Cactus Contentment

On By Lauren Scott, AuthorIn Poetry

I’m currently reading a beautiful book of syllabic poetry, Seasons and Crystals, by Balroop Singh. I’ve written syllabic poetry, but it’s not my go-to form like free verse. And yet, reading her poetry and the various forms inspired me. I thought about life in general, about the past events in our family, and about nature’s beauty right in front of us. So, the other evening, Hubby and I were enjoying our patio time and the weather was perfect, not too hot, not too cold or windy. A cactus sits on our table that our daughter bought years ago. My husband gave it a drink, and I loved the water droplets on the tepals. So, I wrote some poetry in the form of American cinquain which consists of 5 lines and a syllable count on each line of 2-4-6-8-2. This form is also known as the Crapsey cinquain and was invented by American poet, Adelaide Crapsey.

Evening on the Patio

Pleasure,
simple and free,
birds sing from tree tops in
the distance under vast blue sky –
senses

Splendor

Beauty
comes in many
forms, colors, and textures –
painful to fingertips or soft
to touch

Living

Lovely
life around us
can be prickly at times
but keep eyes open for when hope
glistens

Layers

Secrets
lie in layers –
will they be publicized?
time is the ultimate answer –
patience

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

I hope you enjoyed this post. Do any of the poems resonate?
Happy Labor Day and have a wonderful week! 💖

© Lauren Scott, BaydreamerWrites.com

Lauren Scott is a Pushcart Prize nominee who enjoys small-town living in California’s Bay Area with her husband, Matt, of thirty-seven years. Although their daughter and son live out of state, frequent visits and modern technology keep their family of four close. Lauren is the author of four poetry collections, a memoir, and a children’s picture book. She has been a guest on several podcasts and her work has appeared in seven anthologies. Her poetry and prose has also been featured by Spillwords Press and Literary Revelations where she has received several honors. Lauren is a member of the Redwood Writers chapter and Marin chapter of the California Writers Club, and she is currently working on a new poetry collection and an early chapter book for children.

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78 thoughts on “Cactus Contentment”

  10. so many smiles generated here… the gifts of your daughter, and husband for the cactus and the caring for it – you are honoring the life of the plant with your poetry – the influence of Balroop’s work and you honoring her. Thank you!

    Reply

  12. The imagery of water droplets on the cactus tepals during a quiet patio evening is so serene, Lauren! 🌵✨

    Living resonated deeply with me—the metaphor of life being prickly at times while reminding us to keep an eye out for glistening hope is just beautiful. Fitting complex emotions into the strict 2-4-6-8-2 syllable structure of a Crapsey cinquain is no easy feat, but you handled it so gracefully!

    Thank you for sharing these little moments of peace, and happy Labor Day to you and your family!

    Reply

    1. Thanks so much for your thoughtful and kind words! Living seems to be in the lead so far, but it’s not a race. 🙂 Whenever I post a group of poems, I like to know which ones resonate. And you’re right, like Balroop says, syllabic poetry isn’t easy to write. But it’s a fun challenge and I appreciate your encouragement. Thanks again and have a good week!

      Reply

      1. Syllabic poetry is definitely a true test of precision, Lauren! It’s so impressive how you managed to keep the emotion so natural and fluid within such a strict structure—Living really captured that balance beautifully. Do you find that writing with syllabic constraints changes how you approach non-structured poetry afterwards? 📝✨

      3. That makes total sense! It really feels like shifting into two totally different modes of thinking—one where you’re working like a puzzle master and another where it’s pure flow. Do you usually know right away when an idea comes to you which style it’s going to demand, or do you let the draft decide as you write? ✍️✨

  18. What beautiful poetry, Lauren. Nature’s gifts bring such joy and lovely thoughts to spark our creative senses. Your beautiful cactus is well deserving of your delightful verses. 💗✨

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  19. Hello Lauren how are you? I cannot believe this, you are writing poetry and so nice to see your posts, whats new for me is that I no longer blog on my phone, I use the Library Computers for that. Quick questions, is a CACTUS A FLOWER OR A PLANT? By the way, do check my newly written blog posts on my niche market – MENS FASHION & STYLE BY MTHOBISI

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      3. Thank you, you too! We have had a lovely summer, despite three severe weather events, two of which left minor flooding and one that led to some damage when wind brought a major tree limb down. No one was hurt, so that was good!

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