Rain

Rain

By Candace Shultz

Gray clouds and raindrops

Feet hurry over sidewalks

A trampled flower

Dance with a Fire in Your Heart

Today I wrote an acrostic poem, but instead of spelling out a word with the first letter of each line, I inserted a quote with the first word of each line. You can see the prompt I followed here. The quote is well known, but I'm not actually sure who said/wrote it because there were several different answers on Google.

Dance like no one's watching.
Love like you've never been hurt.
Sing like no one's listening.
Live like it's Heaven on Earth.

____________________________________

Dance with a Fire in Your Heart

By Candace Shultz

Dance with passion in the rain
Like there's a fire in your heart that
No one can put out but yourself.
One's own dream should not be quenched by those
Watching and waiting for you to fail.

Love every victory and even the failures.
Like that they bring you closer to your goal.
You've worked so hard to fan the flames.
Never let your fire go out even if the storms have
Been beating you down into embers. Don't let them
Hurt you forever. Rise up again.

Sing about your successes in all places,
Like in the shower alone or in a crowded street.
No matter if you're surrounded by people or if no
One's there, be proud of yourself and your dream.
Listening to your heart will bring you closer to the stars.

Live with joy in your heart and peace in your mind,
Like a steady flame that does not flicker.
It's only a matter of time before
Heaven fills your soul with satisfaction
On a dream achieved. We have only one time on
Earth. Let yourself dance, love, sing, and live.

Unseen

I was trying to follow a prompt to write a poem about a mythical person doing something unusual for their character, and this is the poem that I wrote while thinking about Harley Quinn. Joker can be so cruel to her, yet she still loves him. I can imagine sometimes she'd feel so alone and unloved by him.

Unseen

By Candace Shultz

She sits alone on a bench,

Hiding in the shadows of her thoughts,

Feeling unworthy and unloved.

Her downcast eyes stare unseeing.

Her hair covers her face and hides her tears.

She hears his hateful voice ringing in her ears.

Soon the sun descends as the darkness rises,

And she still sits there alone,

Feeling unseen.

A Poetry Prompt in April

Today I was challenged to write a poetry prompt at napowrimo.net as inspired by the poet Mathias Svalina on Instagram. I enjoyed writing this poem! I hope you enjoy reading it too. 

 

A Poetry Prompt in April

By Candace Shultz

Dig a hole in your backyard.

Then sprinkle it with seeds.

Cover the hole with earth again.

Then give it what it needs:

Lots of sun, water too,

Conversation, and some food.

For if you take good care of it,

There will be a multitude

Of flowers growing in your yard.

And when the pollen is set free

Your ideas will be released

And turn into poetry.

Why Didn't I Stop to Take a Rest?

Today I have written a glosa (you can find more information about how to write a glosa here) as prompted by Day 3 of NaPoWriMo. My poem was inspired by Emily Dickinson's poem "Because I could not stop for Death." 

Why Didn't I Stop to Take a Rest?

By Candace Shultz

 

Because I could not stop for Death –
He kindly stopped for me –
The Carriage held but just Ourselves –
And Immortality.
- Emily Dickinson

I didn't want to stop and rest

I didn't even try

Because there was too much to do

I barely closed my eyes

I moved from task to task nonstop

Not caring for my health

From work to school to home again

Just living for my wealth

I did not pause to take a breath

Because I could not stop for Death –

One morning I could not get up

I couldn't rise from bed

A heavy stone lay on my chest

My heart filled up with dread

My body ached from head to toe

The pain I couldn't flee

And when I tried to raise my head

A shadow I did see

Not stopping for Death guaranteed

He kindly stopped for me –

He stepped closer to me in bed.

I closed my eyes in fear,

But then he spoke to me so kind, 

"You'll be okay, my dear."

I dared to look at him again,

Not feeling like myself

As my hand took his and he lifted

Me, walking past my bookshelf.

He carried me to the car himself.

The Carriage held but just Ourselves –

Life didn't flash before my eyes,

Only my question why

Didn't I stop to take a rest.

Why didn't I even try?

Why did I care so much for wealth?

I was too blind to see.

I looked at Death right by my side

And he looked back at me.

In his eyes I saw sympathy

And Immortality. 

Sundust

Today's NaPoWriMo prompt was to "write a poem based on a word featured in a tweet from Haggard Hawks." I chose the word sundust for my poem.

Sundust

By Candace Shultz

Sundust shines in a beam of light,

Whirling, dancing, floating on air.

I catch a glimpse of them

When the bright sun casts a spotlight

Through my window into my bedroom.

Then a cloud passes over, casting a shadow,

And the motes disappear from my view,

Silently swirling away unseen. 

Just Beautiful

Today is the first day of NaPoWriMo 2022! Every day in April I will be writing a poem, sometimes following prompts from napowrimo.net and sometimes coming up with a poem all on my own with no prompts. Today I followed a prompt to write a prose poem about the body, involving two people, some spoken dialogue, and at least one crisp image. My prose poem is about a mother's self body image. 

Just Beautiful
By Candace Shultz

She stepped out of the shower, her body glistening, water droplets clinging to her skin. She grabbed her blue towel and dabbed at her face and breasts, then dried her arms and legs and back. She bent over letting her wet hair dangle towards the bath mat. She wrapped her hair tightly in the towel and stood straight, her body now dry and still naked. She walked to the bathroom door and stood in front of a full mirror. She looked at her breasts, not as perky as they used to be. She looked at her stomach, one big pouch full of tiger stripes. She looked at her thick thighs and wide hips and... "Mama?" A young girl's voice broke into the woman's thoughts. "Yes?" She replied. "Don't we look pretty?" Her daughter asked. So she looked at her daughter dressed in pajamas with her hair in a towel turban, and she smiled. "Yes, baby, just beautiful, you and I."