Winter enters each year searching for different designs to dress Earth in style. She whispers, roars, or spins new tales with the weather as her topic. Recently, Winter chose a frosted blue color to match the recent meteorological changes, two snowstorms with schools closed and rain following. The fireplace warms the house as I sit quietly writing. Several projects are available to work on, one of which is the digital journal I started before the end of 2023 and Jone Rush McCulloch's New Year Poetry Postcard project.
🌲 Winter Transition: Poetic Journal🌲
One Year To The Next
end-
of-year reflections
one word thoughts
wait for 2023's nearing
closure
anticipation
countdown pairs
with Waterford crystals
bidding 2023 a cheerful
transition
2024
gloriously arrives
with cheering fanfare
and colorful worldwide celebrations
expectation
winter
breath breathes
slowly before introducing
2024 wishes of hope
pause
windy
winter storms
sweep across states
roaring as 2024 continues
disruptions
©CVarsalona, 2023-2024, Elfchen poem series
******************
The Poetry Sisters' January 2024 Challenge
The ekphrastic poem below is offered to The Poetry Sisters, Tanita, Laura, Mary Lee, Liz. Sara, Tricia, and Kelly, invited for their January Challenge. They are celebrating paper artwork on pinantas by the imaginative artist, Roberto Benavidez.
"Play celebrates the power of imagination and the child in all of us."
-Roberto Benavidez Craft in America
It's time to join the Poetry Friday Roundup at our host, Susan Thomsen's blog, Chicken Spaghetti. You can read her original poem, Ano Nuevo which is a response to the Poetry Sisters' January Challenge.
Dear Carol, thank you for sharing your poetic journal. Lovely! So nice we had that slow winter breath before all the storms rushed in. Thank you! xo
ReplyDeleteThank you, Irene, for joining me here. The weather is mild these past few days and winter feels like early spring. May your day be peaceful.
DeleteYour poetry journal is going to give you lots of smiles this year as you read through it, Carol, a tiny diary as the celebrations and wishes of hope keep the year trudging on! And, happy to see another gorgeous & amazing piñata, enhanced by your poem, 'artistry'! Have a lovely weekend!
ReplyDeleteLinda, pinata artistry is abound this PF Roundup. I am enjoying all the nods to poetry goodness. May your weekend be filled with peace and pleasant weather.
DeleteSuch unusual pinatas! I have never seen any like the ones that are being shared this week. Your reflections on 2023 and 2024 to date are on the mark!
ReplyDeleteIt's a pinata poem festival. I move from blog to blog enjoying each one, Tracey.
DeleteAww, I love "memories laced with love," Carol - such a great way to reflect on a year. And have to say, I giggled at your pinata pic - reminds me of an upclose of Dorothy's friend, Scarecrow :)
ReplyDeletePatricia, yes the pinata does look like the Scarecrow in the Wizard of Oz, now that you mention it. It is so touching to receive comments from PF friends. Have a great week in your 2nd home.
DeleteCarol, a record of the year so far in poetry is a wonderful thing to have. Thank you for sharing it with us! You've put the elfchen form to good use here--and in the piñata poem, too.
ReplyDeleteI was just thinking that February is on the way so a Elfchen Poetic Journal of the month is in order. Have a wonderful week, Susan.
DeleteThank you for sharing your journal Carol - I love the contrasts in your reflections, with pauses, and fireworks and storms all making their appearances. And that pinata!
ReplyDeleteSally, the Poetry Sisters provided the background for another fabulous poetry moment that spreads joy. Enjoy your weekend.
DeleteCarol, it's fun to read the transition to the blue hues of wintry weather. Stay safe, everyone! I enjoy seeing each pinata that people are writing about. This one you chose looks like a what I would think a tree person would look like. I think Benavidez should get to read your poem--yes, indeed, "artistry" with "imaginative flair"--such great descriptive phrases.
ReplyDeleteDenise, you gave me the incentive to send Benavidez my poem with many thanks for his artistry.
DeleteThanks for another lovely post! Ruth, thereisnosuchthingasagodforsakentown.blogspot.com
ReplyDeleteRuth, thanks for sharing your thoughts. I hope you're still enjoying your new mission and finding new and exciting bird life to thrill us. Have a wonderful week.
DeleteYes to all that winter goodness--and then we reached 80 yesterday! What a swing! Love that pinata too!
ReplyDeleteSwinging temps seem to be the thing lately. Drizzle Drizzelle!
DeleteI love how "reaching" becomes "artistry" in your piñata elfchen! Perfect!!
ReplyDeleteMary Lee, I am still mesmerized by the combination of pinata adornments and poetry goodness. What a happy weekend of joy the Poetry Sisters provided.
DeleteYour poetry journal is lovely, Carol. I found myself lost in your beautiful words. When I list all those closing words - closure, transition, expectation, pause, disruptions - I find another poem about moving from one year to the next.
ReplyDeleteCarol, I loved going back and reading just the first and last lines of each elfchen. They seemed to make a poem of their own too. Your pinata poem resonates, too. I've been thinking about craft vs. art. Craft and art. Craft or art. How to stretch and reach beyond strong craft (which is important) to art (which is what touches people, I think). May 2024 be as lovely as those faces in your photo collage xox
ReplyDeleteCarol, your poems paint such a vivid picture of winter and the transition from one year to another. I've been enjoying all of the piñata poems, and I love that your poem is about the artist himself!
ReplyDeleteCarol, thank you for the moments of peace your poetry offers. So much fanfare for the new year--but wouldn't we all just love to linger in a few breaths of peace. I love the photos!
ReplyDeleteI love the poetic journal idea! The way you repeat the form but the content changes is very effective. I'm going to adapt it and use it as a poetry prompt for my poetry group's upcoming February daily (or other commitment) poetry project. The words "reaching" and "stretching beyond" resonate for me along with Roberto Benavidez's wonderful quote and image.
ReplyDeleteI saw an elfchen on Margaret's blog yesterday - and used the format for my light play with poetry, to accompany my photo-a-day challenge. (I wrote three weather elfchens inspired by 'crisp'.) It was lovely to spot/recognise the form here. I especially like your new year anticipation/transition.
ReplyDeleteAND... I've been gone so long, I've completely missed a new addition into your family... Yes? How exciting!
I love how your journal marks time, sees landscapes change with the weather to help careful observers like you find poems. The piñata's I've seen this week are such a different and creative form of art as celebrated by your short and evocative poem.
ReplyDeleteJanice, thanks for joining me here. I think the PF community offers variety in poetic formats, perspectives on life, and soothing thoughts. We are fortunate to grow with others throughout the years.
DeleteThanks for stopping by this morning Liz. I am prepping to write an elfchen for the February Poem Postcard group. Have a wonderful day.
ReplyDelete