Today I tried a word-based exercise: my first attempt at a cento. Starting with just two lines; one from a familiar poem, Cargoes by John Masefield, and another from a recently encountered poem, When Death Comes by Mary Oliver.
I made two two-line centos:
Rowing home to haven in sunny Palestine,
I was a bride married to amazement.
When it's over, I want to say: all my life
Dipping through the Tropics by the palm-green shores
I wish I had known about centos when I was teaching literature all those years ago. I'm sure the kids would have had such fun. I'm certainly finding it serious and fun now.
What fun indeed - and new to me too. Like you, at one (albeit brief) stage in my teaching career, I taught English and can well see the fun and the value of this with teenagers.
ReplyDeleteI was especially taken by your first attempt. It made me smile and the second line gave me a delightful frisson of surprise. Oh to be young again!
Margaret, we don't need to be young to keep enjoying fun exercises like this!
DeleteI was thinking especially of the bride married to amazement. How long ago that feeling now seems!
DeleteWhat fun! I love Towards.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you like Towards, Eirene. It is one of my favourites too.
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