For the last day of NaPoWriMo, I wanted to return to my initial intention for the month: a poem for/about the goddess Idunn. The included lines of Old Norse are from the poem Hrafnagaldr Óðins (stanza 6) and transcribed from the song Iduna by Faun—which is also the melody of the "song" attested in my poem.…
A rough draft today—this may undergo some major editing in the future. Line lengths need trimming and repositioning, and I want to add more detailed descriptions. Today's prompt became the start of a new myth. I've long considered the life-and-death yin-yang nature of Iduna and Hel(a). There are no attestations that these two ever met.…
I decided not to do the prompt today. I just couldn't get into that headspace. I had writer's block most of the day until I found this tidbit in my notes: "Crab apples have long been associated with love and marriage. It was said that if you throw the pips into the fire while saying…
Okay, so the prompt said six lines, and I had every intention to keep it that short, especially with my work overload today...but I kept enhancing each line with parallelism and repetition until they were too long and unwieldy to keep. I had to break it up both for my sanity and yours. See if…
A short prayer for Idunn today. The example poem utilizes 10-15 syllables per line, though the prompt claims the form the author created to be 12 syllables per line. To be fair, the ending is consistent at 12 syllables. Either way, my poem keeps the lines tight at 10-11 syllables. His poem is technically three…
In a complete turnaround from yesterday, I am in love with today's prompt! A ghazal was the ideal form to repeat Idunn's name throughout, like a chant or a prayer. I can't believe I didn't think of it before. The length of 5-15 couplets meant I could easily make it 9, a Norse holy number.…
Today's prompt directed participants to pick a number, then write a poem with the words on that row. I cheated, and instead of picking a number first, I perused the list and chose the one(s) I wanted to do. I had to, in order to work around the prompt so I could make it related…
Playing catch-up today. I almost forgot what month it was! So often with the daily grind, I get into a routine rut. Such is adult life. Recent distractions I've found to help me survive reality: binging House MD on Hulu, learning how to play Magic: The Gathering (to appease my husband, so we can spend…
Jötnar do not march when Máni’s full face shows. Behind the back of his ebony skull, they stride. When one shivers in the sun, shade is a blanket. Wing-shadows of geese tickle dots across cheeks like the leaf-trickles of sun mortals bask beneath. Cloud cover is as soft to the touch as a feather pillow…
Floating on a covert mist: blood-runes microscopic elves carved from within tree-skins human-mind-thin. Shed etchings scatter to make room for future generations. The elder decomposes all wisdom with his corpse, save the nine slivers for those mortals who roam to find a wanderer’s truth. Non-finalist entry in this contest: https://allpoetry.com/contest/2830958-National-Poetry-Month-April-11th-noguest Photo by Marta Dzedyshko on…
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