A Poem for Every Day

You may remember that last time, I shared a template for writing a personal poem all about yourself: your past, your present, the everyday things you notice that come together like a mosaic to make your life what it is.

That template isn't any good for every day, because the formulation "I am from" results in answers that may never change very much, certainly over the course of an adult's life.

So I have rejigged it a bit here and there, with similar sorts of blanks to fill in, with a major difference: you can write one every day if you want and it will be new and fresh. Sure, it may take a little effort to come up with a new familiar object or chore, but we're writers. It's what we do.

Here is my poem of today:

Today is about Roman sandals, Harry Potter and black Inkjoy pens for writing my stories longhand.
About the haunting autumn cricket songs; Bayview’s beach, the boatramp running down to the mudflats at low tide.
It is about the daily walk, caring for the garden, and the harvest still plodding along to provide ingredients for my stir-fry.
It is also about Manuka Road, where I pound the pavement and wonder about the people who live in the houses; about forging new frontiers in publishing.
Today was about a new sketchpad I discovered at the Mall, the last one left in palm-sized blue, perfect for travelling but nice and thick too.
It was about the dream of working more within my passions than is currently possible. To read, to design, to help others.
It was about the blue hibiscus dress, discovered on a trip to New Caledonia five years ago, and my French press for loose-leaf tea, bought secondhand for a song.
It was about shredded salad, with four veg plus mozzarella, mixed till it looked like hash browns.
About needing to walk another hour later in the day, and having a small blister from new shoes. I’ll fall back on my old ones again.
And it was about that time my cat started sleeping on my bed again, after months where she seemed to have forgotten it existed.
My flatmates, both off work today, and pursuing their pastimes: one is shopping, the other listening to loud music.

And here is the template for you to fill in with your own words:

Poem of Days

Today is about (specific ordinary item), (book name) and (product name and associated activity).
About the (aspect of where you live; placename, local haunt, description). (more than one if you like).
It is about (habitual activity), (everyday chore), and (aspect of nature: plant or wildlife, and where it was seen).
It is also about (place regularly visited, and what you did there); about (thing that was on your mind).
Today was about (a favourite recent purchase or gift, and where you bought it/who gave it to you and why)
It was about the dream of (something you imagined doing someday, even if you thought it unlikely).
It was about (describe favourite old possession and its story) and (household object regularly handled).
It was about (food you ate regularly at that time, and how it was made).
About travelling from X to Y and from Z to A. (story from travelling)
And it was about that time I (or friend/family member) (story from daily life...).
(Name of friend you spent time with) and (how they contributed to your life).