Being human is a circus trick,
a t i g h t r o p e w a l k
between now
and then,
a flourish,
and back again.
juggling swords,
eating fiery words,
the highs and lows
of the flying trapeze,
the bearded lady’s
s l o w s t r I p t e a s e,
the absurdity of a clown,
the audience laughing
while you drown
in your own
tears. after
the final bow,
remove the greasepaint,
and get the bus home alone.
Kim M. Russell, 28th April 2022
As NaPoWriMo 2022 comes to an end, on day 28 we have a favourite form of mine from my teaching days: the concrete poem, in which the lines are shaped in a way that mimics the topic of the poem. I have written quite a few of these, for example ‘Tiny Promises from day 12, and some have even written themselves! I’ve taken an old poem I wrote last March and played around with it.
writing in north norfolk 
Clever!
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I feel like I cheated, though, rewriting an old poem – which I have done before. It was fun, but I need to lie down now!
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I gave a whole morning over to an attempt at properly doing a concrete form. Just no way was I happy with any of it. I finally used Word to do it.
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I have resorted to Word in the past, particularly for circular and spiral shapes. It can be very fiddly.
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Lovely Kim! We are all trapeze artists.
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Thank you, Sonia!
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This is good
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Thank you!
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Wonderful piece in the perfect shape. Must not have been easy to create!
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Thank you Elizabeth. I had to press the spacebar a lot!
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A wonderful flying trapeze act, Kim! 🎪
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Flying through the air with the greatest of ease…
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Such creativity in this one!
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Thank you!
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Oh, Kim, this is an absolute feast for the eyes and mind! I love it. 💕🙂
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Many thanks, Harmony!
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Love the form, Kim–and I’m moved by the bearded lady’s vulnerability and the clown’s tearful loneliness.💜🍃
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Thanks Romana! Your comments are greatly appreciated.
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The loneliness in the end (we come alone–we will go alone) is heart-breaking. Your shape-poem could represent heart break too Kim. Two sides of life–one that’s on show and the one we live. Brilliant.
Visiting from: https://artismoments.blogspot.com/
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Thank you Arti for your insight and kind comments.
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