Greetings, all. My project this month involves Elfchen, a form I know almost nothing about except what shows up on Wikipedia, and who knows who wrote the Wiki article, or who composed the little guide above that I'm relying on as I start each 11-word poem? All I know is that I find the content description for Line 4 to be piquantly demanding for a poet. What do we mean, when we select a thought, an object, a colour, a smell or "the like"? Which two words best express what the word from the first row does? Where is the word? How is the word? And before we sum up the result or outcome from all this, WHAT DO WE MEAN?
It's like a devotion, a divination of purpose.
(And for a surprising, you-might-say humanitarian use of the Elfchen, read here.)
My Elfchen are 🌍rescue🌍 Elfchen, aimed at kids. Here's where I am, with gratitude to those who are following along encouragingly on Instagram and have seen them already.
Thanks for reading, thanks for helping to weave the poetry matrix that is this community, and thanks to Jone Rush MacCulloch for hosting us today! It will be my turn next week to gather all the good.
I’ve tried Elfchen a few times… not easy! My favorite here is crayons. From broken to rainbows!
ReplyDeleteHeidi, so fun. I love how you are thinking each day about a new aspect of rescuing our mother from broken crayons to riding bikes instead of cars (two of my faves). And so many more possibilities! Beautiful. "It's like a devotion, a divination of purpose." How profound. And I so enjoyed reading that sweet post about the woman studying German and writing elfchens. Thank you for sharing it.
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ReplyDeleteWhat a clever idea, to have RESCUE Elfchen. Each tiny brick of rescue builds an overwhelming bridge between who we are, and what we need to do for each other, and for the earth. This is lovely.
I enjoyed each one, Heidi, love "bike sails into cleaner air". It's telling that some are from your rainy days while we've not had a drop. I wish we could share! I did read the Wiki article & bookmarked it - fun, but it also had a link I imagine you would enjoy, about disparate people looking into each others' eyes for 4 minutes, a test to see what would happen. It's special, hope you can find it! Thanks for all!
ReplyDeleteYes, Linda, I did watch the Amnesty International video, but not all the way through, because I wasn't prepared for all that emotion! Others visiting here should click through too...
Deleteoooooooh! Nice. It's such a great capture of your life...all these elfchens. They show us what catches your eye. And, what catches your eye helps US see climate issues we can address too. Well done.
ReplyDeleteAmbitious use of the Elfchen, Heidi! I have yet to write one, but I keep meaning to give it a go. I love the thought of soil spitting seeds! Thinking about fishing for plastic bottles made my heart sink.
ReplyDeleteI haven't tried an elfchen yet - feeling somewhat rebellious to be so constrained - yet, I did a year of cinquains and loved it as a morning routine. Jury's out for me, but I loved reading yours!
ReplyDeleteThank you for your elfchens, for your thoughts on writing them, and for the link. This resonated: "There seems to be something mischievously elfin in the Elfchen after all. Like participating in a stunt with mirrors, engaging with an Elfchen may show you intriguing glimpses of the trickster in your own life and creativity. "
ReplyDeleteI love all of these, Heidi, so it was hard to pick a favorite. I love the ant one and could see myself as a child watching it and wondering about it. Thank you sharing them.
ReplyDeleteThese are so hopeful Heidi-- I love them! Thank you for this bounty.
ReplyDeleteI loved the glasses elfchen. And kudos for this project! I am deep in the weeds with revising my middle grade novel.
ReplyDeleteRenewal in every poem — love that so much, Heidi. ❤️❤️
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