Day 22 ... NaPoWriMo / Poem-a-Day 2013

Day 22. What comes to mind immediately is the novel Catch-22 by Joseph Heller; in our everyday language we use the slang "catch-22" to describe a problem that can't be solved because the problem itself prohibits a resolution. A no-win. Kobayashi Maru. And there's also the .22 caliber rifle so often mentioned in literature because it's a well-known weapon. Lots more 22-related trivia, but let's get to the poetry. Maureen Thorson suggests today we "write a poem in keeping with Earth Day — it could be a reflection on what's growing in your garden, a modern pastoral, or a Marianne-Moore-style poem about an animal. Anything to do with the natural world is fair game" (NaPoWriMo). Robert Lee Brewer's humorous prompt is to "write a complex poem. Complex is a complex word that can refer to mental state, apartments, difficulty of a situation, and so many other complex situations" (Poetic Asides). Love how he uses the word "complex" to define "complex" . . . nicely circular argument. Once more, I'm attempting to do both prompts, even though I'm not very handy with gardens or pastorals. I've written a close imitation of Marianne Moore's 8-line poem "A Jelly-Fish," trying to stay reasonably close to its sense pattern, its syllabics, rhythm, and rhyme. I'm less sure about achieving Brewer's idea of "a complex poem"; I suppose there's complexity in my poem's imagery being applicable to larger human interactions, especially sexuality. Also any imitation poem will be intrinsically complex because part of its warp and woof is the model on which it was based. Anyway, Moore for sure, Brewer maybe. Venus Flytrap Avoidable, unavoidable, it seems incredibly like a fuschia-tinged vagina ringed by stiff green hair, spiked. Touch inside and it slams shut to liquefy us like common flies. Relax, stay still, it releases, as if its rough cage was a soft embrace. —Draft by Vince Gotera   [Do not copy or quote . . . thanks.] I hope you enjoyed the poem. And that understanding it in some way or other wasn't a catch-22. Won't you please comment below? Look for a blue link below that says "Post a comment"; if you don't see that, look in the red line that says "Posted by" and click on the word "comments." Ingat, everyone.   ;-) POEM-A-DAY 2013 • Pick a day in April: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30