Tag Archives: alphabet poems

To a “T” by Walter de Jong

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To a T

My thought paused where paths intersect,

it knew which way was right

but what was left to know

was much more interesting that night

‘tis true that to the right

was where all sensible thoughts would turn;

avoiding less trod tracks, devoid of facts

where questions burned

but this thought had a mission;

to discover poetry

and he risked the world’s derision.

That way suits him to a t

Walter de Jong

Walter’s cloud theory: A cloud should fulfil its purpose of conveying something of substance which, upon precipitation, may nurture growth in the earth. A cloud should be impressive in itself; beautiful, awesome and individual; it should evoke feeling. A cloud should engage its audience and inspire them to find an echo of their own imaginings and create their own personal meaning. And in my own creations I will aim to emulate the clouds.

Frangipani by Penny Szentkuti

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Frangipani

Frangipani

Grows, guerilla-planted, by the footpath.

How does a stick thrust

Into the dirt

Just grow?

Kicking into life,

Leaning into light,

Making the most of

Night rain,

Of morning dew.

Putting down roots

Quietly

Reaching down to grasp

Soil,

To hold the earth steadily

Until

Velvet furls of leaf appear,

Waking now above, as below.

Penny Szentkuti

Penny says: I enjoy constraints when writing poetry so I don’t feel overwhelmed by the task, so this prompt appealed to me. I’ve been observing a beautiful deep pink frangipani outside my place for several weeks and it was a delight to explore that with words. I like how I was forced to split phrases which increased the emphasis on some words and ideas.

And Interview With T by Vivienne Nicoll-Hatton

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An Interview with T

 

You really want to know about me?

I’m not too ordinary for you?

I mean, I’m everywhere.

Even in Scrabble, my tiles are worth one, not two!

 

I like to keep slim, like my friends I.

E & F, and L, too,

Though they all look a bit unbalanced to me.

My horizontal hat is beautifully symmetrical.

You have noticed, haven’t you?

 

Being the 20th letter and so towards the end of the alphabet

means nothing!

I am the most frequently used letter

after those vowels, a, e, I and u.

And I’m not fussy about where I go inside a word,

Beginning, middle or end, doubled, to name just a few.

 

I’m a bit of a softy,

or at least the sound I represent is.

Toddlers can speak it by the age of two,

A gentle tap of the tongue to the roof of the mouth, behind the front teeth,

But don’t use your voice, you’ll get my cousin D’s sound if you do!

 

Do other letters want to hang about with me?

Yes, there are a few.

There are the vowels, and also some consonants

H is probably my best friend, because when he’s beside me to the left

We do this weird thing with G, you know, eight, night, and tight.

But when you put him to my right, we represent another sound, no, two.

Listen: TH: with voice we make they, their, there, they’re, and those.

Now listen again, TH: without voice we make thick, thin, thunder, through

 

Sufficient information, you say!

That’s fine. I know I’m a bit talkative.

But how many words within this little poem am I, your humble servant T, not in!

Count, I dare you to!

 

Vivienne Nicoll-Hatton

Vivienne says: I love poetry and am particularly concerned that we can get kids interested both in reading it, and then, later, writing it.

I also have an interest in English orthography: boring to many others, but not me. Hence my contribution.