Surprises - My Poem Writing Year #176

Draft of Surprises

Students - sometimes poems come together in scrips and scraps, the same way that dreams come.  I am not sure, but I think this poem came from the following facts:

1.  I saw two children covered in temporary tattoos last Saturday.

2.  My son went to the doctor yesterday.

3.  International Talk Like a Pirate Day was three days ago.

4.  I know someone with lots of tattoos who once told me that the secret to having lots of tattoos is to get them in places that hide beneath your clothes.

5.  Someone else told me last week that she has a tattoo, and I was surprised. 

6.  My sister is a doctor, and her four-year-old son's name is Jack.  (I do not think that either of them have tattoos.)

7.  I loved the adult novel THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO.

Usually I do not go back and deconstruct where a poem came from, but it was interesting to think through what brought this poem out of the abyss.

After writing several drafts yesterday, I asked my children to read this poem aloud.  Listening to someone else read my poems aloud helps me know if I have written clearly and in a strong enough meter.  This time there were a few places that I wanted to go in and tweak, and the poem actually ended up quite different in some spots.  Revision is like playing around on an instrument, just listening to how different sounds and meanings go together and deciding on your favorites.

Next Friday is National Punctuation Day...start preparing to celebrate now!

       

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