Sitting in a Storm Cloud
Unmanned aerial vehicles whisper in my ear
they promise to send museum postcards
…..pieces of the past in manageable bites
love letters from me to the other side of you
Knowing they buzz a charmed life in the ether
lightens my step, I’m as buoyant as an offshore
bauble and find stones to weight my pockets
…..added ballast keeps me from gaining altitude
It’s the shear that sets friction in our morning cups
cream unstable in charged uplift churns to butter
a passing flavor is judged by drones, as if
…..every thing is as it should be, but the candy still sugars
The kettle on the stove whistles a low, slow tune
read the weather page…..I penciled a love note between
low pressure ridges and an onshore warming trend
fly the sheets to signal shifting boundaries, all clear
* * *
Yes. This prompt was hard! Darn that prompt-writer over at Big Tent Poetry! Gack!
The specifically selected words were: UAV (Unmanned aerial vehicles), bouancy, instability, drones, shear, uplift. They came from a Science Friday with Ira Flatow program — he talked to storm specialists in Oklahoma about tornadoes.
I love the word buoyancy.
* * *
The weather in Portland is beautiful, so I am going hiking Friday. Will check the circus goers later in the day!
Related posts:
Now that’s what I call a wether report!
Some lovely words you’ve used! I particularly enjoyed the lines:
It’s the shear that sets friction in our morning cups
cream unstable in charged uplift churns to butter
Great weaving of the words. (Alas, I have not yet tried this prompt!) I particularly like:
“I’m as buoyant as an offshore/bauble”
“I penciled a love note between
low pressure ridges and an onshore warming trend”
You chose interesting words. Hard to listen to a science program and find poetic words; but you managed to do so.
I enjoyed: ” I’m as buoyant as an offshore
bauble and find stones to weight my pockets”
My favorite is the first stanza, maybe because I loved the idea of UAVs sending museum postcards with memories &all…thanks.Ana
Okay, NOW I get it!
Really fine writing…it conjured up so many images…
I love your use of the words here Deb.
Pamela
Gads, Deb — I love, love this poem. I started to copy and paste the lines I like, but ended up with the whole poem on my notepad. Especially, “love letters from me to the other side of you,” and all your inner rhymes. Lilting, luscious, and lyrical. Thanks!
Deb – Postcards as manageable pieces of the past is genius. From you place in that stormcloud you imagined a world. Well done!
a passing flavor is judged by drones, as if
…..every thing is as it should be, but the candy still sugars
Love that thought – your poem feels like weather and the barometric change that alters everything including hair and feelings.
So many delightful images. One of my favorites:
“I penciled a love note between
low pressure ridges and an onshore warming trend,”
The language of the poem flows.
tricky prompt, you! but i’m really enjoying the sounds it’s creating. it does mix it up a bit! mine is, sadly, still in the listening stages. translation = i haven’t written it yet.
the weather/science words in this (paired so nicely with the familiar activities and routines we recognize) give this an other-worldly feel. good job!
Such a distinctive perspective right from the start: *in* a storm cloud.
I liked the love letter to the other side of you, too, and the rocks in your pockets to keep you from flying off yonder (tho’ I kinda thought you did anyway)! I’ve always thought flying away was a good thing.
Deb I like that you’ve worked love letters into a poem that hangs on the weather and science as well as the very buoyant feel of the whole thing.
Thanks so much for the prompt which had me listening to podcasts I otherwise would never have.
My favorite image is “I penciled a love note between // low pressure ridges and an onshore warming trend” :-)
Yeah, I really liked that one too.
I love the 1st stanza. I sat here rereading it I almost forgot there was more. That “all clear” at the end is wonderful. Such a sense of freedom in that.
Wow, you really accomplish a lot in this poem–internal rhyme, alliteration, love, weather, and technology! Plus you did it in quatrains. My hat’s off to you, Deb.
I’m still listening for cool words. When I have a big enough list, I’ll share them on my blog.
I was hooked from the first line. Lots of great stuff going on in this poem: imagery and alliteration really worked for me. A lot of sounds come out of this one, both from your images and word choice.
Thank you everyone for such delicious comments. I so appreciate you reading, visiting, sharing your thoughts.
xxoo to each and every one. And to the silent readers, too.
“It’s the shear that sets friction in our morning cups/cream”
Fresh, fresher, freshest, freshershest!
Love it.