30-Day Challenges for Poets, Essayists and Prosetry Artists

Here are two jump-in-at-any-time prompts to challenge you to hone your skills

Early last month Diana C., the owner and sole and thus too hardworking editor of spiritual homegroup to many affectionately known as KTHT

launched a jump-in at any time 30-day (“JIAAT30”) poetry challenge.

I have thoroughly enjoyed challenging myself to hone my tanka skills with the daily prompts. As I provide decoder rings for my tanka, the process also helps my essay and short-forming crafts as I do not want to overwhelm the tanka with lengthy essays.

Here are a few of my entries, which come from my rough-around-the-edges-yet-full-of-love brand of spirituality (followed by several entries from other writers):

Strangers in the night Yet familiar like old friends Twas love at first sight Her passing awakened them Infinite eternal love

Decoder Ring

Take all I’ve known Burn it to the fucking ground From ash birth astound Cynicism melt away Mature innocence take sway

Decoder Ring

Handcuffed by science Minds of materialists Suffocate on proof Spiritualists thriving Embracing uncertainty

Decoder Ring

Incarnate handsome Book-smart wealthy privileged Behind these 8-balls Face yours and others’ demons Emerge confident and Light

Decoder Ring

My latest entry expanded my voice to include the erotic side of spirituality:

Day 19: Love is multifaceted Day 20: Doing what makes the heart sing

Sex like love diamond Many angles to explore We are fucking hard Yet passionate kissing while Enterlocked makes my heart sing

Decoder Ring

Here are promptsponses (a wordchemized neologism — foreshadowing Tree Langdon’s challenge coming below) from other great poets (Melanie J., Joseph Lieungh):

Let us examine the meaning of bliss. It is defined as a state of supreme joy and happiness. So, if I believe that I am blissful in my heart and in my mind, then I am blissful, right? Bliss is therefore relative and based on a person’s level of consciousness, especially if that person is unaware of other possibilities.

The ego exists within our minds, but it is our heart that holds the answers and the truth. My freedom lies on my path to merge my heart with my mind, so that I can better manage my fragile ego.

Long-forgotten ways of knowing truth ancient teachings are sung by the feathered four-legged and two-spirited alike… Humbled hearts receiving gifts freely-shared for the people of once before and many more…

…Belief in absolute does not compute for these visionary dreamers with altered realities as potential outcomes, the end resulting fact not backed by scientific discovery-yet!

I applaud you, star-gazers, seeing the unseen not yet discovered and often unable to be proven by the hard-pressed fact-checkers unable to see beyond their noses-and that is ok too….

…simple revelations by microscope and beliefs scientific Eureka’s found hidden within the brains adhering to spiritual knowledge, heart-based proceed…

The Second Challenge

Tree Langdon and her crew have amassed a collection of great neologisms and Tree has created a JIAAT30 challenge to create poetry and/or essays inspired by 30 of their wordchemizations:

Here is my first entry:

My Tanka to the Innocent Autopologisers — The Codapologists

Codependency Lost self-awareness and worth Stop eggshell walking Set and defend boundaries Proudly assert your power

Here are great submissions from Stuart Englander, Jennifer McDougall and Claire Kelly:

Here’s my bonus submission that arose out of my originally misreading the challenge — Happy Greek Easter Anthi Psomiadou.

Thank you for reading my share of my and my friends' work.

In Rama I create,

Marcus