Tag Archives: silver lining

Silver Lining June Round-Up

At the beginning of June I invitated all of you poets (or potential poets, which is all of you) out there to join me in Silver Lining June. This has been a collaborative project for the blogging and writing community to create together. Today I’m sharing all the wonderful creations – mine and yours.

What is the Silver Lining form, you ask? It’s a miner variation on the Golden Shovel form that I “invented” earlier this year. It offers a little more flexibility. Here are the “rules”.

Special thanks to the contributors to Silver Lining June:

Silver Lining June Poems (Prompt 1):

June Prompt No. 1

“A molten gold flows away from the sun.”

from “Evening Sea Wind” by Carl Sandburg

A Different Sun

Flesh and bones molten;

Borrowed life, paid for with gold,

Flows

Away

From

His silenced heart, to see a different sun.

by Monty Vern

Once the heart becomes molten,

Carefully cup the blistering gold

In your hands and…[more]

by Serendippity

Desire bubbles up like lava, molten

Fantasies of rings of gold

The way the conversation…[more]

by No Love For Fatties

The hammer raised falls, slag shoots a

Gray heat no so removed from molten

Iron once a bright glowing gold

Now dulled as heat…[more]

by A Different Perspective

Silver Lining June Poems (Prompt 2):

June Prompt No. 2

“It is in the smell of an avocado blossom, and in the true passion of a kiss.”

from “The Unnamable River” by Arthur Sze

Avocado Toast

Feeding each other breakfast in bed, we lay in our smell;

Supple eggs on toast with buttery rich avocado

Sipping tea of steeped blossom

The blush of your naked cheeks true

A fading memory of passion

Reignited by the gentlest kiss

by Monty Vern

The Senselessness of Long Covid

Now you must accentuate sight, having lost smell.

Though slices of tomato, yellow pepper and avocado

Masquerade on a blue plate as a festive blossom,

Artistry is a…[more]

by Serendippity

Silver Lining June Poems (Prompt 3):

June Prompt No. 3

“The day is done, and the darkness

Falls from the wings of night,

As a feather is wafted downward

From an eagle in his flight.“

from “The Day is Done” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

This Day Undone

This day

Undone

Darkness

Lifts me high above the falls

With heavy wings

Sculpted in the image of night

Each iron feather

Forged from wafted

Despair turning upward downward

And the false eagle

Drops me from it’s hellish flight.

by Monty Vern

Something New Under the Sun

Again a demoralizing day:

Dear heart will you never be done

Fraternizing with darkness,

Letting stumbles lapse into falls,

“Forgetting” you have…[more]

by Serendippity

If you missed the Golden Shovels created by the community in the April challenge, check out all the contributions in the Golden Shovel April Round-Up. Feel free to give these prompts a try as well. They were great poem line prompts with lots of creative potential.

Be well,

Monty

Welcome to Silver Lining June (an invitation)

Here’s an invitation to all of you poets (or potential poets, which is all of you) out there to join me in Silver Lining June. This is a collaborative project for the blogging and writing community to create together.

Back in April I ran a challenge called “Golden Shovel April”, which called upon the community to create a Golden Shovel poem based on the prompts provided. It was a fabulous success and a number of the participants asked me to continue. However, I want to provide a little variety and so I’m going to run a new challenge based on the “Silver Lining” form — which is a variation on the Golden Shovel that I came up with earlier this year.

What is the Silver Lining form, you ask? It’s a miner variation on the Golden Shovel form that I “invented” earlier this year. It offers a little more flexibility. Here are the “rules”:

Silver Lining “Rules”

1) Take a line (or lines) from an existing poem (I provide this in the prompt section below)

2) Use each KEY word in the line (or lines) as an end word in your poem. You can skip words like “the”, “and”, “or” etc. that are less core to the meaning of the line. This is the key difference between the Silver Lining vs. the Golden Shovel.

3) Keep the end words in order.

4) The new poem does not have to be about the same subject as the poem that offers the end words.

5) Make sure to credit the poet who originally wrote the line (or lines) and link to my prompt post.

6. Have fun! If the rules are too rigid for what your muse is calling for then break them!

Silver Lining Example:

Prompt: “Cursing the winter solstice sun” (from Under the Solstice Sun by Monty Vern)

New Silver Lining poem (note that it excludes the “the” from the prompt line)

Fallen Sun

She cursing
Anger burning through cold winter
Sharp winds whipping away solstice
Me, her fallen sun.

Silver Lining June Prompts

Choose one, two, or all three and create your own Silver Lining poem for each prompt you select.

June Prompt No. 1

“A molten gold flows away from the sun.”

from “Evening Sea Wind” by Carl Sandburg

June Prompt No. 2

“It is in the smell of an avocado blossom, and in the true passion of a kiss.”

from “The Unnamable River” by Arthur Sze

June Prompt No. 3

“The day is done, and the darkness

Falls from the wings of Night,

As a feather is wafted downward

From an eagle in his flight.“

from “The Day is Done” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Additional Guidelines

(1) You can either post on your own blog and link to this prompt post so that we can all see it and further share, include it in this post’s comments section, or post on twitter and tag me (@montyvern).

(2) While there is not any hard deadline, the intention is to share your poem(s) during the prompt month (feel free to post each poem separately if you decide to do more then one). If you post prior to the end of the month, then I will try to include your submission (along with mine) in a monthly round-up post for us all to enjoy. If you’ve posted on your own site then I will include an excerpt with link. If you post either in the comments or twitter I will include the entire poem with credit to the author.

(3) While there is absolutely no requirement, I highly encourage you to tag one or two potential poets in your post and invite them to join. Let’s grow our creative community!

If you missed the Golden Shovels created by the community in the April challenge, check out all the contributions in the Golden Shovel April Round-Up. Feel free to give these prompts a try as well. They were great poem line prompts with lots of creative potential.

That’s it. Time to get poetic! Enjoy!

Be well,

Monty

Passing Thoughts (a Silver Lining)

The Silver Lining is twist on the The Golden Shovel poetic form that I’ve proposed. Learn more about The Silver Lining here.

A frog leaps out across the lawn,

And crouches there — all heavy and alone,

And like a blossom, pale and over-blown,

Once more the moon turns dim against the dawn.

from “Pastoral” by Djuna Barnes

Passing Thoughts

from “Pastoral” by Djuna Barnes; a Silver Lining by Monty Vern

Like a frog,

Green and throaty, it leaps

And bounds out

Of my mouth and across

My chest’s patchy lawn;

Crouches

Upon my heart, waiting there

Several beats until all

Is quiet, heavy,

Alone.

And like

A Blossom

Pink and pale,

Sitting under the weight, over-

Burdened, by dark rain, wind-blown

Once

An optimistic bud; no more,

Petals turn

Upside down, dim

Against

It’s final dawn.

Be well,

Monty

The Silver Lining No. 1 – “My Son”

Earlier this month, I proposed a modified version of The Golden Shovel poetry form: “The Silver Lining” – which I hope takes all the respect and goodness of The Golden Shovel form but provides just a minor twist that allows for more flexibility. You can check out the rules for the form and an example here.

In this post, I share my Silver Lining poem from the prompt I provided. Nobody took me up on the offer to collaborate, so no round-up of poetry from the community this time.

Silver Lining Prompt No. 01

“And the sun readies himself for sleep, drowses backward toward the horizon, and the woods whisper while the wind massages the sprawling arms of leaf-thick maples”

from Summer by Ross Gay

My Son by Monty Vern

From “Summer” by Ross Gay

My son, yes, my sun

Readies

Himself

For war, for famine, for a final end of times, or just a restless sleep

He drowses

Under pills prescribed and falls backward

His voice fades away from the phone toward

Somewhere, anywhere, away from our horizon

Did he fall asleep? We ask each other hopefully. Are we, for the moment, out of these unforgiving worried woods?

We listen carefully for a whisper

Of breath while

Imagining his heart beating a gentle wind

Sending messages of care like those massages

He always loved when cuddling as a young child sprawling

Across our bed in our welcoming arms;

All blind to the leaf-thick

Path ahead of tangled roots and branched maples.

Be well,

Monty

Poetry in Progress

I’m sharing this, but its still a work in progress. There is something missing or too much. I’m not really sure. I’ll give it some time then come back to it.

Untitled

(a Silver Lining from “I Sought the Wood in Winter” by Willa Cather)

I walked in and found what I hadn’t sought.

She laid upon the floor of cool wood.

Her body basking in the long light of summer.

Standing silently in the door, I wondered if and when

do I pull away silently or snap the figurative twig?

But I stood still, guilt ridden and virgin green.

Brushing away my rudest

thoughts — boughs

blocking the tender

scene of buds

in honeysuckle pink.

Wanting nothing to come between.

Her light-fingered

aspens

stretched toward me; I trembled

and shivered fitfully,

backing away from the suddenly urgent sun

seeking the cover of shade.

Forever on I sought to see daffodil

blossoms opening golden

behind every

door — my eyes starry

for a luscious peek of glades

split by running brooks;

To hear the mating song

of a robin

singing from nested hands

resting between her lissome

legs — on a maiden

voyage whispering to her willows

till she shook,

cried out yellow,

and threw back her auburn hair.

Be well,

Monty

Swimming with the Otters (A Silver Lining)

It was this poem by Hannah Aizeman (shared to me by my mom) that inspired me to the idea of The Silver Lining, a new twist on the The Golden Shovel form. Read about The Silver Lining and join in.

As a fathom of waters

As a keeper of otters

As a fan of the Dodgers

As a foremost scholar

As a leaver of mothers

As a giver of…

from “As a Father of Daughters” by Hannah Aizenman

Swimming with the Otters

a Silver Lining by Monty Vern

How far can I fathom?

I’m into the deepest of waters.

Am I a keeper?

I’m swimming with the otters.

Am I a broken old fan?

I’d have been one of the draft dodgers.

Am I on your mind foremost?

I’m an imperfect scholar.

Am I a leaver?

I regret, yes, of mothers.

Am I a giver?

Of all five quarters.

Am I a failure?

I’m a victor of rathers.

Am I faithful?

I’m an imperfect supporter.

What about me do you gather?

I’m not there, but We’re here, together.

Is it me you fear?

I am my disorder.

Am I a phantom?

I’m enough drama for the operas.

Am I a defender?

I cross borders.

Am I a frayer?

I cross wires.

Am I a good friend?

I’m prescribed by the good doctors.

Am I my own author?

I’m unsure of the gospels.

Am I grazing life’s field?

While I’m waiting for slaughter.

Be well,

Monty