Cure for a Curse

Happy Poetry Friday

It's spooky time around these parts. Jack-o-lanterns, ghosts, and goblins can be seen up and down my street. It's a minor miracle I haven't broken into candy set aside for trick-or-treaters yet. 

I've been playing with some of the inktober prompts for illustrators. October eleventh's word was, "sour." I struggled to find a piece of artwork inspired by that word. But, this post from Twitter fit the bill...leading to a cure for a curse. It's sort of Halloween-y.

https://twitter.com/delvethepodcast/status/1447449684780400642?s=20

Farm_Boy. “Barn in the Rain.” Flickr, Yahoo!, 25 Nov. 2016, https://www.flickr.com/photos/photos-by-ben/31146773782/sizes/l/.

Cure for Sour Milk

If a witch turns a cow’s milk sour
plant a holly tree within the hour.

A witch cannot walk, fly or creep

over, under, or ‘round holly trees.

The blood-red berries lure her there

five-pointed leaves ensnare her hair

causing the witch to wither away
until collapsing on the break of day
that burns a witch from head to feet
eyes, hands, heart, and nasty teeth.
Then a cow, safe at last,
produces sweet milk very fast.

(c) Linda Mitchell Oct. '21

Hamish has thoughts on a full moon. See them over on his padlet. 

Our Linda Baie is hosting Poetry Friday round-up this week. Don't miss her gracious poetry party. 

Tick-Tock-Tick

 Hello Poets,

Jama's Alphabet Soup is one of my favorite places on the internet for creative thinking, arts, and letters. Don't miss her fabulous blog with all of today's poetry goodness. She's hosting our round-up today.

https://www.wikiart.org/en/giovanni-battista-piranesi/a-table-on-the-wall-with-two-satyrs-a-pndola-two-watches-two-vases-candlesticks-wall-and-table

I am away from my desk and meeting with the American Association of School Librarians. And, I'll be popping in to read and comment on everyone's blogs when I can catch up.

Hamish has a thought on the word, Harvest. See it over on his padlet: 

Thanks for reading!

Albumen & An Almost Ox Post

 Happy Friday, Poets!

Bridget at Wee Words for Wee Ones is hosting this week's round-up which is sure to bring a smile to your face with some funny fun puns, and she's celebrating the publication of a new anthology!  10.10: Celebrating 10 in 10 different ways. Hip Hip Hooray!

I'm thrilled to have a wee poem included in this collection with other Poetry Friday friends. Congratulations to all!

In late 2020 I knew ox would be my OLW for 2021. I was nervous about committing to such a unique word. I wondered if I could find enough prompts to keep me poem-ing for fifty-two weeks. I began storing up snippets of poems, photos, and references to ox and oxen in various files. I came across a forgotten photo this week.

Smithsonian Learning Lab: https://learninglab.si.edu/resources/view/2819314#more-info

The photograph is full of all kinds of curiosities--the name, E.K. Blush, yoked oxen, a man, that huge cart of hay, Stuttgart, Arkansas?  What caught my eye was the word albumen. Egg white? Yep.

This led me to google albumen and silver on paper... which then led to the most tempting and deepest rabbit hole of all, Wikipedia (insert that unbalanced giggle sound).

As it turns out, in the early days of photography, photographers kept laying hens near studios for the egg white to mix with silver to coat cotton paper to take a negative from a glass photographic plate. How about that?

By the time I re-surfaced from research, it was high time to write a poem with Hamish but, I had nothing specifically on ox...except the fact that a pair are pulling that hay cart in the photograph.

I returned to Wikipedia to scoop up words for a found poem below. 

Whew! Hamish assures me it this poem still counts. After all, he carried me down the road to it. We enjoyed the journey. 

We hope you do too.

Albumen Print of Ox Cart
After searching for albumen and silver on paper 

Jump to him

medium size
1871 exploitable--
used to bind 1855
to the 20th century.

Distributors
of remaining silver

and gold
fix importance
to preserving
hand-tinted history.

Words found on Wikipedia

Linda Mitchell, Oct 15,2021

Journey to Here

Hello Poets,

Thank you, Irene Latham, for hosting Poetry Friday. If you haven't spent time at her website, Live Your Poem, go ahead and pop over there. It's a treasure trove of writing and books and art and you'll feel much richer after spending some time with Irene's work.

October's host of Spiritual Journey Thursday, Ramona of Pleasures from the Page, asked us to consider the word, here. 

I wondered, how do my thoughts, prayer, physical, and spiritual self relate to my location in this place, and time? It's a spectacular question to mull over.

In some ways, the mixed media art journey has taken me here as well. I didn't realize it until Ramona's prompt...I love the intersection of her prompt, collaging, and poem-ing.  Can you detect it?

I am here

Catching my breath

at the corner of Empty Nest 

and Too Soon to Retire.

Streets behind me --
littered with soccer cleats
and scout badges, paint brushes, 

concert programs, 

and so many tuition bills.

I’ve been proud--

fearful. Terrified, really.
Maybe you know?
My gown and feathered hat
are ridiculously out of season.

I’m scheduled to arrive
at the mouth of Elijah’s cave
as hurricane, fire, and earthquake pass.
But my guidebook states,
it’s worth your wait for the sacred selah.

I'm unfamiliar
with this sort of navigation
and seeking the fastest route
and, fellow travelers
maybe.
You know?

Linda Mitchell, October '21

Mixed media collage by Linda M. Oct. 2021

The reference to Elijah's cave comes from 1Kings 19:3. And, it's one of those wonderful writing surprises. It popped into my poem unbeknownst to my typing fingers. I had to look it up. I love it when that happens! This shows me that my spirit and the Holy Spirit are working together even in my unfamiliar here. 

Several bloggers write for the monthly Spiritual Thursday prompt. Find more at Pleasures from the Page. And, if you'd like to join us, let me or Ramona know. We'd be happy to share.

Guess what? Oxen play a part in chapter 19 of 1 Kings. However, things didn't work out so well for them in that story. Hamish and I decided to share a triolet paired with Ukrainian folk art by Maria Primachenko. It's much happier.

See the triolet on Hamish's padlet: