerful.

Drawn by Hubby.
© willowdot21 2020

The blanket

Though old and tattered

Brings such peace.

*****

This week, Colleen is looking for Haibun (Prose & Haiku) and Tanka Prose (Prose and Tanka) to use as examples in her book. Colleen is also going through our blogs and leaving us messages of poetry that she’d like to share in the book. As always, you retain all rights to your work and Colleen will give you credit in the Bibliography. Email her at tankatuesdaypoetry@gmail.com. If she dosen’t answer you right away, please don’t panic. She’ll get to all the emails as she continues to compile the examples. Thanks so much for your help.

This is part of Colleen’s Weekly Tuesday Tanka.

International Women’s Day.

I am running  so late  today , I have  not had  time  to write a post  for  International Women’s Day. I thought I  would re-post  an SoCs from November 2016. In  that post I paid tribute to  the  women  of  WW1  and  WW2 who  took over  all  the  jobs  that the  men  who  had  been  sent  off  to  war  left  empty here in what  was  known then as  Great  Britain.

Not  only  did  the  women  do  these  , sometimes  very  dangerous  jobs,but  they  looked after  the families  and  homes. Now  I  do  not  wish in  any  way  to  detract  from  the huge  sacrifice  of  all the  men  who  fought  for  our countries during  the  two  wars .

First a poem.

Remember the women left back home.

They made the ammunition for Tommy

Dangerous work,they died too, it was not funny.

Women became officers of the law

Something never heard of before.

Nurses, drivers  even pilots for planes

Remember  them  we  will never  know  their  names

Someone had to give  the  farmers a hand

Remember   the men  were  at war  in a  foreign  land.

The members  of  the ” fairer  sex ”

Drove  the  buses, trains  and  lorries

Kept  all essential job going, however  complex

They  also  fed  the family  and kept  the Home Fires  Burning

And  then a song.

During  the  wars WW1 and  WW2  women filled  in the  gaps  that  the  men  who  had  been sent  off  to  war  left. It  is  not  always  remembered  that  they worked in  the factories  drove  buses , trains and flew  planes and  probably  sailed  ships.  They  became  members  of  the  forces, nurses at  home  and on the  war  front  too. They  were  also  seconded into  the police  these  jobs  were almost unheard of  for  women before  the  first  world war. They  also  had  to do hard  farm labour  on  the farms to help keep  the  food  supplies  going.

Women worked in  shipyards, built  planes  and  also  made  ammunition, hard  and  dangerous  work.

It  was not just  the   fact  that the  bombs , shells or  landmines  could  explode  if  mishandled  but  the  TNT  was  dangerous  to  the  women’s  health.

Also some Facts.

” Munitions workers whose job was filling shells were prone to suffer from TNT poisoning. TNT stood for Trinitrotoluene – an explosive which turned the skin yellow of those who regularly came into contact with it. The munitions workers who were affected by this were commonly known as ‘canaries’ due to their bright yellow appearance. Although the visible effects usually wore off, some women died from working with TNT, if they were exposed to it for a prolonged period. As Ethel Dean, who worked at Woolwich Arsenal, recalled, ‘Everything that, that powder touches goes yellow. All the girls’ faces were yellow, all round their mouths. They had their own canteen, in which everything was yellow that they touched… Everything they touched went yellow – chairs, tables, everything.’ (IWM SR 9439) More  imformation  here

Women did  so many  jobs that  before  the  first  world  war, those of  the middle  and  higher class would  never  even  contemplated. Many  died of  injury  and  of  disease  due  to  chemicals,  asbestos  used in  badly  ventilated  buildings.

Also  they played  their  part in  SOE   read here   and also  here  .

All images  from  Google Images  women  at  war  WW1 and WW2

My tribute to all women past present and future. We have always and always will pick up the slack , support men and do our best. Today there are women leading full services lives in all our armed forces and police