PAD Challenge - Day 3 - Empty Message

Today's WD 2014 April PAD Challenge prompt is to write a poem about a message, or as they call it a message poem. I have to admit I felt pleased. I had a dream about sending a message in a balloon last night, so it lent itself to this prompt beautifully! I thought about it for a few minutes to find the opening lines. What about you? Do you have a "message" poem in you? Why not write it?

Here's my message poem.





Empty Message

I wrote you a message
Hoping you’d read between the lines
Of words that said so little
And spaces that said so much
I rolled up the message
Slid it into a blue balloon
Blew air into the balloon
Until it was as round as a ball
Tied off the end
Encapsulating my message
Of the unsaid to you
Set it adrift on a windy day
Apologized to the Earth for the pollution
Watched my message
Float across the air
In your direction
Growing smaller with each inch it moved
Turned my back as I lost sight of it
Heard a distant crack of thunder
Knew that like so many other times
The message I sent you would go
Unheard, unspoken, undelivered
If I had the courage to fill in the spaces
Between the nothing I said
With the something in my heart
Maybe I’d be brave enough
To guarantee delivery
Instead of destruction
Instead I ask you to
Read what I refuse to say
Understand what I refuse to explain
Respond to what I refuse to deliver

With all these messages in the empty spaces
T. L. Cooper is an author and poet whose work aims to empower and inspire through an exploration of the human condition. Her poems, short stories, articles, and essays have appeared online, in books, and in magazines. Her published books include a collection of short stories, Soaring Betrayal, her Silhouette Poetry Series, and a novel, All She Ever Wanted. She grew up on a farm in Tollesboro, Kentucky. She currently lives in Albany, Oregon with her husband and three cats.

Comments

  1. UnknownApril 3, 2014 at 4:20 PM

    I love this poem. It really has a voice unseen in a lot of poetry, and a "message" that I simply adore <3 It tells a story almost, just as all great poetry does.

    If you'd ever like to see any of my work, which, by the looks of yours, would truly be an honor, you can find it here: www.theroserotofsugardecay.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. T. L. CooperApril 9, 2014 at 12:05 PM

      Thank you, David! So glad it spoke to you! I will checkout your website! All the best to you!

      Delete

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