Poetry Prompt # 69 – Gratitude

During the last days of August, people living in my part of the country felt tremors from an earthquake several states away, and Hurricane Irene blasted our area with enough force to cause severe flooding, long power outages, and considerable property damage. Coming through with just a little water in the garage and a few branches down in the yard, I found myself reflecting upon gratitude and how blessed I am. That led me to think about how we express our gratitude for the obvious (food, shelter, clothing, family, friends) but what about the not-so-obvious and the profoundly personal? This week, let’s spend time thinking about something specific and special for which we’re grateful as the inspiration for a poem. Concentrate on using imagery to express emotion without "telling" and to create mood and atmosphere. Work with images that are “new-struck” and resonant.

Examples: 

"With Gratitude" by Edward Hirsch

"Thanks" by W. S. Merwin

And … by way of sharing, here’s a “gratitude” poem from What Matters. 

We Don’t Forget

Tonight you heard my

footsteps in the room

above and called to me.

I didn’t answer. There

was only the movement of

air my body made when

I turned to your voice.

Later, in what might have

been a dream, a little boy

played stickball in the street,

the moon shuffled home.

Grace is acceptance –

all of it, whatever is – as

in we live for this: love

and gratitude enough.

We don’t forget

how it feels to rejoice.

(from What Matters , Copyright © 2011 by Adele Kenny, Welcome Rain Publishers)