The bustling elocution of
the eight-track saints
rattles nerves like diodes
hitched to an electric chair
Rancid impulses coagulate
around anger, another rant
blares from the radio
Car racing homeward
lizards skulking among
dead armadillos on the shoulder
One last chance for a course change
flinging into the driveway
desperate to say, I understand,
forgetting reason frothed to static
going instead for the gun
—
This is for the latest wordle prompt at Read Write Poem (#88). I like these word list prompts because I generally approach the writing with no preconceived notions of what the poem is going to be about. I just let the list of words play and try to see where they land. This one kind of surprised me.
James Brush is a teacher and writer who lives in Austin, TX. He tries to get outside as much as possible.
This immediately made me feel anger and frustration. the last line was perfect…
Thanks. It’s nice to hear you felt it.
Beyond the prompt, it’s a good treatment of a reality. Those last three lines are powerful.
Thanks.
A great last line there. You’ll find mine here.
Thank you for reading, Anthony. I’ll check yours out.
Hey, I like this! Timely subject, too. I like the lizards skulking among dead armadillos and the impulses coagulating around anger.
Dave, Thanks. That photo of the guy with the assault rifle at the Obama town hall meeting kind of sparked some of this.
I’m with Barbara on those last three lines!
Thanks, Derrick.
I like the strong feelings here.
static of the radio bustles at me
Thank you. I enjoyed your poem.
I really like the way this pulses forward image to image right through to that last line.
Thanks, Nathan.
I like it all.
I also approach the word lists as a springboard to see where the words lead me. However, I seldom feel compelled to use all of them.
Mark, Thanks. I usually try to use as many as possible, but I rarely get them all. I really wanted to use “salacious,” but it just didn’t go.
As I was reading this, then reading it again, I could sense some frustration with what is passing for political discourse right now.
A frustration I understand and share.
Yup. Definitely some frustration. Seems the paranoids are getting more attention than usual.
wow–great emotion in here. I love “eight-track saints.”
I suppose that and the lizard make me think of jim morrison when I read this…
Thanks, Angie. It’s surprising what doors a line will open for different people. Even better when it then opens for me too. Lots of surprises can be found in one’s own writing I guess.
“The bustling elocution of
the eight-track saints”
Was gorgeous. In fact, there was a lot of fantastic phrasing in this poem. I really liked it.
Thanks, Damian.
enjoyed this
The title is great. I like that the poem surprised you — I read somewhere once that a poet is supposed to write until he/she is surprised by what emerges.
I hadn’t heard that, but I like the idea. I’m surprised a lot. Perhaps I should quit sooner. 🙂
Hello, Coyote.
Really good to see such a powerful wordcrafter use the intuitive method so successfully. I would like to see you do this on Twitter using 140 characters.
Thank you,
Lavanna
Thanks for coming by and for your kind words, Lavanna. I’ve been using twitter and identi.ca for micro poetry. Follow the gnarled oak link on the navigation bar for more of that.
I really love what you’re doing on your blog, btw.
Thanks for stopping by mine, James, and so for bringing me here. Your poetry and your photos, especially the bird shots, are very compelling. I’ll be back.
Thanks, Lucy. I really like Box Elder and you’ll be seeing me around there as well.