Blog: Writing Poems in April for National Poetry Month #NaPoWriMo

April is national poetry month, and lots of people are celebrating. Between blogging, adding layers to my novel, writing for the Arkansas Writers’ Conference, and attending the AR SCBWI Conference, I think I might still be able to make a little time to write a few (short) poems this month for NaPoWriMo.

NaPoWriMo (short for National Poetry Writing Month) is the equivalent of NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) except for poetry. The challenge is to write 30 poems during April. This blog post will be where I will be posting all of my terrible first rough drafts for this challenge, so bookmark this page and check back often for updates. I may not be able to post all of my poems on the day I write them, but I do hope to have 30 poems by the end of April.

If you need help with poetry idea or types of poetry, both the NaPoWriMo website and Robert Lee Brewer’s Poetic Asides blog on the Writers’ Digest website will have daily prompts.

Happy National Poetry Month and Happy Writing! Here are my poems for this month:

01- Ghost in the Drain (Haiku)
By Robin A. Burrows

Gurgle, splash, ker-plop
A little ghost in the drain
Plays Marco Polo.

02- Daffodils (Haiku)
By Robin A. Burrows

Daffodils awake,
turn their faces to the sun,
and wonder: where’s God?

03- Whirlwind
By Robin A. Burrows

She came like a storm
with questions and insults
and stubborn attitudes.
A vortex of chaos.
A vortex of change.
Destroying all of the careful walls
Rhina had built in her tower.
Destroying all of the careful walls
she had built in her life.
Now with just a few moments
in the presence of the young girl
everything crumbled-
like pain.

04- One Day
By Robin A. Burrows

One day you will wake up
and the pain will be gone.
You loved one wouldn’t want
you so saddened by their passing.
The hole will remain,
but like an extra finger-
awkward at first
then just another piece
of who you are.
It dissolves into the ether,
softened by acceptance -
contentment filling your soul.

Everything will be all right
one day.
Just wait and see.

05- Blossoms (Haiku)
By Robin A. Burrows

White petals rain down
showering the new born bride
in blessings of Spring.

06- Many-Faced
By Robin A. Burrows

He changed his face.
From priest to beggar.
Rags replacing the white robes.
Hair on his once-smooth face.
Dirt in the place of shine.
A cardboard sign instead
of a plastic cross.
Soft pleas replace the bull horn.
The same cars drive by.
The same people see the beggar face.
But how many will listen
- to this face?

07- Starting Again
By Robin A. Burrows

Nokar ate alone
at the restaurant
once a week
to see her face.

She would walk past his table.
But she didn’t know him anymore.

Time and Fate
and the great Veil
had erased
her life; her memories.

She was someone else now.

But he remembered.
every word,
every sigh,
every tear.

And the tragic accident that took her away.
But she didn’t know hm anymore.

All he could do was
come to the restaurant
to be close
to be connected
though they were
a million lives apart.

08- The History-Mobile (Haiku)
By Robin A. Burrows

Vacuum tubes, cell phones
and calculators galore
- glued all over a truck.

09- Waltz of the Jellyfish (Haiku)
By Robin A. Burrows

Jellyfish sparkle
blue on the evening beaches
- romantic for all.

10- Dream Walker
By Robin A. Burrows

He’s the face in her dreams.
The one snuggling close, nuzzling.
The one who re-enacts the books she reads.
The one who has lived a thousand lives.
But when she wakes,
Nokar is just a foggy dream.

11- A Cold
By Robin A. Burrows

The ache.
The chill.
The heat.
Constriction
Of the throat,
Nose, head, eyes.
The coughing.
The sneezes.
Throat on fire.

Oh for a hot spring
and some hot soup
to scare this cold away.

12- His Comet
By Robin A. Burrows

She was his comet.
His past. His future.
The land where all was right,
And everyone got to be themselves.

Her car sits through green.
And floors the red.
Expectations out the window.
Roads disappearing beneath the wheels.

Until all roads led home
Burning through the night.
Everything in flames.
Their world crashed to the ground
- in truth and pain.

13- Supposedly
By Robin A. Burrows

He cooked for her
and cleaned
and took care of her.
He made her
chicken soup
and sausages
when she was sick.
But when he
caught her illness
she went out partying
instead of coming home
to take care
of the man she
supposedly loved.

 14- Cat Dreams (Haiku)
By Robin A. Burrows 

She lay in a heap
paws raised up towards the ceiling
-another sweet dream. 

15- Yesterdays (Haiku)
By Robin A. Burrows

“Forgive me,” she said
“I only want peace for us.”
A friendship renewed. 

16- Nature’s Umbrellas (Haiku)
By Robin A. Burrows 

Heavy droplets fall
Splashing on pale green leaflets,
Hiding butterflies. 

17- Heart-Stealer (Haiku)
By Robin A. Burrows 

Dragons of the sky
Swoop and sweep and search below
For the human thief. 

18- The Inventor (Haiku)
By Robin A. Burrows 

Inventor broken
Inventions all cast aside
Who will fix her now? 

19- Lost in Space (Haiku)
By Robin A. Burrows 

Like a whale of iron
She sails the dark sea of stars
Lost, looking for home. 

20- Burdened Tree (Haiku)
By Robin A. Burrows 

Tangled branches twist
Between brown vines grown so thick
- tree struggling for light. 

21- Lean Days (Haiku)
By Robin A. Burrows 

Grass of brown and green
Wild flowers pushed in between
Yard ever so lean. 

22- Evening (Haiku)
By Robin A. Burrows 

Tiger, sky dancing,
Orange against velvet starlight
Twilight hunts once more. 

23- Walnuts (Haiku)
By Robin A. Burrows 

Black rivers of ridges
Caves so deep, dark, and scary-
Even the seed flees. 

24- Elopod (Haiku)
By Robin A. Burrows 

Purple face and trunk
Wrinkled leather ears, flapping,
They chase the merchant.

25- Secret Lovers
By Robin A. Burrows

Mornings
are more brilliant
when nights
hold your soul;
dawn a fable
whispered of
beneath blue skies.

But
with sleep refrained
or sleep interrupted
magic hovers
on the horizon.
The orange-pink glow
beats back the darkness.
Rays of light
break the shroud
and embrace the sky.
Colors explode
in the passionate
love-making of dawn.

26- Words, Names, and Stories (Haiku)
By Robin A. Burrows

Names- never unique.
Twenty-six letters unite.
Gibberish or done.

27- Sky Quakes
By Robin A. Burrows

Thunder overhead
The building shakes and rattles
Earth quakes from the sky.

28- Monster Level 80 (Haiku)
By Robin A. Burrows

Snowy white bunny.
Fluffy cute fur draws you in.
So it can eat you.

29- WIND (Haiku)
By Robin A. Burrows

Masters of the wind
Sailing the sky and the mind
Wind Riders prevail.

30- A Few Years (Haiku)
By Robin A. Burrows

What are a few years?
Nothing to the middle-aged.
Eons to the young.

###

Please check back often for more poetry updates this month. I may not be able to update this page daily, but I will have 30 poems by the end of the month.

Read my writing samples | Buy my poetry book | Follow me on FaceBook