Roberta Writes – Esther Chilton’s writing challenge: Light #poetry

Esther’s challenge this week is light. I wrote several poems about light for inclusion in Sunflower Tanka: An Anthology of Tanka, Tanka Prose, & Experimental Tanka and I decided to share my favourite of these poems for Esther’s challenge.

Painter’s challenge (garland tanka)

Anguish reflected

But not absorbed by water

Which also soaks up

Essence of trees and buildings

For serene contemplation

***

Natures pain entrapped

Within deep, inky waters

No amount of tears

Ruffling its exterior

Can change on-going flow

***

Many lives ended

Sinking into death’s embrace

Silent and secret

Water does not pass judgement

Gleaming countenance unchanged

***

Interplay of light

Old Man River stays focused

Moody sky tantrums

Painter tries to replicate

Scene perfected by nature

***

Black, white and silver

Shot through with green and auburn

Captures canal’s soul

Embalming in acrylic

Turbulent natural conflict

***

Anguish reflected

Within deep, inky waters

Silent and secret

Painter tries to replicate

Turbulent natural conflict

Picture caption: Amsterdam Canal. Acrylic painting by Robbie Cheadle

Picture caption: Cover of Sunflower Tanka designed by Colleen M. Chesebro using my oil pastel artwork. You can find out more about Colleen’s services here: https://colleenchesebro.org/my-services-unicorn-cats-publishing-services/

Sunflower Tanka, edited by Robbie Cheadle & Colleen M. Chesebro, is an annual anthology of contemporary tanka, tanka prose, & experimental tanka from a broad mix of new and established poetic voices from across the world.

Our theme, “Into the Light,” draws inspiration from the way a young sunflower bud constantly turns to face the sun. Poets delved into the realms of death, love, and the natural world, capturing their human experiences in the timeless form of syllabic poetry.

Contributors to the first edition of the Sunflower Tanka: Suzanne Brace, Yvette Calleiro, Kay Castenada, Luanne Castle, Robbie Cheadle, Colleen M. Chesebro, E.A. Colquitt, Melissa Davilio, Destiny, Tamiko Dooley, Lisa Fox, Cindy Georgakas, Chris Hall, Franci Hoffman, Marsha Ingrao, Jude Itakali, JulesPaige, Kenneth, MJ Mallon, Brenda Marie, Selma Martin, Michelle Ayon Navajas, Lisa Nelson, D. Wallace Peach, Freya Pickard, Dawn Pisturino, Gwen M. Plano, Jennifer Russo, Aishwarya Saby, Reena Saxena, Merril D. Smith, Nicole Smith, Ivor Steven, Ben Tonkin, Trilce Marsh Vazquez, Cheryl Wood.

Roberta Writes – d’Verse: Poetics: Personifying The Abstract #dVerse #poetry #photography

Regular readers of this blog will know that I am currently undertaking a modernised rewrite of Dante’s Inferno. I now have a working title for this poem – Gaia’s Redemption. Anyhow, Mish’s Tuesday prompt was to write a poem including personification. This prompt was perfect for the first twenty lines of my re-write. In Canto II, I have agreed to undertake a journey through the nine levels of the Sixth Mass Extinction with my spirit elephant guide. I have entered the cave that takes us down into the bowels of the spirit world. If you are interested, you can read an analysis of Canto 2 of Dante’s Inferno here: https://www.litcharts.com/lit/inferno/canto-2

I missed the deadline for Mish’s prompt here: https://dversepoets.com/2025/03/25/poetics-personifying-the-abstract/ so I’m sharing it for Open Link Night here: https://dversepoets.com/2025/03/27/open-link-night-381/

CANTO II

A living, breathing creature, this Precambrian era cave

It’s 2.8-billion-year-old skin wrinkled by wear and time

Access defended by minions; entry limited to the brave

Their glowing forms a marriage of dolomite and lime

The monster silently screamed its uncertainty and rage

Spirit elephant paid it no heed, gliding past unchallenged

I drew in a great breath, plunged forward, ducking under

Wall of spear like stalactites from which moisture dripped

Somewhere deep below, a gong sounded like thunder

Death’s hand upon me, I ventured into the stone crypt 10

***

“Guide, I am concerned your trust in me is misplaced

I don’t know how to achieve your lofty expectations

What if I disappoint you? It will be a humiliating disgrace

I don’t want to face the environmentalists’ accusations”

My Guide did not pause or speak, just shone a soft light

Which illuminated two formations beneath the Hand of God

Symbolising the visual, the first’s gazed through dark eyes

The other gripped a pen between slender white fingers

Understanding came, pictures held power and told no lies

The written word facilitates communication with thinkers 20

My cave is based on the Sudwala Caves in Mpumalanga, South Africa. Here are some photographs from my recent visit to these caves.

Picture caption: Wall of the Sudwala Cave. This is a very ancient cave system, the oldest in the world, and is formed in dolomite

Picture caption: This formation (the two small stalactites), is called Lot and his Wife – I thought the formation above looked like the Hand of God.

Picture caption: This formation is called Kentucky Fried Chicken. It hangs down from the ceiling of the cave

Below is my YouTube short of Somcuba’s Gong inside the Sudwala Caves

Roberta Writes – Esther Chilton’s writing prompt: Funny Moments #poetry

Esther’s writing challenge for this week is Funny Moments. You can join in here: https://estherchilton.co.uk/2025/03/19/writing-prompts-57/

New Blood

What a hoot

There is new blood

In fourth year at Uni

Competition

In the form of a young man

From an opposition university

This youngster and my son

Both chose challenging

Research projects

Both have double supervisors

One of Greg’s

If from Milan, Italy

He thinks this gives him

An edge

Over a double local package

But

The competition

Has four subjects for both

The first and second blocks

Greg had four and three

So, he’s signed up for

An additional course

Naturally the most difficult

On the list of electives

There is nothing like a little

Competition

To stir the blood

And make a young man work

“Well, Mom,” he said

In response to my enquiry

“I’m not going to be upstaged

by a usurper from Pretoria”

Reviews for Sunflower Tanka

Thank you to Barbara Harris Leonhard for this insightful review of Sunflower Tanka: https://extraordinarysunshineweaver.blog/2025/03/24/barbs-wordy-blurbs-sunflower-tanka-by-robbie-cheadle-colleen-m-chesebro/

Thank you to contributor, Chris Hall, for her lovely review of Sunflower Tanka on Facebook here:

Sunflower Tanka: An Anthology Tanka, Tanka Prose, & Experimental Tanka – edited by Robbie Cheadle & Colleen M. Chesebro

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

What a gorgeous collection with so many poets who I know, including myself. It is such a beautiful book (well done, Robbie) and I am glad that I got the paperback, as well as the Kindle.

There are almost 140 poems in this wonderful collection. The 36 poets are from all around the globe: from the USA, UK, Mexico, South Africa, Uganda, Guyana, Portugal, Japan, Philippines, India, Australia and Italy. Isn’t it interesting, and even more so the way the various styles are incorporated. The different forms are the well-known 5-line tanka form, the tanka-prose and the rensaku, but also the less known are the experimental tanka, the garland tanka, and the tanka Puente, all good though.

I have read from cover to cover and picked around as well. Now, just to say, this has been a lovely experience – it’s ‘In the Light’!