Member-only story
Bonsai
A poem, a note and a writing prompt
Tree in infancy
placed in glazed oval pot
roots trimmed to fit.
Slim, sappy branches
and bright leaves
full of questing for
places to grow.
From the beginning
the gardener makes rules -
errant leaves must be pruned,
branches will grow this way,
brace of copper wire
forces shape to conform.
Years of constant attention
search for true perfection
in the gardener’s eyes.
Bonsai bent and gnarled,
twisted upon itself,
stunted, exact.
Poet’s note: sometimes a poem will emerge and it’s only after some thought and rewriting that you see the metaphor — it was lying under the surface the whole time but you didn’t realize at first. With this poem its metaphor is a growing child. I’ll leave the rest to you.
Poetry prompt: choose a simple object or thing you are familiar with. Describe it in as much detail as possible, brainstorming all the ideas and words (a mind map on a blank page can be good for this). You may already have the metaphor in mind, or you can decide before you write a draft. Choose the words and phrases that work for both object and metaphor to construct your poem.
