Verselove over at Ethical ELA continues to be bounty of poetic forms–that all seemed designed to bend or break the rules I had previously learned. Today Tanka, a form I had learned as 5 lines with a 5-7-5-7-7 syllabic pattern was transformed by Cara to a 3 line, 31 syllable meander.

I’m combining #verselove with some #beachlove today in several approximately 31 syllable Tanka.

Sea Song

One squishy step after another

pulls me into the noisy silence of the sea

where worries slip like water off a duck

Tides ebb and flow revealing an upside down world

tiny crabs, anemones, silver darting fish

dance of predator and prey

Like seabirds, thoughts take wing

breath calms, an echo of water’s rhythms

lullaby sung by the sea, perfect harmony with me

@kd0602