Poetic Form 71: Seguidilla

 Should

Nothing feels the same now that

I forgot your skin,

the way your eyes filled my words

scribbled on the fringe.

I left those notebooks

in a damaged box taped shut

with a poem of should.

Poetic Form #71: Seguidilla

The Spanish form, Seguidilla, started as a dance song before becoming an

established poetic form. The poem has 7 lines with the following syllable count

for each line: 7-5-7-5-5-7-5. There is an assonance rhyme between lines 2 and 4

and another one between lines 5 and 7. There is a pause between lines 4 and 5

and a tone or focus changes between the same lines.

 

Poetic Form 70: Cascade

 This Poem

I give you these words

Punched out of my soul

To use as you wish

Every letter crafted with care

Even the spaces between are important

I give you these words

So we can hold time in place

Colored with emotions

Punched out of my soul

This is my present

Wrapped with a title

To use as you wish

Poetic Form #70: Cascade 

The Cascade form was invented by Udit Bhatia. The poem uses each 

line from the first stanza and makes those the final lines of each stanza

afterward. After that, there are no rules for rhyming, meter, etc.

I used a tercet form.

Poetic Form 69: Triversen

 Sledding

A winter day

filled with sun

too bright to see.

My daughters

small bundled colors

fly down a slope.

At times

I follow them

even at my age.

We fly 

together at times

crashing in joy.

Snow in boots

on gloves

melting on cheeks.

This is a moment

forever now

in our hearts.

Poetic Form #69: Triversen

The poetic form, Triversen, was developed by William Carlos Williams.

Each stanza equals one sentence. The sentence (stanza) breaks into 

three lines (each line is a phrase for the sentence). There is a variable 

2-4 beats per line. The poem is 18 lines (or 6 stanzas).

 

Poetic Form 68: Awdl Gywydd

 The Last Storm of 2020

As we slept, the snow fell from

clouds humming secrets. The night

kept the sun down an extra

minute. Electric the sight

of metal clouds, snow and rays

of light brazed across morning

routines. Plows beeping, a call

to arms. To all, a warning.

The year will not go gently

into twenty-one. A last

reminder of its death grip

on our kinship or love’s cast.

Poetic Form #68: Awdl Gywydd

The Welsh form, Awdl Gywydd, is interesting because of the internal

rhyme scheme. A stanza is four lines, with seven syllables per line. 

The final syllable of the first and third lines rhyme with the 3rd through

5th syllable of the following lines, while the second and fourth lines

rhyme. Here is a visual look at a stanza:

xxxxxxa

xxaxxxb

xxxxxxc

xxxxcxb

Poetic Form 67: Villanelle

 

Today in History

It’s hard living through history

Watching the days fill the pages

Never understanding glory 

No maps for this territory

All books burn in the dark ages

It’s hard living through history

Tomorrow is an allegory

Holding lock and key to cages

Never understanding glory

Today’s prayer for purgatory

Draws the thin line for war to rage

It’s hard living through history

Yesterday left a scar’s gory

Lesson to see life in stages

Never understanding glory

Only the clock’s auditory

Echo through time pays the wages

It’s hard living through history

Never understanding glory

Poetic Form #67: Villanelle

The villanelle consists of five tercets and a quatrain using a 

simple A / B rhyming scheme. The first and third lines of the first

stanza are refrains that repeat throughout the poem, alternating 

as the last line of the rest of the tercets. The final quatrain ends 

with the refrains. I created lines with 8 syllables. I found contradicting

information about having a set syllable rule for the lines.

Poetic Form 66: Ae Freislighe

Silent Night

I know what your emptiness

means for us in this moment.

Like a lost child’s faithfulness,

waiting for that wrapped present

under the tree, sorrowful

tears sting soft cheeks on Christmas.

Knowing there’s no tomorrow,

only a promise, because

I unwrapped your compromised

kisses under the darkness

of letters you plagiarized.

I know your love is starless.

Poetic Form#66: Ae Freislighe

The Irish poetic form, Ae Freislighe, is an intense rhyming form. It is 

constructed with quatrain stanzas (4-line stanzas) with 7 syllables 

per line. Lines 1 and 3 rhyme with three syllables (xxa) and lines 2 

and 4 rhyme with two syllables (xb). The final syllable, word, or line 

of the entire poem is the same as the beginning of the poem. The poem 

can be one stanza or as long as the poet wants.

 

Poetic Form 65: Decima

 

From Ashes

She opens a shoe box filled to

the brim with letters she never

sent. He always called from Denver

when he needed to fight the hue

of loneliness his searching drew.

She ignites a match to penned guards,

letting pain burn the house of cards

down to the ashes staining her

spirit. “Love will not be deferred,”

she whispers, cutting free his barbs.

Poetic Form 65: Decima

There are various versions of the Decima poetic form. The form I used is popular 

in Puerto Rico. The form has 10 lines with 8 syllables per line. The form has the 

following rhyme scheme:

A

B

B

A

A

C

C

D

D

C

 

And Like That

And Like That

And like that

  a student from the past

    no longer has a future

A young man in my memory

    grown to be a farmer and family man

I remember 

    a boyish grin above

    a home jersey with the number 5

    an underclassman

    waiting for time to give him his chance

I would chat with him on the sidelines

    about the last play

And like that

I can see that smile as his bride walks down the aisle

I can imagine the smile he had for the birth of his children

Or the long gaze to the horizon

    on a late autumn evening

The wheels of his tractor still

pride of a good life flowing through his veins

    warming his callous hands

That innocent smile

    creeping onto his face

    as he shifts the tractor into drive

Heading home to eat dinner with his wife 

    and three kids

And like that

Tonight there will be no smiles

The horizon will receive too many questions

    centered on why he was taken

    why daddy isn’t coming home

   

And like that

Family will come together

Only to feel a shocking sense of being alone

Every word they wanted to say

    sets like the sun at the end of the day

Every possible

    I love you

    and good night kiss

Will feel like a heavy coat of regret

Pockets empty

    like the tomorrows he no longer has

And like that

His family will stuff their hands deep into that sorrow

Hoping to find something

anything

     to remind them of his voice

And like that

We are all left with memories

Mine of a boyish grin

on the sideline of a football game

years ago

*In memory of Bryce Niss 11-17-2020

Poetic Form 64: Terzanelle

 

Just

I swear your tomorrows will not be the same.

Let me show you the true definition of forever.

Just kiss me like you don’t know his name.

Open your hands, release the smell of his letters.

We can find our way to being lost.

Let me show you the true definition of forever.

Exhale all the sweet nothings he whispered soft.

Lift your eyes when you hear my name.

We can find our way to being lost.

Place his midnight gaze in a flame, 

burn away the weight of his promise.

Lift your eyes when you hear my name.

My arms are strong enough for you to find solace.

I’ll mend all the tears he left behind,

burn away the weight of his promise.

Walk with me, who knows what we will find.

I swear your tomorrows will not be the same.

I’ll mend all the tears he left behind.

Just kiss me like you don’t know his name.

Poetic Form #64: Terzanelle

The terzanelle form combines aspects of the villanelle and the terza rima. 

The form has nineteen lines, with five triplets and a concluding quatrain. The second 

line of each triplet stanza is repeated as the third line in the following stanza.  

The first and third lines of the first stanza are the second and final lines of the

concluding quatrain. Traditional terzanelle poems use a consistent iambic meter,

but I did not use that in my poem. 

The form is as follows:

A(1) B A(2)

b C B

c D C

d E D

e F E

f A(1) F A(2)

Poetic Form 63: Clogyrnac

 Run

And this is why we fall down.

Everyone scrambling for a crown.

Mountains don’t have space

for kings or false grace.

Run your race.

Turn around.

Chart a path for a purpose more

valuable than gold decor.

Feel your lungs burning

with joy and yearning

of earning

your own lore.

Poetic Form #63: Clogyrnac

Clogyrnac is a Welsh poetic form that has a six-line syllabic stanza(s) with an 

AB rhyme scheme with specific syllable rules as follows.

Line 1: 8 syllables A rhyme

Line 2: 8 syllables A rhyme

Line 3: 5 syllables B rhyme

Line 4: 5 syllables B rhyme

Line 5: 3 syllables B rhyme

Line 6: 3 syllables A rhyme

There are some variances for this form, for example line 5 and 6 can be combined into on line

with the same rhyme scheme.