Napo 30

I did it! 30 poems in 30 days. It wasn't too hard, to be honest. I just had to let go of the idea of perfection. None of these poems are perfect, and not all of them are even really worth developing further and working on. BUT! I do have a handful of promising pieces that I can't wait to work on during the month of May. It's been a great Napowrimo. I spent the month proving to myself that I can write everyday. It's been a good habit to form, and one I hope to continue throughout the summer. 

Today's prompt was to write about something that repeats itself. Well, yesterday I went to a play about Cicadas, "Bug Joy," at my university. It was a sweet play, and I loved the message at the end. What I was trying to go for in this poem is the simple message that the only constant in life is change, and that you have to learn to embrace that change. My life is about to change, too, and I'm anxious and excited to embrace this new chapter of my life, like a cicada shedding her former skin.

Magicada

This song comes from the earth –

It’s greater than you,

Louder than your darkest thoughts

In the brightest moments of summer.

This is a serenade you can’t ignore,

It drowns out everything

As the ground opens up

As the hot breeze of June

Welcomes another brood to the surface.

You can’t stop the nymphs

From shedding their skins,

Letting them drop to crabgrass

Like the bikinis of skinny-dipping teens.

This sound can’t be muffled.

It resounds across the monte

Fills it with the joy of life.

You can’t stop the imago

From stretching her bejeweled wings

In the sun as she prepares to leap

Into a south wind, the shimmering distance

Far away from home. This symphony

Of life drones on, unstoppable

No matter how hard you press

Your palms to your ears.

Change happens. Even rivers

Ebb and flow. Look into the mirror

At the changing landscape of your face

And smile your brightest magicada smile

Emerging after too many years

In the dark. Celebrate the cycle

By opening your arms and letting go

A magic grito with your tymbal,

Your new voice of wisdom

Let it ring across the listening world.