#sijo — Public Fediverse posts on home.social

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-08-17 · 13:48 UTC

Parenthood, or: Golden dust

A Sijo

you turn to me for nourishment
I give, not knowing what will stick;
some part of home goes out with you
across the world beyond my reach;
golden dust clings to my child's hair
somewhere wakes the next spring

What Do You See 354

For WDYS, Sadje offers us a photo by Matt Baron-Thompson (Unsplash) of a bee burrowing into a vivid purple flower, its body dusted with golden pollen as it feeds among the petals.

As always, Sadje is eagerly awaiting our responses!

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Bees #Childhood #Flowers #Inheritance #Legacy #Parenthood #Poem #Poetry #Pollen #Release #Sijo

#sijo #release #pollen #poetry #poem #parenthood

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-08-16 · 07:51 UTC

New candlesticks, or: My counter

A Sijo

new candlesticks on my counter
small gold birds in Friday dusk;
two wicks catch beneath the match
the old words come too easily;
alone, I sanctify Shabbat
somehow, I've begun again.

W3 poetry prompt

For this week’s W3, I invite all of us to write a poem about doing something familiar under changed circumstances so that it feels like a first time again.

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Beginnings #Candles #Continuity #Inheritance #Poem #Poetry #Renewal #Ritual #Shabbat #Sijo #W3

#w3 #sijo #shabbat #ritual #renewal #poetry

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-08-15 · 19:28 UTC

Mumbling kaddish, or: Gather as one

Poetry Partners 270

‘Mumbling Kaddish’, a poem by Dan Brook

as an atheist
mumbling kaddish
for my grandparents
on their common yartzeit
(they died on the same day,
eleven years apart)
even though
as secular Jews, as cultural Jews
they never said kaddish in their lives
never went to synagogue
never lit shabbat candles
never fasted on Yom Kippur
(though I do all that and more)
living their humble, sacred lives
as good, honest, kind people
caring about family, friends, even strangers
and Yiddishkeit
teaching me about holiness

Dan: https://about.me/danbrook

A sijo by ben Alexander of ‘The Skeptic’s Kaddish’

some Jews seldom gather as one
yet Kaddish finds us in one room;
we collect our scattered thoughts
sort the grief from gratitude;
perhaps God was there—I can’t say1
but living faces filled the space

Footnote

Genesis 28:16
“Surely the LORD is in this place, and I did not know it.”
אָכֵן יֵשׁ יְהוָה בַּמָּקוֹם הַזֶּה וְאָנֹכִי לֹא יָדָעְתִּי ↩︎

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

List of Poetry Partners

Over the years, poets from around the world have shared their words here.

#Atheism #Community #Faith #Jewish #Kaddish #Partnership #Poem #Poetry #Religion #Sijo #Skepticism

#skepticism #sijo #religion #poetry #poem #partnership

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-08-14 · 15:48 UTC

The numbers even, or: Marriage ended years

A Sijo

schoolbag, charger, books in tow—
the small things cross between homes;
she counts her nights with each of us—
and wants the numbers even;
our marriage ended years before—
the apartments only caught up.

Reena’s Xploration Challenge 443

For RXC, Reena invites us to write a poem inspired by the word MUNDANE.

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Acceptance #Adaptation #Change #Divorce #Marriage #Mundane #Parenthood #Poem #Poetry #Relief #Sijo

#sijo #relief #poetry #poem #parenthood #mundane

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-08-06 · 09:04 UTC

Shake this fog, or: Remember

A Sijo

the divorce is amicable;
I'm gainfully employed;
my new apartment's furnished;
our daughter is fast adapting;
still I cannot shake this fog
or remember when to eat and sleep

Tanka Tuesday: Oops, I forgot!

For Tanka Tuesday, we are invited to write a syllabic poem about forgetting.

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Adaptation #Challenges #Divorce #Fog #Forgetfulness #Poem #Poetry #SelfCare #Sijo #Struggling #Transition

#transition #struggling #sijo #selfcare #poetry #poem

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-08-05 · 10:14 UTC

Yesterday, or: One last exhale

A Sijo

a heavy mourning cloak hangs
in your familiar closet;
no gatekeeper keeps this gate
that was not there yesterday;
mere rice paper divides two worlds
one last exhale and it gives way

d’Verse poetics: But no, a butterfly

At d’Verse, we are encouraged to write a poem in any form using at least three complete butterfly names from the provided list, though the poem itself does not need to be about butterflies.

List of butterfly names

Appalachian azure, Autumn leaf, Clipper, Clouded yellow, Crimson Patch, Duke of Burgundy, Fatal Metalmark, Fiery skipper, Gatekeeper, Golden birdwing, Golden Hairstreak, Green marble, Large Tortoiseshell, Lustrous copper, Miami Blue, Monarch, Mourning Cloak, Orange Sulphur, Painted Lady, Peacock, Pine Satyr, Rice paper, Rusty-tipped page, Silver Emperor, Silver-banded Hairstreak, Small Wood nymph, Sonoran Blue, Speckled wood, Spring white, Velvet rose, Wandering skipper.

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Death #Fragility #Grief #Impermanence #Mortality #Mourning #Poem #Poetry #Sijo #Transformation #Transition

#transition #transformation #sijo #poetry #poem #mourning

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-30 · 08:34 UTC

Decoy, or: The feast

A Sijo

full platters lie before me
a chair among the voices;
I season every answer
with not-inappropriate phrases;
then a congregant asks what I think
the table suddenly stills

d’Verse poetics: Light and truth of painting

At d’Verse, we are encouraged to write a poem inspired by one of several works of art by Henri Rousseau (1844 – 1910). I selected his ‘The rabbit’s meal’ (Le repas du lapin).

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Acceptance #Community #Conformity #Dissent #Exclusion #Honesty #Opinions #Poem #Poetry #Sharing #Sijo

#sijo #sharing #poetry #poem #opinions #honesty

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-23 · 17:29 UTC

If we remain, or: The last machine

A Sijo

the future glows with aspirations
though none know if we remain;
signals cross the sleepless skyline
in languages no throat has formed;
what if the last machine looks back 
and finds its makers gone?

Reena’s Xploration Challenge 440

For RXC, Reena invites us to compose poems inspired by this visual image of a vast futuristic city glowing with towers, traffic, and airborne vehicles, yet no human figure is visible anywhere.

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Absence #Aspiration #Dystopia #Extinction #Humanity #Language #Machines #Poem #Poetry #Sijo #Technology

#absence #aspiration #dystopia #extinction #humanity #language

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-23 · 17:29 UTC

If we remain, or: The last machine

A Sijo

the future glows with aspirations
though none know if we remain;
signals cross the sleepless skyline
in languages no throat has formed;
what if the last machine looks back 
and finds its makers gone?

Reena’s Xploration Challenge 440

For RXC, Reena invites us to compose poems inspired by this visual image of a vast futuristic city glowing with towers, traffic, and airborne vehicles, yet no human figure is visible anywhere.

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Absence #Aspiration #Dystopia #Extinction #Humanity #Language #Machines #Poem #Poetry #Sijo #Technology

#absence #aspiration #dystopia #extinction #humanity #language

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-23 · 17:29 UTC

If we remain, or: The last machine

A Sijo

the future glows with aspirations
though none know if we remain;
signals cross the sleepless skyline
in languages no throat has formed;
what if the last machine looks back 
and finds its makers gone?

Reena’s Xploration Challenge 440

For RXC, Reena invites us to compose poems inspired by this visual image of a vast futuristic city glowing with towers, traffic, and airborne vehicles, yet no human figure is visible anywhere.

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Absence #Aspiration #Dystopia #Extinction #Humanity #Language #Machines #Poem #Poetry #Sijo #Technology

#absence #aspiration #dystopia #extinction #humanity #language

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-23 · 17:29 UTC

If we remain, or: The last machine

A Sijo

the future glows with aspirations
though none know if we remain;
signals cross the sleepless skyline
in languages no throat has formed;
what if the last machine looks back 
and finds its makers gone?

Reena’s Xploration Challenge 440

For RXC, Reena invites us to compose poems inspired by this visual image of a vast futuristic city glowing with towers, traffic, and airborne vehicles, yet no human figure is visible anywhere.

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Absence #Aspiration #Dystopia #Extinction #Humanity #Language #Machines #Poem #Poetry #Sijo #Technology

#technology #sijo #poetry #poem #machines #language

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-23 · 17:29 UTC

If we remain, or: The last machine

A Sijo

the future glows with aspirations
though none know if we remain;
signals cross the sleepless skyline
in languages no throat has formed;
what if the last machine looks back 
and finds its makers gone?

Reena’s Xploration Challenge 440

For RXC, Reena invites us to compose poems inspired by this visual image of a vast futuristic city glowing with towers, traffic, and airborne vehicles, yet no human figure is visible anywhere.

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Absence #Aspiration #Dystopia #Extinction #Humanity #Language #Machines #Poem #Poetry #Sijo #Technology

#absence #aspiration #dystopia #extinction #humanity #language

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-22 · 12:48 UTC

To bone, or: Breathing between words

A Sijo

these I have loved: suggestion 
the silence breathing between words; 
restraint pares these thoughts to bone 
what stays withheld gathers force; 
absence opens into abundance—
all these have been my loves

d’Verse poetics: The great lover

At d’Verse, we are encouraged to write a list poem beginning with “These I have loved:” that celebrates the ordinary things we treasure through precise, sensory details. Continue the catalogue at length and conclude with “All these have been my loves.”

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Absence #Abundance #Brevity #force #Love #Omission #Poem #Poetry #Restraint #Sijo #Silence #Suggestion

#suggestion #silence #sijo #restraint #poetry #poem

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-18 · 18:15 UTC

The view, or: The distance

A Sijo

these heights gather scattered paths
into one broad field of motion;
what I once touched seems distant now
almost beyond discernment;
perspective is not belonging—
I begin my downward climb

Reena’s Xploration Challenge 439

For RXC, Reena invites us to compose poems inspired by this visual image of a solitary cottage and fruit tree perch atop a towering rock spire, overlooking a vast, distant landscape beneath a bright, cloud-dappled sky.

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Belonging #Clarity #Descent #Distance #Perspective #Poem #Poetry #Realization #Return #Sijo

#sijo #return #realization #poetry #poem #perspective

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-16 · 09:01 UTC

Thresholds, or: Between escape and morning

A Sijo

night deepens, yet I stay awake
bedtime feels replete with loss;
exhaustion pulls me under late
dreams grant relief from consequence;
caught between escape and morning
I resist the thresholds

d’Verse poetics: “My God, It’s Full of Stars”

At d’Verse, we are encouraged to write a poem in which the imagery and experience of night shape a central emotion, memory, event, or reflection.

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Divorce #Emotions #Exhaustion #Insomnia #Night #Poem #Poetry #Relief #Restless #Sijo #Sleep

#sleep #sijo #restless #relief #poetry #poem

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-15 · 21:03 UTC

Vincent, or: Theo

A Sijo

EPIGRAPH:

the life we painted—over;
blank linen upon my easel;
this choice feels almost sacred;
one false first stroke would skew my course;
still, memory steadies my hand;
old lessons guide the brush I raise

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Anxiety #Beginnings #Decisions #Divorce #Fear #Metaphor #Poem #Poetry #Quote #Sijo #VincentVanGogh

#anxiety #beginnings #decisions #divorce #fear #metaphor

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-15 · 21:03 UTC

Vincent, or: Theo

A Sijo

EPIGRAPH:

the life we painted—over;
blank linen upon my easel;
this choice feels almost sacred;
one false first stroke would skew my course;
still, memory steadies my hand;
old lessons guide the brush I raise

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Anxiety #Beginnings #Decisions #Divorce #Fear #Metaphor #Poem #Poetry #Quote #Sijo #VincentVanGogh

#anxiety #beginnings #decisions #divorce #fear #metaphor

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-15 · 21:03 UTC

Vincent, or: Theo

A Sijo

EPIGRAPH:

the life we painted—over;
blank linen upon my easel;
this choice feels almost sacred;
one false first stroke would skew my course;
still, memory steadies my hand;
old lessons guide the brush I raise

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Anxiety #Beginnings #Decisions #Divorce #Fear #Metaphor #Poem #Poetry #Quote #Sijo #VincentVanGogh

#anxiety #beginnings #decisions #divorce #fear #metaphor

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-15 · 21:03 UTC

Vincent, or: Theo

A Sijo

EPIGRAPH:

the life we painted—over;
blank linen upon my easel;
this choice feels almost sacred;
one false first stroke would skew my course;
still, memory steadies my hand;
old lessons guide the brush I raise

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Anxiety #Beginnings #Decisions #Divorce #Fear #Metaphor #Poem #Poetry #Quote #Sijo #VincentVanGogh

#vincentvangogh #sijo #quote #poetry #poem #metaphor

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-15 · 21:03 UTC

Vincent, or: Theo

A Sijo

EPIGRAPH:

the life we painted—over;
blank linen upon my easel;
this choice feels almost sacred;
one false first stroke would skew my course;
still, memory steadies my hand;
old lessons guide the brush I raise

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Anxiety #Beginnings #Decisions #Divorce #Fear #Metaphor #Poem #Poetry #Quote #Sijo #VincentVanGogh

#anxiety #beginnings #decisions #divorce #fear #metaphor

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-15 · 08:23 UTC

Search history, or: Hyperlinks

A Sijo

Leon Wieseltier posed questions \\ while poring over manuscripts;
then, years later, I followed links \\ to essays, chapters, printed texts;
my mourning became a map \\ for other lost wayfarers

W3 poetry prompt

For this week’s W3, Jaideep invites us to write a three-line poem showing how a cultural tradition and modern technology meet, interact, or create something new.

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Books #Comparison #Internet #Kaddish #LeonWieseltier #Poem #Poetry #Quote #Research #Sijo #VincentVanGogh #W3

#books #comparison #internet #kaddish #leonwieseltier #poem

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-15 · 08:23 UTC

Search history, or: Hyperlinks

A Sijo

Leon Wieseltier posed questions \\ while poring over manuscripts;
then, years later, I followed links \\ to essays, chapters, printed texts;
my mourning became a map \\ for other lost wayfarers

W3 poetry prompt

For this week’s W3, Jaideep invites us to write a three-line poem showing how a cultural tradition and modern technology meet, interact, or create something new.

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Books #Comparison #Internet #Kaddish #LeonWieseltier #Poem #Poetry #Quote #Research #Sijo #VincentVanGogh #W3

#books #comparison #internet #kaddish #leonwieseltier #poem

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-15 · 08:23 UTC

Search history, or: Hyperlinks

A Sijo

Leon Wieseltier posed questions \\ while poring over manuscripts;
then, years later, I followed links \\ to essays, chapters, printed texts;
my mourning became a map \\ for other lost wayfarers

W3 poetry prompt

For this week’s W3, Jaideep invites us to write a three-line poem showing how a cultural tradition and modern technology meet, interact, or create something new.

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Books #Comparison #Internet #Kaddish #LeonWieseltier #Poem #Poetry #Quote #Research #Sijo #VincentVanGogh #W3

#books #comparison #internet #kaddish #leonwieseltier #poem

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-15 · 08:23 UTC

Search history, or: Hyperlinks

A Sijo

Leon Wieseltier posed questions \\ while poring over manuscripts;
then, years later, I followed links \\ to essays, chapters, printed texts;
my mourning became a map \\ for other lost wayfarers

W3 poetry prompt

For this week’s W3, Jaideep invites us to write a three-line poem showing how a cultural tradition and modern technology meet, interact, or create something new.

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Books #Comparison #Internet #Kaddish #LeonWieseltier #Poem #Poetry #Quote #Research #Sijo #VincentVanGogh #W3

#w3 #vincentvangogh #sijo #research #quote #poetry

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-15 · 08:23 UTC

Search history, or: Hyperlinks

A Sijo

Leon Wieseltier posed questions \\ while poring over manuscripts;
then, years later, I followed links \\ to essays, chapters, printed texts;
my mourning became a map \\ for other lost wayfarers

W3 poetry prompt

For this week’s W3, Jaideep invites us to write a three-line poem showing how a cultural tradition and modern technology meet, interact, or create something new.

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Books #Comparison #Internet #Kaddish #LeonWieseltier #Poem #Poetry #Quote #Research #Sijo #VincentVanGogh #W3

#books #comparison #internet #kaddish #leonwieseltier #poem

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-12 · 00:13 UTC

A part, or: Me, while my fingers

A Sijo

fifteen years, the band a part of me 
while my fingers thickened; 
a tiny chainsaw bit the gold 
cool water checked the mounting heat; 
my bare hand showed the coming change 
before we told our daughter

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Acceptance #Change #Childhood #Divorce #Family #Fatherhood #Parenthood #Poem #Poetry #Sadness #Sijo #Sorrow

#sorrow #sijo #sadness #poetry #poem #parenthood

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-11 · 18:59 UTC

Before the words, or: Through the sorrow

A Sijo

we told her on Friday evening 
and tears arrived before the words; 
she listened through the sorrow 
then said some part had long sensed this; 
her wisdom held the hurt and truth; 
my new rooms were Grandma’s once

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Acceptance #Change #Childhood #Divorce #Family #Fatherhood #Grief #Parenthood #Poem #Poetry #Sadness #Sijo

#sijo #sadness #poetry #poem #parenthood #grief

Stephen Brooke @[email protected] · 2026-07-11 · 12:49 UTC

Rub

When our shoes rub,
some take them off,

cast them away,
and others grow calluses.

I have always preferred
to go barefoot.

#poetry only slightly resembling a #sijo

#sijo #poetry

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-10 · 12:20 UTC

I s, or: T the piled possessions

A Sijo

EPIGRAPH:

books claim the couches first
furniture and playthings take the rest;
I sort the piled possessions
keeping only what earns its place;
less now gathers greater weight
a stanza steadies in the air

Reena’s Xploration Challenge 438

For Reena’s RXC prompt, she invites us to explore juxtaposition by responding to one of three quotations about luxury, simplicity, elegance, and refusal, or by creating a similarly contrasting statement of our own. We may use juxtaposition directly or indirectly and reflect on what luxury or simplicity means to us personally.

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Contrast #Juxtaposition #LeonardoDaVinci #Mess #Messiness #Poem #Poetry #Quote #Sijo #Simplicity #Sophistication

#sophistication #simplicity #sijo #quote #poetry #poem

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-06 · 20:14 UTC

Quiet currents, or: Thin webbing

A Sijo

a child tests a toy flashlight
against one thumb’s thin webbing;
skin brightens to copper-red
quiet currents seem to course;
somewhere, beneath the sinking sun
a dark hull glides through crimson hues

What Do You See 348

For WDYS, Sadje offers us a photo by Annie Spratt (Unsplash) of a silhouetted boat gliding across a calm river glowing red-orange beneath a sinking sun, while dark palms frame the horizon.

As always, Sadje is eagerly awaiting our responses!

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Blood #Childhood #Imagination #Light #Perception #Poem #Poetry #Sijo #Sunset #Wonder

#wonder #sunset #sijo #poetry #poem #perception

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-05 · 11:41 UTC

I walk, or: Carrying less

A Sijo

sandals, Middle Eastern tan lines
earbuds playing Billy Joel;
the old words sound and sound right
yet their teenage listener has blurred;
midlife's now loosening its grip
I walk on, carrying less

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#BillyJoel #GrowingUp #Immigration #LettingGo #Memories #MiddleAge #Music #Nostalgia #Poem #Poetry #Sijo

#billyjoel #growingup #immigration #lettinggo #memories #middleage

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-05 · 11:41 UTC

I walk, or: Carrying less

A Sijo

sandals, Middle Eastern tan lines
earbuds playing Billy Joel;
the old words sound and sound right
yet their teenage listener has blurred;
midlife's now loosening its grip
I walk on, carrying less

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#BillyJoel #GrowingUp #Immigration #LettingGo #Memories #MiddleAge #Music #Nostalgia #Poem #Poetry #Sijo

#billyjoel #growingup #immigration #lettinggo #memories #middleage

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-05 · 11:41 UTC

I walk, or: Carrying less

A Sijo

sandals, Middle Eastern tan lines
earbuds playing Billy Joel;
the old words sound and sound right
yet their teenage listener has blurred;
midlife's now loosening its grip
I walk on, carrying less

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#BillyJoel #GrowingUp #Immigration #LettingGo #Memories #MiddleAge #Music #Nostalgia #Poem #Poetry #Sijo

#billyjoel #growingup #immigration #lettinggo #memories #middleage

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-05 · 11:41 UTC

I walk, or: Carrying less

A Sijo

sandals, Middle Eastern tan lines
earbuds playing Billy Joel;
the old words sound and sound right
yet their teenage listener has blurred;
midlife's now loosening its grip
I walk on, carrying less

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#BillyJoel #GrowingUp #Immigration #LettingGo #Memories #MiddleAge #Music #Nostalgia #Poem #Poetry #Sijo

#sijo #poetry #poem #nostalgia #music #middleage

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-05 · 11:41 UTC

I walk, or: Carrying less

A Sijo

sandals, Middle Eastern tan lines
earbuds playing Billy Joel;
the old words sound and sound right
yet their teenage listener has blurred;
midlife's now loosening its grip
I walk on, carrying less

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#BillyJoel #GrowingUp #Immigration #LettingGo #Memories #MiddleAge #Music #Nostalgia #Poem #Poetry #Sijo

#billyjoel #growingup #immigration #lettinggo #memories #middleage

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-04 · 03:12 UTC

Abandonment, support, or: Hope

A Sijo

our planet spins off balance
against the inflamed ether;
any raised hand can signal
abandonment, support, or hope;
intentions remain unknowable
until the catch or crash

Reena’s Xploration Challenge 437

For Reena’s RXC prompt, she invites us to compose poems inspired by any of the three panels in this image (I was personally drawn to the third panel):

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Ambiguous #Consequences #Crisis #Intention #Poem #Poetry #Responsibility #Sijo #Trust #Uncertainty

#uncertainty #trust #sijo #responsibility #poetry #poem

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-03 · 08:44 UTC

Arakan, or: Jerusalem

Poetry Partners 268

‘A Refugee’, a poem by Anowar Sadak

I am a refugee
Not by choice,
But by the cruelty
That stole my homeland.

I was born in Arakan,
Where my parents dreamed
I would grow up in peace.
Instead, I inherited fear,
Burning villages, gunfire,
And nights without sleep.

The world calls me a refugee.
Before that, I was a son,
A student,
A dreamer
Who believed tomorrow
Could be kinder than yesterday.

I do not ask for pity.
I ask for justice
For every child forced to flee,
For every family torn apart,
For every homeland
Reduced to ashes.

Though I live far from home,
Arakan still lives within me.
Its rivers, memories,
And the voices of my people
Travel wherever I go.

So I keep writing,
Because my voice cannot be silenced,
My identity cannot be erased,
And hope is stronger than exile.

I am a refugee
But this is not the end of my story.

One day,
I will return home
As a free Rohingya,
Walking with dignity,
Peace,
And hope.

Anowar: https://anowarsadak.wordpress.com/

A ‘Sijo’ by ben Alexander of ‘The Skeptic’s Kaddish’

my people carried Jerusalem
through exile, psalm, and hunger;
today’s broken borders reveal
old longing in new faces;
from Arakan to elsewhere—
the uprooted share one heart

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

List of Poetry Partners

#Empathy #Exile #Homeland #Identity #Longing #Memory #Partnership #Poem #Poetry #Refugees #Sijo

#empathy #exile #homeland #identity #longing #memory

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-03 · 08:44 UTC

Arakan, or: Jerusalem

Poetry Partners 268

‘A Refugee’, a poem by Anowar Sadak

I am a refugee
Not by choice,
But by the cruelty
That stole my homeland.

I was born in Arakan,
Where my parents dreamed
I would grow up in peace.
Instead, I inherited fear,
Burning villages, gunfire,
And nights without sleep.

The world calls me a refugee.
Before that, I was a son,
A student,
A dreamer
Who believed tomorrow
Could be kinder than yesterday.

I do not ask for pity.
I ask for justice
For every child forced to flee,
For every family torn apart,
For every homeland
Reduced to ashes.

Though I live far from home,
Arakan still lives within me.
Its rivers, memories,
And the voices of my people
Travel wherever I go.

So I keep writing,
Because my voice cannot be silenced,
My identity cannot be erased,
And hope is stronger than exile.

I am a refugee
But this is not the end of my story.

One day,
I will return home
As a free Rohingya,
Walking with dignity,
Peace,
And hope.

Anowar: https://anowarsadak.wordpress.com/

A ‘Sijo’ by ben Alexander of ‘The Skeptic’s Kaddish’

my people carried Jerusalem
through exile, psalm, and hunger;
today’s broken borders reveal
old longing in new faces;
from Arakan to elsewhere—
the uprooted share one heart

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

List of Poetry Partners

#Empathy #Exile #Homeland #Identity #Longing #Memory #Partnership #Poem #Poetry #Refugees #Sijo

#empathy #exile #homeland #identity #longing #memory

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-03 · 08:44 UTC

Arakan, or: Jerusalem

Poetry Partners 268

‘A Refugee’, a poem by Anowar Sadak

I am a refugee
Not by choice,
But by the cruelty
That stole my homeland.

I was born in Arakan,
Where my parents dreamed
I would grow up in peace.
Instead, I inherited fear,
Burning villages, gunfire,
And nights without sleep.

The world calls me a refugee.
Before that, I was a son,
A student,
A dreamer
Who believed tomorrow
Could be kinder than yesterday.

I do not ask for pity.
I ask for justice
For every child forced to flee,
For every family torn apart,
For every homeland
Reduced to ashes.

Though I live far from home,
Arakan still lives within me.
Its rivers, memories,
And the voices of my people
Travel wherever I go.

So I keep writing,
Because my voice cannot be silenced,
My identity cannot be erased,
And hope is stronger than exile.

I am a refugee
But this is not the end of my story.

One day,
I will return home
As a free Rohingya,
Walking with dignity,
Peace,
And hope.

Anowar: https://anowarsadak.wordpress.com/

A ‘Sijo’ by ben Alexander of ‘The Skeptic’s Kaddish’

my people carried Jerusalem
through exile, psalm, and hunger;
today’s broken borders reveal
old longing in new faces;
from Arakan to elsewhere—
the uprooted share one heart

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

List of Poetry Partners

#Empathy #Exile #Homeland #Identity #Longing #Memory #Partnership #Poem #Poetry #Refugees #Sijo

#empathy #exile #homeland #identity #longing #memory

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-03 · 08:44 UTC

Arakan, or: Jerusalem

Poetry Partners 268

‘A Refugee’, a poem by Anowar Sadak

I am a refugee
Not by choice,
But by the cruelty
That stole my homeland.

I was born in Arakan,
Where my parents dreamed
I would grow up in peace.
Instead, I inherited fear,
Burning villages, gunfire,
And nights without sleep.

The world calls me a refugee.
Before that, I was a son,
A student,
A dreamer
Who believed tomorrow
Could be kinder than yesterday.

I do not ask for pity.
I ask for justice
For every child forced to flee,
For every family torn apart,
For every homeland
Reduced to ashes.

Though I live far from home,
Arakan still lives within me.
Its rivers, memories,
And the voices of my people
Travel wherever I go.

So I keep writing,
Because my voice cannot be silenced,
My identity cannot be erased,
And hope is stronger than exile.

I am a refugee
But this is not the end of my story.

One day,
I will return home
As a free Rohingya,
Walking with dignity,
Peace,
And hope.

Anowar: https://anowarsadak.wordpress.com/

A ‘Sijo’ by ben Alexander of ‘The Skeptic’s Kaddish’

my people carried Jerusalem
through exile, psalm, and hunger;
today’s broken borders reveal
old longing in new faces;
from Arakan to elsewhere—
the uprooted share one heart

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

List of Poetry Partners

#Empathy #Exile #Homeland #Identity #Longing #Memory #Partnership #Poem #Poetry #Refugees #Sijo

#sijo #refugees #poetry #poem #partnership #memory

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-03 · 08:44 UTC

Arakan, or: Jerusalem

Poetry Partners 268

‘A Refugee’, a poem by Anowar Sadak

I am a refugee
Not by choice,
But by the cruelty
That stole my homeland.

I was born in Arakan,
Where my parents dreamed
I would grow up in peace.
Instead, I inherited fear,
Burning villages, gunfire,
And nights without sleep.

The world calls me a refugee.
Before that, I was a son,
A student,
A dreamer
Who believed tomorrow
Could be kinder than yesterday.

I do not ask for pity.
I ask for justice
For every child forced to flee,
For every family torn apart,
For every homeland
Reduced to ashes.

Though I live far from home,
Arakan still lives within me.
Its rivers, memories,
And the voices of my people
Travel wherever I go.

So I keep writing,
Because my voice cannot be silenced,
My identity cannot be erased,
And hope is stronger than exile.

I am a refugee
But this is not the end of my story.

One day,
I will return home
As a free Rohingya,
Walking with dignity,
Peace,
And hope.

Anowar: https://anowarsadak.wordpress.com/

A ‘Sijo’ by ben Alexander of ‘The Skeptic’s Kaddish’

my people carried Jerusalem
through exile, psalm, and hunger;
today’s broken borders reveal
old longing in new faces;
from Arakan to elsewhere—
the uprooted share one heart

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

List of Poetry Partners

#Empathy #Exile #Homeland #Identity #Longing #Memory #Partnership #Poem #Poetry #Refugees #Sijo

#empathy #exile #homeland #identity #longing #memory

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-02 · 07:00 UTC

The ghost, or: The silence

A Sijo

for one year, Kaddish gave my loss
a borrowed ancient voice;
then silence marked the threshold
between mourning and forever;
I withdrew after the last amen
but returned to words as breathing

W3 poetry prompt

For Benji’s W3 prompt this week, he invites us to reflect on the quiet we long for, and what happens when it finally arrives. He asks us to consider the uneasy space after busyness, obligation, noise, or familiar chaos has ended, when freedom may first feel welcome but later reveal loneliness, memory, regret, or unexpected clarity.

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Grief #Kaddish #Loss #Mourning #Poem #Poetry #SelfExpression #Sijo #Threshold #W3 #Writing

#grief #kaddish #loss #mourning #poem #poetry

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-02 · 07:00 UTC

The ghost, or: The silence

A Sijo

for one year, Kaddish gave my loss
a borrowed ancient voice;
then silence marked the threshold
between mourning and forever;
I withdrew after the last amen
but returned to words as breathing

W3 poetry prompt

For Benji’s W3 prompt this week, he invites us to reflect on the quiet we long for, and what happens when it finally arrives. He asks us to consider the uneasy space after busyness, obligation, noise, or familiar chaos has ended, when freedom may first feel welcome but later reveal loneliness, memory, regret, or unexpected clarity.

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Kaddish #Poetry #Mourning #Grief #Loss #Poem #Writing #Sijo #SelfExpression #W3 #Threshold

#kaddish #poetry #mourning #grief #loss #poem

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-02 · 07:00 UTC

The ghost, or: The silence

A Sijo

for one year, Kaddish gave my loss
a borrowed ancient voice;
then silence marked the threshold
between mourning and forever;
I withdrew after the last amen
but returned to words as breathing

W3 poetry prompt

For Benji’s W3 prompt this week, he invites us to reflect on the quiet we long for, and what happens when it finally arrives. He asks us to consider the uneasy space after busyness, obligation, noise, or familiar chaos has ended, when freedom may first feel welcome but later reveal loneliness, memory, regret, or unexpected clarity.

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Grief #Kaddish #Loss #Mourning #Poem #Poetry #SelfExpression #Sijo #Threshold #W3 #Writing

#grief #kaddish #loss #mourning #poem #poetry

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-02 · 07:00 UTC

The ghost, or: The silence

A Sijo

for one year, Kaddish gave my loss
a borrowed ancient voice;
then silence marked the threshold
between mourning and forever;
I withdrew after the last amen
but returned to words as breathing

W3 poetry prompt

For Benji’s W3 prompt this week, he invites us to reflect on the quiet we long for, and what happens when it finally arrives. He asks us to consider the uneasy space after busyness, obligation, noise, or familiar chaos has ended, when freedom may first feel welcome but later reveal loneliness, memory, regret, or unexpected clarity.

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Grief #Kaddish #Loss #Mourning #Poem #Poetry #SelfExpression #Sijo #Threshold #W3 #Writing

#writing #w3 #threshold #sijo #selfexpression #poetry

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-07-02 · 07:00 UTC

The ghost, or: The silence

A Sijo

for one year, Kaddish gave my loss
a borrowed ancient voice;
then silence marked the threshold
between mourning and forever;
I withdrew after the last amen
but returned to words as breathing

W3 poetry prompt

For Benji’s W3 prompt this week, he invites us to reflect on the quiet we long for, and what happens when it finally arrives. He asks us to consider the uneasy space after busyness, obligation, noise, or familiar chaos has ended, when freedom may first feel welcome but later reveal loneliness, memory, regret, or unexpected clarity.

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Kaddish #Poetry #Mourning #Grief #Loss #Poem #Writing #Sijo #SelfExpression #W3 #Threshold

#kaddish #poetry #mourning #grief #loss #poem

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-06-30 · 07:28 UTC

Elsewhere, or: Tomorrow

Poetry Partners 267

‘Just One Hour Before I Die’, a poem by Anowar Sadak

I do not ask
For a lifetime of happiness.

I do not ask
For wealth, power, or fame.

I ask for only one gift—
Just one hr

Just one hour
To know what freedom feels like.

Just one hour
To breathe the air of peace,
With no fear following my footsteps.

Just one hour
To stand with dignity
On the soil of my homeland,
Without being called a stranger.

Since the day I was born,
I have known violence
Better than peace,
Exile better than home,
And survival better than living.

I have buried dreams
Before they had the chance to bloom.
I have carried memories
Too heavy for any child to bear.
Yet my heart still refuses
To stop hoping.

If Allah grants me
Just one hr
Of freedom, peace, and dignity
Before I die,

I will bow my head
In endless gratitude.

Because even one hour
As a free Rohingya
Would be worth
More than a lifetime
Spent in fear.

That one hour
Would heal wounds
No one else could see.

That one hour
Would tell my soul—

You were born human.
You were meant to live free.

And I would leave this world knowing,

This is what it means
To finally live.

Anowar: https://anowarsadak.wordpress.com/

A ‘Sijo’ by ben Alexander of ‘The Skeptic’s Kaddish’

another refugee in the news
another person's fate;
today's comforts surround me
built upon chance circumstance;
I've inherited no guarantees
beyond this current moment

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

List of Poetry Partners

#Chance #Comfort #Dignity #Exile #Fate #Hope #Partnership #Poem #Poetry #Refugees #Sijo

#chance #comfort #dignity #exile #fate #hope

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-06-30 · 07:28 UTC

Elsewhere, or: Tomorrow

Poetry Partners 267

‘Just One Hour Before I Die’, a poem by Anowar Sadak

I do not ask
For a lifetime of happiness.

I do not ask
For wealth, power, or fame.

I ask for only one gift—
Just one hr

Just one hour
To know what freedom feels like.

Just one hour
To breathe the air of peace,
With no fear following my footsteps.

Just one hour
To stand with dignity
On the soil of my homeland,
Without being called a stranger.

Since the day I was born,
I have known violence
Better than peace,
Exile better than home,
And survival better than living.

I have buried dreams
Before they had the chance to bloom.
I have carried memories
Too heavy for any child to bear.
Yet my heart still refuses
To stop hoping.

If Allah grants me
Just one hr
Of freedom, peace, and dignity
Before I die,

I will bow my head
In endless gratitude.

Because even one hour
As a free Rohingya
Would be worth
More than a lifetime
Spent in fear.

That one hour
Would heal wounds
No one else could see.

That one hour
Would tell my soul—

You were born human.
You were meant to live free.

And I would leave this world knowing,

This is what it means
To finally live.

Anowar: https://anowarsadak.wordpress.com/

A ‘Sijo’ by ben Alexander of ‘The Skeptic’s Kaddish’

another refugee in the news
another person's fate;
today's comforts surround me
built upon chance circumstance;
I've inherited no guarantees
beyond this current moment

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

List of Poetry Partners

#Chance #Comfort #Dignity #Exile #Fate #Hope #Partnership #Poem #Poetry #Refugees #Sijo

#chance #comfort #dignity #exile #fate #hope

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-06-30 · 07:28 UTC

Elsewhere, or: Tomorrow

Poetry Partners 267

‘Just One Hour Before I Die’, a poem by Anowar Sadak

I do not ask
For a lifetime of happiness.

I do not ask
For wealth, power, or fame.

I ask for only one gift—
Just one hr

Just one hour
To know what freedom feels like.

Just one hour
To breathe the air of peace,
With no fear following my footsteps.

Just one hour
To stand with dignity
On the soil of my homeland,
Without being called a stranger.

Since the day I was born,
I have known violence
Better than peace,
Exile better than home,
And survival better than living.

I have buried dreams
Before they had the chance to bloom.
I have carried memories
Too heavy for any child to bear.
Yet my heart still refuses
To stop hoping.

If Allah grants me
Just one hr
Of freedom, peace, and dignity
Before I die,

I will bow my head
In endless gratitude.

Because even one hour
As a free Rohingya
Would be worth
More than a lifetime
Spent in fear.

That one hour
Would heal wounds
No one else could see.

That one hour
Would tell my soul—

You were born human.
You were meant to live free.

And I would leave this world knowing,

This is what it means
To finally live.

Anowar: https://anowarsadak.wordpress.com/

A ‘Sijo’ by ben Alexander of ‘The Skeptic’s Kaddish’

another refugee in the news
another person's fate;
today's comforts surround me
built upon chance circumstance;
I've inherited no guarantees
beyond this current moment

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

List of Poetry Partners

#Chance #Comfort #Dignity #Exile #Fate #Hope #Partnership #Poem #Poetry #Refugees #Sijo

#chance #comfort #dignity #exile #fate #hope

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-06-30 · 07:28 UTC

Elsewhere, or: Tomorrow

Poetry Partners 267

‘Just One Hour Before I Die’, a poem by Anowar Sadak

I do not ask
For a lifetime of happiness.

I do not ask
For wealth, power, or fame.

I ask for only one gift—
Just one hr

Just one hour
To know what freedom feels like.

Just one hour
To breathe the air of peace,
With no fear following my footsteps.

Just one hour
To stand with dignity
On the soil of my homeland,
Without being called a stranger.

Since the day I was born,
I have known violence
Better than peace,
Exile better than home,
And survival better than living.

I have buried dreams
Before they had the chance to bloom.
I have carried memories
Too heavy for any child to bear.
Yet my heart still refuses
To stop hoping.

If Allah grants me
Just one hr
Of freedom, peace, and dignity
Before I die,

I will bow my head
In endless gratitude.

Because even one hour
As a free Rohingya
Would be worth
More than a lifetime
Spent in fear.

That one hour
Would heal wounds
No one else could see.

That one hour
Would tell my soul—

You were born human.
You were meant to live free.

And I would leave this world knowing,

This is what it means
To finally live.

Anowar: https://anowarsadak.wordpress.com/

A ‘Sijo’ by ben Alexander of ‘The Skeptic’s Kaddish’

another refugee in the news
another person's fate;
today's comforts surround me
built upon chance circumstance;
I've inherited no guarantees
beyond this current moment

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

List of Poetry Partners

#Chance #Comfort #Dignity #Exile #Fate #Hope #Partnership #Poem #Poetry #Refugees #Sijo

#sijo #refugees #poetry #poem #partnership #hope

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-06-30 · 07:28 UTC

Elsewhere, or: Tomorrow

Poetry Partners 267

‘Just One Hour Before I Die’, a poem by Anowar Sadak

I do not ask
For a lifetime of happiness.

I do not ask
For wealth, power, or fame.

I ask for only one gift—
Just one hr

Just one hour
To know what freedom feels like.

Just one hour
To breathe the air of peace,
With no fear following my footsteps.

Just one hour
To stand with dignity
On the soil of my homeland,
Without being called a stranger.

Since the day I was born,
I have known violence
Better than peace,
Exile better than home,
And survival better than living.

I have buried dreams
Before they had the chance to bloom.
I have carried memories
Too heavy for any child to bear.
Yet my heart still refuses
To stop hoping.

If Allah grants me
Just one hr
Of freedom, peace, and dignity
Before I die,

I will bow my head
In endless gratitude.

Because even one hour
As a free Rohingya
Would be worth
More than a lifetime
Spent in fear.

That one hour
Would heal wounds
No one else could see.

That one hour
Would tell my soul—

You were born human.
You were meant to live free.

And I would leave this world knowing,

This is what it means
To finally live.

Anowar: https://anowarsadak.wordpress.com/

A ‘Sijo’ by ben Alexander of ‘The Skeptic’s Kaddish’

another refugee in the news
another person's fate;
today's comforts surround me
built upon chance circumstance;
I've inherited no guarantees
beyond this current moment

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

List of Poetry Partners

#Chance #Comfort #Dignity #Exile #Fate #Hope #Partnership #Poem #Poetry #Refugees #Sijo

#chance #comfort #dignity #exile #fate #hope

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-06-29 · 07:39 UTC

To look ahead, or: To know

A Sijo

one ordinary moment 
refuses to let me go; 
countless mornings drifted by 
while I fought to look ahead; 
there's a man I've come to know 
standing scarred, recognisable

What Do You See 347

For WDYS, Sadje offers us a photo by Doruq Pasha (Unsplash) of a shaft of warm sunlight falling across a simple wall clock, drawing my eye to the quiet, unceasing passage of time within an otherwise ordinary room.

As always, Sadje is eagerly awaiting our responses!

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Poem #Poetry #Sijo

#sijo #poetry #poem

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-06-28 · 08:53 UTC

Uncurl, or: Unanswered

A Sijo

I plant my unanswered questions 
hoping spring knows what to do; 
yearning tendrils spread outward 
straining to find some purchase; 
crisp, green vowels uncurl softly 
beside bright consonant foliage

W3 poetry prompt

For Sally’s W3 prompt last week, she invites us to explore what lies beneath the surface—whether in gardens, nature, or ourselves—through the images of soil, roots, weeds, and hidden growth.

My above sijo was inspired by this limerick I wrote for a d’Verse community prompt back in 2021:

Crisp, or: Fresh

I sow d'Verse prompts in my garden
But I feel that I must beg your pardon.
For my rows are of keys
That yield green abc's
Though my gardenin's really quite ardent.

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Conceit #Garden #Gardening #Hope #Metaphor #Plants #Poem #Poetry #Questions #Sijo #W3

#conceit #garden #gardening #hope #metaphor #plants

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-06-28 · 08:53 UTC

Uncurl, or: Unanswered

A Sijo

I plant my unanswered questions 
hoping spring knows what to do; 
yearning tendrils spread outward 
straining to find some purchase; 
crisp, green vowels uncurl softly 
beside bright consonant foliage

W3 poetry prompt

For Sally’s W3 prompt last week, she invites us to explore what lies beneath the surface—whether in gardens, nature, or ourselves—through the images of soil, roots, weeds, and hidden growth.

My above sijo was inspired by this limerick I wrote for a d’Verse community prompt back in 2021:

Crisp, or: Fresh

I sow d'Verse prompts in my garden
But I feel that I must beg your pardon.
For my rows are of keys
That yield green abc's
Though my gardenin's really quite ardent.

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Conceit #Garden #Gardening #Hope #Metaphor #Plants #Poem #Poetry #Questions #Sijo #W3

#conceit #garden #gardening #hope #metaphor #plants

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-06-28 · 08:53 UTC

Uncurl, or: Unanswered

A Sijo

I plant my unanswered questions 
hoping spring knows what to do; 
yearning tendrils spread outward 
straining to find some purchase; 
crisp, green vowels uncurl softly 
beside bright consonant foliage

W3 poetry prompt

For Sally’s W3 prompt last week, she invites us to explore what lies beneath the surface—whether in gardens, nature, or ourselves—through the images of soil, roots, weeds, and hidden growth.

My above sijo was inspired by this limerick I wrote for a d’Verse community prompt back in 2021:

Crisp, or: Fresh

I sow d'Verse prompts in my garden
But I feel that I must beg your pardon.
For my rows are of keys
That yield green abc's
Though my gardenin's really quite ardent.

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Conceit #Garden #Gardening #Hope #Metaphor #Plants #Poem #Poetry #Questions #Sijo #W3

#w3 #sijo #questions #poetry #poem #plants

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-06-28 · 08:53 UTC

Uncurl, or: Unanswered

A Sijo

I plant my unanswered questions 
hoping spring knows what to do; 
yearning tendrils spread outward 
straining to find some purchase; 
crisp, green vowels uncurl softly 
beside bright consonant foliage

W3 poetry prompt

For Sally’s W3 prompt last week, she invites us to explore what lies beneath the surface—whether in gardens, nature, or ourselves—through the images of soil, roots, weeds, and hidden growth.

My above sijo was inspired by this limerick I wrote for a d’Verse community prompt back in 2021:

Crisp, or: Fresh

I sow d'Verse prompts in my garden
But I feel that I must beg your pardon.
For my rows are of keys
That yield green abc's
Though my gardenin's really quite ardent.

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Conceit #Garden #Gardening #Hope #Metaphor #Plants #Poem #Poetry #Questions #Sijo #W3

#conceit #garden #gardening #hope #metaphor #plants

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-06-27 · 11:45 UTC

Carry me, or: Hold my hand

A Sijo

my hiking sandals carry me 
over Jerusalem's stones; 
from spring pollen to summer dust 
autumn leaves to winter mud; 
I catch myself wondering 
when she'll be too big to hold my hand

Reena’s Xploration Challenge 436

For Reena’s RXC prompt, she invites us to compose poems inspired by this paragraph:

The seasons shift like unspoken truths—summer’s blaze softens into autumn’s hush, winter’s silence yields to spring’s renewal. In each turn, the human heart mirrors the cycle: burning with desire, retreating into reflection, and blossoming again with fragile hope.

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#Change #GrowingUp #Growth #Jerusalem #Parenthood #Poem #Poetry #Sandals #Seasons #Sijo #Time

#time #sijo #seasons #sandals #poetry #poem

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-06-26 · 12:18 UTC

Relieving song, or: Rising steam

A Sijo

my pot begins to murmur
beneath its plain, faithful cap;
every heartbeat finds less room
inside the thick, waiting steel;
then comes the valve's relieving song
each stanza lifts with rising steam

d’Verse: Ars poetica revisited

At d’Verse, we are encouraged to write an Ars Poetica that reveals our relationship with poetry through imagery, symbolism, or personification, showing our writing process rather than simply explaining it.

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#ArsPoetica #Conceit #Metaphor #Need #Poem #Poetry #Pressure #Release #Relief #Sijo #Writing

#arspoetica #conceit #metaphor #need #poem #poetry

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-06-26 · 12:18 UTC

Relieving song, or: Rising steam

A Sijo

my pot begins to murmur
beneath its plain, faithful cap;
every heartbeat finds less room
inside the thick, waiting steel;
then comes the valve's relieving song
each stanza lifts with rising steam

d’Verse: Ars poetica revisited

At d’Verse, we are encouraged to write an Ars Poetica that reveals our relationship with poetry through imagery, symbolism, or personification, showing our writing process rather than simply explaining it.

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#ArsPoetica #Conceit #Metaphor #Need #Poem #Poetry #Pressure #Release #Relief #Sijo #Writing

#arspoetica #conceit #metaphor #need #poem #poetry

The Skeptic's Kaddish @[email protected] · 2026-06-26 · 12:18 UTC

Relieving song, or: Rising steam

A Sijo

my pot begins to murmur
beneath its plain, faithful cap;
every heartbeat finds less room
inside the thick, waiting steel;
then comes the valve's relieving song
each stanza lifts with rising steam

d’Verse: Ars poetica revisited

At d’Verse, we are encouraged to write an Ars Poetica that reveals our relationship with poetry through imagery, symbolism, or personification, showing our writing process rather than simply explaining it.

Sijo?

A Korean verse form related to haiku and tanka and comprised of three lines of 14-16 syllables each, for a total of 44-46 syllables. Each line contains a pause near the middle, similar to a caesura, though the break need not be metrical. The first half of the line contains six to nine syllables; the second half should contain no fewer than five. Originally intended as songs, sijo can treat romantic, metaphysical, or spiritual themes. Whatever the subject, the first line introduces an idea or story, the second supplies a “turn,” and the third provides closure. Modern sijo are sometimes printed in six lines.

Let’s write poetry together!

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!

#ArsPoetica #Conceit #Metaphor #Need #Poem #Poetry #Pressure #Release #Relief #Sijo #Writing

#arspoetica #conceit #metaphor #need #poem #poetry