Saturday, December 8, 2018

Fussy Little Forms: Puente

Good weekend, Toads! Let’s play with PUENTE. 

Puente is a rewarding form created by James Rasmusson. The word puente means bridge in Spanish, and--naturally--this lovely form features a bridge. It is a simple idea: 
  • Three stanzas 
  • First and third stanzas have equal number of lines (your choice how many) 
  • Middle bridge stanza is one line, encloses in dashes or tildes 
  • Middle bridge stanza serves as last line for first stanza and first line for last stanza 
Kerry first introduced the puente in the garden back in 2011: BRIDGING THE GAP 

Here is another helpful article from Folded Word: PUENTE 

Here is an example I wrote in response to Kerry’s prompt, called “Quabbin Dream,” about my grandmother:
Woods like fiery calico 
patchwork across the lake-- 
another season arrives with its bluster, 
its demands stitched in crimson, 
brittle-hearted like dry leaves. 

-- you are still gone -- 

Picture my children greeting you-- 
smiles preserved in a weathered frame, 
dancing like leaves in an autumn wind, 
but all I have is your words 
stitched in crimson into a fiery heart. 
                               (c) Marian Kent

Quabbin Reservoir
Ready? Let’s try it! And have a wonderful weekend, friends.

13 comments:

Kim M. Russell said...

Thank you for giving me a new form to play with, Marian! I wasn't a Toad when Kerry first introduced it.

Sanaa Rizvi said...

Loved the prompt, Marian! I found the Puente much more pleasing than most forms. Happy Weekend!💞☕

Magaly Guerrero said...

This form is so much fun, Marian. I really enjoyed starting with the center, and then completing the first and last stanza. Thanks a bunch for sharing it.

Have a fantastic Saturday, everyone!

Margaret said...

Thank you! Another example of a poem I'd never have written if not for this Garden of Toads :)

Kerry O'Connor said...

I remember this form, though I have seldom used it. I think it has enormous possibilities, but I started small. May return to it in a while with something more meaty.

Rosemary Nissen-Wade said...

Lovely to become acquainted with a new form. It's a sweet one! Thank you.

Marian said...

Good morning, friends, I was away yesterday but sit now with a cup of coffee to dig in, finish my own poem, and enjoy all of yours. Cheers!

Marian said...

HANK your link doesn't work! Let me see if I can remedy this

Marian said...

^^ Fixed! :)

Linda Lee Lyberg said...

My first time to do this form- Thank you Marian!

brudberg said...

Hello all weekend was hectic, so I will not write for this prompt... so sorry. I hope it will get less hectic in the week to come.

Susie Clevenger said...

Love the form Marian. Thanks for introducing me to it.

kaykuala said...

Thanks once again, Marian, Ma'am!

Hank