The Poetry Stash: 08Mar2024

Four-Word Lines by May Swenson

Today’s poem is “Four-Word Lines” by May Swenson from the collection New & Selected Things Taking Place. The book is available for purchase here.

Four-Word Lines by May Swenson

Your eyes are just
like bees, and I
feel like a flower.
Their brown power makes
a breeze go over
my skin. When your
lashes ride down and
rise like brown bees’
legs, your pronged gaze
makes my eyes gauze.
I wish we were
in some shade and
no swarm of other
eyes to know that
I’m a flower breathing
bare, laid open to
your bees’ warm stare.
I’d let you wade
in me and seize
with your eager brown
bees’ power a sweet
glistening at my core.

Prompts:

1.	Begin with “I wish we were…”
2.	Begin with “seize…”
3.	Draft a poem in which each line has the same number of words. This poem, as the title indicates, has “Four-Word Lines”.
4.	Draft a poem in which you repeat words several times. For example, in this poem: “bees” is repeated 4 times, “flower” is repeated twice, “brown” is repeated 3 times, “eyes” is repeated 3 times, etc.

5. Photo by Angela Roma. Use this image as a writing prompt.

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