Pondering Poetry

We are leaving for vacation tomorrow, but I could not leave before posting these pictures of hydrangeas, a lovely flower that, according to my neighbor, is at its peak right now.  So here is a nonsense poem accompanied by hydrangeas. I also added two other flowers I saw on my walk this week and this morning. One is a single calla lily and the other is simply listed as Lily in my Best Garden Plants for Pennsylvania, by Ilene Sternberg and Slidon Beck. When your divorce is (ancient) history, think about writing something nonsensical to get your sense of humor back.

Are you averse to a verse?

Do you like a rhyme that is terse?

Should the words actually trip

from your brain to your lip?

Is free verse poetry, or not?

Aren’t the unrhymed words just thoughts that you’ve got

rolling round in your brain

driving you insane

‘Til they’re plain words on a line?

Like the difference between grape juice and wine…

Both made from grapes, ’tis true.

 

But one’s a drink, the other, a brew

that takes time to ferment and age,

Like a poem thoughtfully rhymed on the stage

of your mind’s running wild…

or papers that you’ve filed.

So is a verse a verse, if it doesn’t rhyme?

Whether it’s a dollar or a dime

It’s still money, no?

If it’s a poem in your eyes, it’s a poem, if you say so!

P.S. According to my neighbor Marilyn, the color of the hydrangea develops as a result of the acidity in the soil, so one plant can have multiple colors because the acidity varies. Interesting fact!