napowrimo #19: if she were really your friend

by Carolee Sherwood

By now, you may be wondering, “Just how did I get myself into this NaPoWriMo mess, anyway?” I can blame the bad influence of my IRL friend and poetry pal Jill (one of the other crazy ladies filling you with wild ideas this month). She volunteered my services to this crazy Read Write Poem April prompt fest. It reminds me of the warnings our parents give us, “If she were really your friend, would she tangle you up in so much poetry in such a short period of time? If she were really your friend, would she [fill in the blank]?” If your friend jumped off the bridge, would you jump, too?

I attempted NaPoWriMo last year, and I wrote 30 poems, although it took me a few days into May to finish up. But this past October, Jill and I wrote a poem every day, so I do know it can be done. I do know that friends can get you into all sorts of pickles and you can write your way out of most of them.

While anything in this post is fair game for inspiration today (just how did “pickle” come to mean a sticky situation? what kind of trouble did peer pressure get you into?), the “real” prompt for today is friendship. Write about the blessing that is a true friend or the heartache that comes from losing one. Tell us how you are a good friend (or where you fall short). Have you ever betrayed a friend or been disappointed by a friend? Have you ever slept with a friend? Did you marry a friend? Describe one of your actual friends. An old friend. A new friend. An imaginary friend. Remember an adventure you took with a friend or one you’d like to plan. What is it about friendship that we seek so consistently throughout our lives? Think of the ways in which we become friends with people. Think about how we lose touch.

Even though it’s NaPoWriMo and you may be in a bit of a rush, try to write your friendship poems without sentimentality and try to use concrete images instead of generating your poem conceptually. You can do it. You are a hardened, career criminal. I mean, “poet.” An experienced, NaPoWriMo poet. A “lifer.” Accept the challenge!

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A note from “admin”: This month, since we’re all trying to write every day, we’re leaving the comments open with each prompt so you can post links to your poems as you write them. So, go ahead and write your poem, post your poem (with a link to Read Write Poem and a Read Write Poem tag, if you would) and come back to this very spot and share your link with us.

Of course, if you’re a creature of habit, you can always post your links at this week’s “Get Your Poem On” post. Who are we to mess around with what works for you?

And don’t forget to go read the poems of others in this wonderful writing community. We’re all in this NaPoWriMo “mess” (ha ha!) together; let’s support each other in the insanity that is writing (every day)!

napowrimo #19: if she were really your friend

by Carolee Sherwood

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