This is my first, and so far, my only attempt to write something with a certain beat. I also used alot of repetition. I'm not sure if that's cheating or not.

Change the Rhythm

Change the rhythm
Need a new beat
Change the rhythm
Want to retreat
Change the rhythm
Life is not neat
Change the rhythm
Feel more complete
Change the rhythm
What are you waiting for?

This is another poem about growing older. I think this post and the previous one show you can write about the same theme more than once and come up with very different pieces.

Questions of a Lifetime

How did I get to this place
where the future is shorter than the past?
Didn't Mom just send me off
to my first day of school?
Well, maybe it was high school.
Should I be working on
college or job applications?
No-AARP membership or estate planning.
I hear the news anchor announce
the ending date of a new project.
Is it even possible I will see the completion?
When did I lose so many
friends and family members?
More than 20 years ago, less than 10?
It happens too frequently now.
How did I get to this place
where hindsight is longer than foresight?
By living my life.

Sometimes you have to take a lighter approach. That's what I tried with this poem about growing older.

I'm a Senior

Don't need the long-term guarantee.
Reverse the mortgage,
what money I'll see.
Get a discount at the grocery,
but only if I'm there
when they want me to be.
Give me a card that will cut the fee.
The early-bird special,
that's for me.
Keeping track of the offers is the key.
That's the life of a senior,
too bad it's not free.

A scene from the movie "We are Marshall" gave me the idea for this poem. I think we see examples of it everyday.

In a Heartbeat

The muscle shows its strength
by the power of the beat.
Character shows its strength
by the power not to be beaten.
Know the strength that lies within you,
and you will never skip a beat.

In June, I took a jazz poetry workshop and found out that haiku is a large subset of jazz poetry. I remember haiku being part of the poetry unit in school. I wasn't particularly interested in it then, but I am really enjoying it now. In case you need a refresher, a haiku contains 17 syllables broken into three lines of 5, 7 and 5. The two I am posting today have one similar line, but I think the overall ideas are a little different.

Team Up

Collaboration
Transfer the feeling to sound,
feeding each other


Expression

Master musicians
express their feelings in sound,
the true jazz poets

I wrote the following poem after doing some yardwork. I guess it is my version of "take time to smell the roses." In this case, it's lilacs.

I Never See the Lilacs

I never see the lilacs bloom
though they grow in my backyard.
Orange lilies burst upon the scene
yet they don't catch my eye.
The daffodils can wave and wave,
but they'll get no reply.
All this unfolds so close to me,
it seems impossible to miss.
But it's easy to overlook what's near
when you're focused on what's next.

This poem came from some comments made by a couple of newcasters. They were discussing how time could be both harmful and helpful.

Two Sides of Time

Time takes its toll
but offers its tenderness.
The taking is aggressive,
eroding our skills,
destroying the familiar,
claiming those we love.
The offering is more subtle,
presenting new opportunities,
providing the chance to rebuild,
distancing us from the hurt.
The toll cannot be avoided.
The tender presents a choice.
Both need to be accepted
as integral parts of life.