At Dawn
Birdsongs at dawn
That time when i yawn
A sliver of light seeps in
My eyes seek to invite
Ah the wind so mild in sway
Banana fronds in shadow play
Magical the hours of newness
Erasing all my sleepiness
Ah birdsongs at dawn
© gillena cox 2026
Monday, March 9, 2026
Thursday, March 5, 2026
1377
Oh the dusty windy days
Sneezes and coughs in assails
Indoor stays become again
The best choice of aging
Wait till later the night brings
A calming song of baslm
Then feet may dance
And wine to announce
The poet's ardous soul
Which only the moon soup
The gadabout's pervade
The gadabout's prevail
© gillena cox 2026
BLOG HOPPING TODAY WITH
Challenge:
- Write at least 12 lines of poetry in couplets
- separate the poem into couplets of 2 line stanzas
- the couplets must rhyme but only using half or para rhymes
Tuesday, March 3, 2026
1376
As sure as sunshine after rain
Trek when sunny the day
Being close to trees again
Moss on age old stone
Birdsongs as sunshine after rain
Tired legs tired back
Stopping starting up again
Backpacks heavy to shoulders
Cicadas their shrill refrain
Atmosphere eerie forest green
Continue as sunshine after rain
© gillena cox 2026
Monday, March 2, 2026
1375
Goings And Comings
[I looked at the Soaps and enjoyed them so much. I never knew then, i was part of a soap opera, myself]
Last year it was my London uncle, he died, RIP. Then my youngest brother hosted for the first time a Family Get Together. There were folks from New York and Trinidad. We had a fun day in August.
yellow tees bespoke
colour my deceased mother
loved so very much
So that was last year, when i met for the first time a sister, i had heard about, who materialized, wearing red the colour of planet Mars. All the folks associated with only my father wore red.
So this year my Grenada uncle passed. He was the beloved uncle of all his neices and nephews. Would you beleive, no had anything negative to say of him. He was phenomenal.
one more shining star
has joined the overhead sky -
for my uncle James
Then in comes a new brother, living in Florida, who was searching for his father, who happened to be also my father. In conversation with a cousin of mine he related his quest. He had gone to the right source. By serendipity his search ended. Except for Rose, who was still in Grenada after the funeral of uncle James. Wednesday gone we brothers and sisters met.
my new found brother
at last we meet face to face -
celebration time
© gillena cox 2026
BLOG HOPPING TODAY WITH
Challenge: compose a haibun that reflects that resonance, as a tribute to the Pulitzer Prize-winner’s work - Tracy K. Smith, “Life on Mars” Graywolf Press
Tuesday, February 24, 2026
1374
[image from google]
Wonderland Today - a quadrille
Tears welled into an ocean
Hard to believe humans
Contained so much water
Alice knew swim she must
To get to the tea party
This was not yesterday's wonderland
To stay on that page
Here is a small fact:
You are going to die
© gillena cox 2026
The following are some opening lines. Please choose one as the closing line of your poem.
- “Here is a small fact: You are going to die.“
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
2. “It was a pleasure to burn.”
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
3. “All this happened, more or less.”
Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut
4. “History has failed us, but no matter.”
Pachinko by Min Jin Lee
5. “They shoot the white girl first.”
Paradise by Toni Morrison
6. “I write this sitting in the kitchen sink.”
I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
7. “The first thing I remember is being under something.”
Charles Bukowski, Ham on Rye
8. “This is the saddest story I have ever heard.“
Ford Madox Ford, The Good Soldier
9. “I was looking for a quiet place to die.”
Paul Auster, The Brooklyn Follies
10. “I am doomed to remember a boy with a wrecked voice.”
John Irving, A Prayer for Owen Meany
❧✿❧
Monday, February 23, 2026
1373
[image from Pinterest]
Gnawing hunger was eating
Away at her being
He left her oh too soon
Blame it on the moon
She didn't deserve this
Unkindness clouded like mist
She should try to move on
Maybe it was put on
Like a curse
Couldn't be worse.
© gillena cox 2026
Thursday, February 19, 2026
1372
Women in Carnival TT🇹🇹
Are we courting fire and brimstone?
Or, how deep are we into Hades?
Toe deep, ankle deep, knee?
It worried me for a while,
My masquerading sisters,
Playing mas so bare.
I pondered and contemplated.
You know, there was a time,
When women did not play mas,
Even though there were female roles
Men played them,
As i ponder, present day, women in mas,
Could it be, we are poems of protest?
Our energies are varied:
You know how recess time at school,
For some kids was play till you sweat,
While some more reserved will,
Go back to class intact,
Shirt in pants blouse in skirt.
So the way some women plas mas today,
Is our mind set recess time?
Then what of the spirit,
Because some folks cannot,
Look at these (ob)scenes,
Remember The Garden of Eden?
Remember how innocent we were,
Before that bite of the apple?
Then what happened?
God fashioned clothes
From fig leaves for us.
Are we poems of protest?
Is it recess time?
Will we get enough clothes sewn?
Do we need clothes in our sunfest?
© gillena cox 2026
BLOG HOPPING TODAY
Challenge:Write a poem built entirely (or mostly) from questions.
Guidelines:
- Begin with a question but don’t answer it. Let it breathe.
2. Continue with more questions that deepen, pivot, or expand on the theme.
3. Pair each question with imagery and metaphor. Let the image do some of the work of meaning.
4. Use at least two other poetic devices:
*personification
*alliteration or assonance
*contrast or paradox
*repetition for musicality
5.End on a question and resist the urge to resolve.
Let curiosity guide your lines. Let questions feel as powerful as answers.
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