NPM 2026: Progressive Poem

Welcome to the 2026 National Poetry Month's Progressive Poem. Inside The Land of Poetry, you will discover the magic of words coming alive. You will also uncover poetic elements and enjoy vivid imagery as you stroll through each line created by the 15 Progressive Poem poets who added their lines before me. 

It is now Day 16, my turn to add a line. I pause after reading and rereading stanza 4 of my colleague's lines. I ponder how I should tackle the last line of stanza 4. The right rhyme is key to following a pattern noted in the previous stanzas. A memorable statement seems important for those standing in front of the bandstand in Frost Forest. A spark evolves. I hope my line brings clarity for my poet friend, Robyn Hood Black, who will add the next line.

The Land of Poetry

On my first trip to the Land of Poetry,
I saw anthologies of every color, tall as buildings.
A world of words, wonder on wings, waiting just for me!
Birding for words shimmering, flecked in golden gilding.

Binoculars ready, I toured boulevards and side streets
exploring vibrant verses, verses so honest and tender,
feathery lyrics, bright flitting avian athletes
soaring ‘cross pages in rhythmic splendor.

In the Land of Poetry, I am the conductor,
seeking oodles of poems that tug at my heart,                        a musical medley of sound and structure,                                 an open mic in Frost Forest! Wonder who'll take part?

There's a pause in the program; no one takes the stage
the trees quiver, the audience looks up. Raven lands,            singing Earth's message of the sage.                                        "Poetry in motion will be forevermore, from forests to sands."

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Credits: Irene Latham created the idea of a Kidlit Progressive Poem during National Poetry Month, Margaret Simon organized the Progressive Poem and created a lovely logo. Tabatha Yeatts created the colorful Land of Poetry map, and Donna Smith added the location names, followed by Heidi Mordhorst. Stanza 4 colleagues, Linda Mitchell, Jone MacCulloch, and Joyce Uglow, offered a mid-poem surprise.

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Below, you will find the names of poetry friends who contribute their lines for the Progressive Poem. 

April 1 Tabatha Yeatts at  The Opposite of Indifference
April 2 Cathy Stenquist at A Little Bit of This and That
April 3 Patricia Franz at Reverie
April 4 Donna Smith at Mainely Write
April 5 Janice Scully at Salt City Verse
April 6 Denise Krebs at Dare to Care
April 7 Ruth Hersey at There is no such thing as a God-forsaken town
April 8 Rose Cappelli at Imagine the Possibilities
April 9 Margaret Simon at Reflections on the Teche
April 10 Janet Clare Fagel at Reflections on the Teche
April 11 Diane Davis at Starting Again in Poetry
April 12 Linda Baie at Teacher Dance
April 13 Linda Mitchell at Another Word Edgewise
April 14 Jone MacCulloch at Jone Rush MacCulloch
April 15 Joyce Uglow at Storied Ink
April 16 Carol Varsalona at Beyond Literacy Link
April 17 Robyn Hood Black at Life on the Deckle Edge
April 18 Michele Kogan at More Art for All
April 19 Kim Johnson at Common Threads
April 20 Buffy Silverman
April 21 Irene Latham at Live Your Poem
April 22 Karen Edmisten
April 23 Heidi Mordhorst at my juicy little universe
April 24 Mary Lee Hahn at A(nother) Year of Reading
April 25 Tanita Davis at Fiction, instead of Lies
April 26 Sharon Roy at Pedaling Poet
April 27 Tracey Kiff-Judson at Tangles and Tails
April 28 Tabatha Yeatts at The Opposite of Indifference