Category Archives: Poem of the Day

Purple Predicament by Sharon Hammad

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Purple Predicament

It happens one fine morning when I squint into the light;

The image in the mirror is a terrifying sight.

The carrot-coloured hair is gone that caused me so much grief,

Replaced with purple pansies…I feel gobsmacked disbelief!

 

The freckles that I hated are exchanged for purple dots.

Without exaggerating, there are lots and lots and lots.

Instead of whites, my eyes have mauves, and bristling on my chin,

A prickly purple beard grows out of lilac-tinted skin.

 

The nails are painted purple on my fingers and my toes

And, when I poke my tongue out, it is tied with purple bows.

The doctor says, ‘It seems that a disease extremely rare

Has turned your body purple from your toes up to your hair:

 

Acute impurpleitis. There is nothing I can do.

It’s really not my specialty. The cure is up to you.’

I snip the purple pansies and I shave the purple beard.

I dab the dots with crayon ─ they look only slightly weird.

 

I loosen all the purple bows and cover up my skin,

Then crumple up my homework and consign it to the bin.

I’ve figured out the reason this predicament arose

From now on I intend to KEEP AWAY FROM PURPLE PROSE.

Sharon Hammad

Yesterday by Dianne Bates

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Yesterday

Yesterday

I was a golden dragon

The kiss of grasses brushed my ankles

And then I rose into the sky

Where I cavorted at first

Then drifted

brushing the clouds,

a wondrous lilting shape that those below

beheld with awe.

Gold and crimson I lapped the world

like a god commanding

everything

and everyone

all things revolved around me

I owned the day

Shattered it with my beauty

And my gigantic roar.

 

Today

yesterday was a dream

and now I am but a mere child

my mother standing over me

with her many demands

I must obey.

by Dianne Bates

Mind Your “Ps” and “Qs” by Kate O’Neil

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Mind your Ps and Qs

A Cautionary Tale
 

The ticket’s important.

Your favourite show

is almost sold out

but you’re dying to go.

 

You groan at the queue

but you can’t walk away;

there’s no other chance.

You must see it today.

 

Yes, you’re dying to go,

But not just to the show.

One coffee too many,

and the queue is so slow.

 

The choice is so cruel,

What will you do?

You have to choose now:

The queue or the loo?

 

It’s Nature that wins,

As Nature will do,

but you’ll know next time

that it’s ‘P’ before ‘Q’.

 

 Kate O’Neil

 

Eight Amazing Animals by Monty Edwards

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Eight amazing animals

 

Animals ev’rywhere always amaze:

Big beefy buffaloes quietly graze;

Cats with their claws out can climb and can scratch;

Dogs dive for balls using teeth for a catch;

Elephants’ ears are as big as can be;

Foxes from hunters can speedily flee;

Gentle giraffes are remarkably tall;

Heavyweight hippos have ears that are small.

I like the ibex. It surely can climb.

Just don’t wait for zebra. I haven’t the time!

 Monty Edwards

Monty Said:  For an alphabetic assignment I wanted a subject of interest to children that was represented by many examples. This would help provide maximum flexibility for the alphabetic choices and the accompanying rhymes. Animals seemed ideal. I decided to underline the alphabetic structure with some alliteration and the final line, but stopped at J to avoid monotony and less convincing examples.

Strike Away the Days by Sioban Timmer

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Strike away the days

 

Strike away the days

In strokes sharp and purposeful

Cut them down like old growth forest

The calendar boxes, the tree rings of our lives

With each slashing mark of pen to page

Screaming out the passing time

Strike away the year

Remove the tired dog eared pages

Cast aside events and tasks of yesterday

Carefully raise and hang the New Year high

Crisp and clean like the dove and olive branch

A new beginning in each blank square.

 

Sioban Timmer

Frangipani by Penny Szentkuti

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Frangipani

Frangipani

Grows, guerilla-planted, by the footpath.

How does a stick thrust

Into the dirt

Just grow?

Kicking into life,

Leaning into light,

Making the most of

Night rain,

Of morning dew.

Putting down roots

Quietly

Reaching down to grasp

Soil,

To hold the earth steadily

Until

Velvet furls of leaf appear,

Waking now above, as below.

Penny Szentkuti

Penny says: I enjoy constraints when writing poetry so I don’t feel overwhelmed by the task, so this prompt appealed to me. I’ve been observing a beautiful deep pink frangipani outside my place for several weeks and it was a delight to explore that with words. I like how I was forced to split phrases which increased the emphasis on some words and ideas.

Dog Walk/Talk by David Rish

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DOG WALK/TALK

 

When I took Minnie for a walk,

All she wanted to do was talk.

The new butcher’s meat is very tasty,

Especially when wrapped in pastry.

Did you hear that Chris bought a blue hat?

Don’t you think that Paul’s got fat?

Yap, yap, yap, and chat, chat, chat.

This is this, and that is that.

And what was that rat-a-tat-tat?

 

Please, Minnie, end your constant chatter,

I’m turning as mad as the Mad Hatter.

 

I’m terribly sorry you feel that way,

Because I have so much I want to say.

I like to talk, that’s what mouths are for,

I wonder, what’s the cricket score?

I wonder if the Moon is made of cheese.

Listen to that cat snort and sneeze.

Talk, talk, talk, talk, talk, talk, talk.

Talk and talk and talk; squawk, squawk.

 

Sigh.

David Rish

David says: My poem was ‘inspired’ by my nephew’s whippet, Minnie-the-Fish. She tends to look at humans as if we’re all complete idiots.

 

Who Shot Sooty? by Joanne Pummer

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WHO SHOT SOOTY?

 

Who shot Sooty?

”I did,” cried Ellie. ”With a little gun

I shot Sooty.”

 

Who found  the gun?

”I did,” said Ellie. ”In my Mummy’s purse

I found the gun.”

 

Who squeezed trigger?

”I did,” sobbed Ellie.

”I squeezed the trigger.”

 

Why did you squeeze it?

”I wanted to play.

That’s why I squeezed it.”

 

Who heard the shot?

”I did,” said Mum.

”I ran and I ran when I heard the shot.”

 

Who bought the gun?

”I did,” said Dad.

”I bought the gun.”

 

Why did you buy it?

”To keep us all safe.

That’s why I bought it.”

 

Who saw the blood?

”I did,” said James.

”I saw Sooty’s blood.”

 

Who kissed his forehead?

“I did,” said James.

”I kissed his soft black fur.”

 

We hugged and we cried when they carried off Sooty.

 

”Wait,” said the gun.

”I shot Sooty. With my little bullets

I shot Sooty.”

 

Did you scream, did you shout when the shot rang out?

Did you cry, did you call when you saw Sooty fall?

 

”No,” said the gun.

”I’m not like you.

I only do what I was made to do.”

 Joanne Pummer

Joanne said: I wrote Who Shot Sooty?’ on the spur of the moment when I saw in a news item that the National Rifle Association in the US have written a children’s book.

 

 

 

The Train by Anne Bell

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THE TRAIN   

Past houses,trees and grazing sheep,

I race and rock and sway

and I say to the track of strong, firm steel

that likes the sound of a hurrying wheel,

I’ll soon be back,

be back,

be back.

by Anne Bell

Ann said:  Goodness gracious me…this was first published in The School Magaz Circa Yonks AD when that journal was edited by Lilith Norman and still in black and white mode.

Good News Story by Lynelle Kendall

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Good News Story

The Easter story starts at Christmas,

When a baby named Jesus was born.

A special child, sent to save all people.

He brought hope like a bright new dawn.

As a man he told people God wanted their friendship,

But the wrong things they did had to go.

God is good, he is sad when we steal, when we lie,

When we’re mean to the people we know.

The first Easter, good Friday, Jesus died on a cross,

Took away all those wrong things we do,

And to prove he’s God’s son, and that those things are gone,

He came back to life! Yes it’s true!

Trust him with your heart and you can be God’s friend!

That’s what Easter is really about.

Hot cross buns will remind us; Jesus made a way,

It’s a good news story, no doubt!

By Lynelle Kendall

Lynelle said: At Easter, Christians celebrate that Jesus died on the cross and came back to life. This good news is for all people everywhere. If you want to
find out more, ask the Chaplain at your school.