Prompt #116 – Migrations

As summer winds down and we begin the month of September, autumn migrations – heralds of cooler air and bright colors – begin in my corner of the world. Many years ago, back in the days when I was active in the haiku community, I wrote a poem about migrating geese, which later became the title poem of a haiku collection. The poem was honored with a first place Henderson Award in 1984, and the book won the first place Merit Book Award for 1987. 

                                                      migrating geese –

                                                      once there was so much

                                                      to say

I haven’t thought of the poem or the book in years, but I did yesterday when a flock of geese, apparently in a pattern of early migration, flew above my back yard just as dusk began to settle. I thought then about that little poem and how it linked the seasonal migration of geese (nature) to the way a relationship had changed (human nature). It occurred to me that there are times in all of our lives when we find ourselves in a process of migration (not merely physical migration, but movement from one spiritual place to another, from one emotional place to another, from one relationship to another). 

I hope the idea of “migration” will capture your imagination this week. Think about it: birds and animals migrate; people migrate; migration is a way of marking time; migration is about journeying; migration is about change; migration is a state of mind. This week, let's write about a personal migration – your movement from one place to another (emotional, spiritual, actual). 

1. Begin with a freewrite and then look over what you’ve written to see which ideas you can work into a poem. 

2. Try to incorporate some nature imagery. 

3. Compare yourself (or something in your life) to a flock of migrating birds or to a single migrating bird. 

4. Write a persona poem from the perspective of a migrating bird, butterfly, or animal.

5. Try using “What The Wild Geese Know" as a title or theme. 

6. If you like haiku, try writing a migration haiku. Click Here for Info on Haiku.

7. If writing about a personal “migration” doesn’t come together for you, write about a bird, butterfly, or animal migration. (You might even try an immigration poem.)

Most importantly, think about the rich potential in migration for metaphor, imagery, and figurative language; go beyond the obvious; give your poem room to discover what lies behind its conscious subject – "migrate" beyond your poem's surface content to create layers of meaning!

Examples:

"Something Told the Wild Geese" by Rachel Field

"The Migration of the Butterfly Tattoo" by Tony Gruenewald

"Migration" by Major Jackson (audio)

"Wild Geese" by Mary Oliver

"Wild Geese" by Wendell Berry