So, one of our assignments this year (2020) is to look back with hindsight. Get it?
We decided it would be fun to reflect upon old work, have a conversation with it, even.
So this month I chose the tanka we wrote in February 2018, which were actually inspired by sonnets our friends had written the month before. (One of those gifts that keeps on giving!)
Anyway, the tanka I wrote were about the lungs.
Based on Tricia Stohr Hunt’s sonnet about breathing.
Rather than edit or change them (I actually still quite like them!), I thought I’d add to my collection of organ tanka. So that’s what I’ve got here — three tanka inspired by the heart, the liver, and the kidneys. Enjoy!
The Heart
Oh, Bedazzled Heart,
drama queen of the body!
Beneath her make-up,
she’s just grit and elbow grease –
punching that time clock, thump thump.
The Liver
Lily-livered lobes
hiding behind the rib cage –
still vulnerable,
still within reach of ruin,
poor poisoned apples.
The Kidneys
Curled in on yourselves,
busy little kidney beans
working like cheesecloth
keep clean the blood, keep busy
the body for tomorrow.
Here are the others’ reflections:
Tanita
Sara
Tricia
Laura
Kelly
Andi
Rebecca
And you’ll find poetry galore at Karen Edmisten’s Poetry Friday today.
Thank you so much for sharing these wonderful poems and reintroducing me to the tanka. I also loved the accompanying pictures. I would love to see a whole book of organ tankas!
Ooooo that’s a tempting challenge!
Liz, these are brilliant! The cheesecloth…the drama queen, grit, and elbow grease…perfect! I love how you’ve packed some truths about the functions of these organs, whether they’re physical truths or more imaginary truths.
Ha — thank you. I think I don’t follow the technical tenets of Tanka in all of them, but close enough maybe?
I recently wrote some poems about the digestive system. Yours are quite fun and they show appreciation for the hard work our organs do,
Oooo that sounds very cool — the human body really is a poetic wonder!
Wonderful! Like Laura I like how you include information and bring it to life in these three.
They were fun to work on — plus, I learned a few things!
…adding to your collection of “organ tanka”. You crack me up with your dry intro. These are brilliant. I’m especially in love with the Heart one— that perfect, punchy ending startled me into laughter. Keep going! You have a whole BODY of work ahead of you. (har, har)
Ha ha ha — honestly, I’m tempted.
Science and poetry are such perfect matches, right?
I enjoyed the tanka very much, so… tanka very much! I also like the idea of returning to one’s work. Good ideas gleaned here. Thanks again.
Yes, it is SO MUCH FUN even reading old work.
We really do forget to ever pause and look back!
I loved revisiting your original lungs tanka and reading these new poems. While I found something to like in all 3, my favorite lines came from the heart poem:
she’s just grit and elbow grease –
punching that time clock, thump thump.
I think I’m going to enjoy the looking back this year. Nicely done!
That’s the one Sara liked, too. I wasn’t sure about combining science, metaphor and humor, but I guess why not?
Love the visceral side to each of these tanka’s, combined with the light hearted lines–they balance each other well!
Thank you — they were more fun to do than I expected!
So good! I love these organ poems!
I love hearing things that only a poet would say: “I thought I’d add to my collection of organ tanka.” 🙂
Seconding (seventhing?) the idea of a book of these!
So much fun! Your tankas remind me a little bit of Leslie Bulion’s Random Body Parts book.