National Poetry Month Issue 17

It's day 17 of my National Poetry Month project.

That shimmering goddess of poetry, Shirley J. Brewer, is my Maryland poet of the day.

I'm headed for Florida this morning, where I'll be enjoying the hot sun, cool ocean water, and iced treats.

Your writing prompt for today is a food poem. Let's look at Shirley's model:

Iced Latte

by Shirley J. Brewer

Tall           Mt. Rainier           14.411 feet

Super       Mt. McKinley        20,320 feet

Grandė     Mt. Everest           29.035 feet

My massive mocha

comes with a mini-oxygen mask:

coffee with an altitude.

A scoop of sweet snow

captures the summit,

drizzles down the side.

Ice cubes glisten

like tiny glaciers.

I radio for chocolate sprinkles.

No Sherpa guides, I slurp alone

through a tall white straw.

Caffeine attacks my mental clouds.

My brain crackles with adrenaline,

a mountain of chores

disappears and a cold caloric wind

blows my doldrums away.

Posted with permission of the author.

Writing Exercise

Food odes are always fun -- especially when the ode is about a food we love. Shirley J. Brewer takes her poem a step further, though, by using metaphor. From the opening "elevation" list, the poem makes use of the caffeine = altitude concept by incorporating it into each stanza.

Come up with a metaphor for your favorite (or least favorite) food. In each stanza of your poem, find a way to build on the comparison.