The Doldrums
A prompted poem
I found a post by Joseph Fasano, showing a letter a woman had wrote to him with a poem written by her mother who struggled with dementia.
Joseph had created a writing prompt, designed to help children express themself with poetry.
This is the prompt:
There are so many words in my head sometimes, that it can be difficult to untangle them into something that lets me understand my feelings. I find writing helps. I wanted to give it a try, but of course I strayed a little bit from the original prompt (not by much though, sometimes its safest to keep within view of the beaten path). So here is My Poem, The Doldrums:
Today I feel like a ship lost upon an endless sea,
Lacking a heading.
Sometimes I am a sailor
Sometimes I am an anchor
But always I am melancholy.
I ask the world, “Is it over?”
And the answer is lost in the waves.
About the Creator
Ash Taylor
Lover of fantasy and all things whimsical. Currently studying Writing and Publishing at UNE in Armidale, Australia. Living on Anaiwan land.
he/him
Reader insights
Outstanding
Excellent work. Looking forward to reading more!
Top insights
Compelling and original writing
Creative use of language & vocab
Easy to read and follow
Well-structured & engaging content
Heartfelt and relatable
The story invoked strong personal emotions
Comments (5)
Oh, I love this. You penned such a sense of longing into this prompt - a sadness that is also beautiful. Wonderfully done!
Beautiful work! I feel the listlessness and uncertainty turned to sadness. It is a very relatable feeling.
You've given us a truly beautiful poem, Ash. And thank you for sharing the prompt as well! I've bookmarked this prompt so I can come back to it sometime and try Fasano's prompt for myself sometime!
What a cool prompt and you’ve executed it perfectly. 🌊
Beautifully and creatively done with the prompt! You've got my subscription. :).