Lent 2007 - An Odd Odyssey

Two years ago I decided to give up stuff for Lent, and last year I needed to learn Portuguese, so I took that up. This year after a bit of asking around I thought that a good way to make my life just a bit harder was to take up poetry. Each day there's a special word which I had to write the poem about or with, and there are seven types of poems, one for each day of the week:

Sunday - Cinquain - Using the word as the first line of the poem.
Monday - Alternate rhyme - One verse with rhyming scheme ABAB starting with the word.
Tuesday - Limeric - Rhyme scheme AABBA ending the first line with the word (if at all possible).
Wednesday - Tanka - Using word as title, 5/7/5 syllables in first mood, followed by 7/7 syllables in a second mood.
Thursday - Acrostic - Using letters of word to start each word. Content to be relating to the word.
Friday - Haiku - 5/7/5 syllables with the word as the title.
Saturday - Description - A description of the word without using the letters of it.

Day of Lent	Poem of the day	Rejected Words
1 (21st Feb)	Hello A cheerful greeting Inviting conversation Points me to a friend But now the silence destroyed No way to recall my thoughts.
2 (22nd Feb)	Acrostic 1 Hello Originally Wyandot	Heya
3 (23rd Feb)	Morning The opening scene of the act that is today. I'll hide in my bed.
4 (24th Feb)	Description 1 Unit of width by width, fitting loosly fifty links on both widths.	Morning, How
5 (25th Feb)	You Tall, tired Standing, talking, yawning Unwittingly invading my world Alien	Hello, I'm, OK, Morning, How, Are
6 (26th Feb)	Alternate Rhyme 1 Today often I think upon his death. Today I know that it was all unjust. And though I never saw him take a breath, Today I'll wait for him amongst the dust.	Morning, Tom, How, Are, You
7 (27th Feb)	Limeric 1 A policeman asked what I was doing, When I tripped the man he was pursuing. He shouted at me That the thief would go free, And he'd probably end up suing.	Hey, Tom, How, Are, You
8 (28th Feb)	Quite It's incomplete still, A piece of art left forgotten, Needing attention. When I look at what's missing The glass is really quite full.	Hello, OK
9 (1st Mar)	Acrostic 2 Article.	It's
10 (2nd Mar)	Away Going somewhere else, Leaving the comfort of home. I hope it's better.	Heya, Sail?
11 (3rd Mar)	Description 2 The word used when someone talks about themself. A short word, And not a member of a team.	I was quite asleep this morning so I'm not completely sure this was the first word.
12 (4th Mar)	Know Powerful, priceless Stating, staying, staining Dim reflection of experience Memory.	Heya, Morning, How, Are You, I Don't
13 (5th Mar)	Alternate Rhyme 2 Still, the lilies on the water sit, Bright, the flowers sprinkled all around, Warm, my perch beneath the sunlight lit, Home, this place among the trees I've found.	Heya, How's, You
14 (6th Mar)	Limeric 2 I do not think flying is right, A plane made of steel is not light. To get to Bombay, I won't take BA Anymore than I'd fly on a kite.
15 (7th Mar)	Cool That guy over there Gets respect from everyone, Acts like they're not there. Though he wishes privately I wish I could know them more.	I've given up writing down everything which gets said - it's depressingly repetitive!
16 (8th Mar)	Acrostic 3 Twelve With Eight. Not Teenage; Youthful.
17 (9th Mar)	Saw A row of sharp teeth On a sheet of cold metal, Turning wood to dust.
18 (10th Mar)	Description 3 A game where a chaser chases people. Whoever's prodded by a chaser becomes a chaser. When a chaser prods someone he or she no longer chases.
19 (11th Mar)	Who Elusive, Mysterious Slinking, Skulking, Sneaking Always in the shadows Thief.
20 (12th Mar)	Alternate Rhyme 3 Achy back and tired legs, No way to rest my feet. My worn-out wooden posture begs You not to use my seat.
21 (13th Mar)	Limeric 3 There once was a young man who, when, He went up to the top of Big Ben, Looking out from inside Thought the time 2:05. (two oh five) [It's really five minutes to ten.]	Thanks to Naomi for getting me started on this one ("How do I end a line with 'When'?")
22 (14th Mar)	Looked Through the primrose hedge and past the netball players, I spy a young girl. She's counting backwards from ten. "I'm coming, ready or not!"	The tone is meant to change in this poem, and with that in mind I think you can see the meaning.
23 (15th Mar)	Acrostic 4 We Hear "Y"	Slightly crossword clue-esque
24 (16th Mar)	Tea Tea bag and water, Stir, remove bag, then add milk, Swirling white and brown.
25 (17th Mar)	Description4 Moonlit night but foggy; gloomy. Knobbly goblin following my motion Boo! [I jump]
26 (18th Mar)	Ready Astute, alert, Equipped, trained, briefed, Waiting for the signal. Wicket.
27 (19th Mar)	Alternate Rhyme 4 Did the kid bid the squid Try to tie-dye my right thigh? Squid in pan and shut the lid. Buy my squid eye stir fry pie!
28 (20th Mar)	Limeric 4 I wanted to keep us together, For many seasons and changes of weather. So now while we stand, I'll take hold of your hand, 'Cos I've heard super glue lasts forever.
29 (21st Mar)	Bread Should have toasted it; Disposal by cremation; Less for me to eat. Though, when you add a filling It can really come to life.
30 (22nd Mar)		A few mornings in a row I was doing something first thing in the morning, consequently I failed to even write down the words for some days.
31 (23rd Mar)		I might restart on a later day, or I might just leave it as a failure this year.
32 (24th Mar)		One of the problems was trying to keep up two other Lent commitments (less original ideas, like reading the bible more).
33 (25th Mar)		Also I think my dedication to the Cricket World Cup and THUCWCFTT7 distracted me from writing poetry.
34 (26th Mar)
35 (27th Mar)
36 (28th Mar)
37 (29th Mar)
38 (30th Mar)
39 (31st Mar)
40 (1st Apr)
41 (2nd Apr)
42 (3rd Apr)
43 (4th Apr)
44 (5th Apr)
45 (6th Apr)
46 (7th Apr)
47 (8th Apr)	E A S T E R

Words are allowed to be rejected for three reasons:

• They're too close to a word that's come before.
• They're not real words.
• I didn't hear the word clearly.

To see one of my published poems look here.