Counting to Eleven

As children we learn to count to number ten,
slowly at first and then racing on ahead. 
Soon we are counting, in twos and back again,
sheep in the darkness when we have gone to bed.
We count the days until school is out and then
days until freedom of summer has ended.
But we never stop at number eleven,
an odd number, not as lucky as seven,
which is spiritual, introspective and wise.
Eleven is the total of six and five,
intuitive, inspired, with a higher vibe.

Kim M. Russell, 11th June 2026

It’s Thursday and time for Meeting the Bar at the dVerse Poets Pub, where Laura is our host. Laura tells us that, in Bingo, ‘legs eleven’ refers to the “2 leggy uprights which constitute the written number” and she goes back to the origins of the number, as well as sharing some ‘elevensie’ poems from Anne Sexton and Gisela Kraft.

As today is 11th June, Laura would like us to write either a Hendecastich  by Michael Fantina, which is an 11-line poem of one stanza which alternates iambic feet of four (tetrameter) and one (monameter), i.e. syllables: 8-2-8-2-8-2-8-2-8-2-8, and with a rhyme scheme of abbacddceff OR the Eleventh Power by Christina Jussaume, another 11-line poem of one stanza, with 11 syllables per line, a rhyme scheme of abababccddd or ababababccc, and an uplifting theme.

I chose the Eleventh Power.

25 thoughts on “Counting to Eleven”

  8. We keep on counting forward, not knowing, that we won’t have, every number we counted, back, and by the time we realize, how far we’d counted ahead, there’s, no turning back, because, we’ve, run out of, numbers.

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  9. Who doesn’t like a bit of numerological speculation, Kim! I wonder if the children of today learn numbers in a way that will let them do mental arithmetic or whether they 2graduate” to calculators all to soon on account of them having screens…

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