Tuesday Poem - 'La Feria' - Naomi Shihab Nye

I love the form of the prose poem, that unlikely, brief collision between prose and poetry which claims a lyricism that overrides and a brevity that undercuts narrative forcing the reader to question what exactly they are reading.

Years ago I discovered The Prose Poem, an American journal devoted to this form, submitted one of my first prose poems and was delighted to have it accepted. I've been further delighted today, when doing a quick 'net trawl, I discovered the journal now has a web presence. I hope this inspires you, as it did me, to re-examine this engaging hybrid.

Naomi Shihab Nye has long been one of my favourite poets. I love her work for adults and children equally and use her poem 'One Boy Told Me' when I teach Writing for Children. Enjoy Nye's prose poem, 'La Feria' here.

While you're zooming around checking links, don't forget to check out other Tuesday Poems through the Tuesday Poem blog. How good is John G.? He makes me want to foxtrot my words right out there!

Refrains and Repetitions

The girlchild sent me a poem from Japan, the backbone of which was a repeated phrase she'd tweaked so that repetitions were slightly differently accented and nuanced throughout but nonetheless structured the piece beautifully.

That made me think about repetitions - and, in particular, the phrases or refrains that are repeated throughout childhood.

Jamaica Kincaid has a wonderful short story, Girl, which uses a mother's admonitions and advice to capture a mother/daughter relationship. Poet Naomi Shihab Nye has written a poem which relates the conversation between a boy and his parent (One Boy Told Me), which, while it doesn't so much use repetition, nonetheless relies on captured conversation fragments.

What were refrains or repetitions that punctuated your childhood? Write a piece that uses these as a backbone or anchor.