Think Tank Thursday



Poets United has come up with an intriguing prompt this week. Prompt #37 is Lemons. Do you take bad things and make them good? You know, make lemonade out of lemons? What has happened sour in your life that you managed to make sweet. Maybe you don’t want the analogy, maybe you want to write about a hot summer day and a cold glass of lemonade. Whatever you choose to write about include lemons.

I used lemons as a metaphor for teen years, when the green eyed monster reared it's ugly head. Sometimes a friend, isn't your friend, when a certain boy starts to show his affection or pays attention to you.


Green eyed comments dig in my soul,
Lemon sun filters sieved dreams,
Bittersweet, gnarled, out stretched arms,
Rotten with pollinated thoughts,
Pesticides creep into pure freshness,
Honey bees swarm,
I scout for a new hive,
Brilliance of light, removes stains,
Fresh tune plays over n' over,
Provencal magic arrives,
Refreshes your soul,
Adjust the sweetness of youth.


Mom this is for you; One of her favorites. She loves Peter, Paul n' Mary and lemon is her favorite everything. I grew up with angel food cake w/lemon sauce, lemon bread, lemon sugar cookies and lemon meringue pie.



Comments

Jaccstev said…
That's such a lovely poem. It's also reminds me of a poem I read long ago called "Ode to a Lemon".
Wonderful poem, I was once stuck for a topic to write about so wrote a poem about the garden pea.

Yvonne.
Ella,
I love this poem. A refreshing and uplifing kind of forgiveness, in spite of bitter experiences.

Best wishes Eileen

Ella, Thank you for your very kind words, left at the Life of a Poet Interview!
Brother Ollie said…
The pesticide line is killer...

Keeping your edge, as usual, Ella.
DEZMOND said…
oooh, I so love that pic you've chosen, ice tea with lemon or lemonade in a see-through glasses is my favourite sight :)
Wanda said…
Very well done Ellie
love the freshness in the poem :)
Arlee Bird said…
More magical images from the pen of Ella (or is it the keyboard?--pen sounds so much more poetic.)

Lee
Tossing It Out
Sherry Blue Sky said…
Love the bright lemon freshness of this poem - and the list of yummies your mom used to make, as well:)
Gaurang Rao said…
Wow! Great imaginary and wonderful words
Talli Roland said…
That's a fantastic poem! I love lemons - they're so fresh and... lemony. Yes I am a writer - ha!
Kodjo Deynoo said…
"Green eyed comment dig in my soul" what a line, loved it
Peggy said…
I like where this poem traveled--from the green-eyed monster to lemon sun and forgiveness. Good twist on the lemon prompt.
A lovely poem, Ellen. I especially liked this line:

'Lemon sun filters sieved dreams,'.

Oh, and I must admit to being a closet Peter, Paul and Mary fan, even though I'm not really old enough to have been around when they were big; really. I have a CD of their hits in the car that I listen to when I'm on my own. I get ribbed about my taste in music all the time. lol
Ella said…
Paul-Me either, my MOM played the vinyl records and they would be old footage of them on TV. I think one of them was from Maine. He would make an appearance at the local UMO. I like them; grew up listening to my Mom sing their songs to me.
Thank you~

Peggy-Yes, I did travel a bit; I remember the hive moment real well. I was pudgy lost weight and then my friends treated me like a threat. Those fun junior high, middle years.

Kodjo-Thank you; Words do have the potential, to strike barbs to our hearts.

Talli-Thanks for stopping by; I need a glass of healing refreshment~

Gaurang-Thanks for stopping by; I enjoy visiting your blog~

Sherry-Thank you; I tease Mom all the time, that she was the original to add lemon ext to the sugar cookie dough, not Martha Stewart ;-D

Lee-Thank you that was so poetic; I need one of those feather quill pens~

Priyanka-Thank you for your kindness~

Wanda-I am now craving lemon goodies ;-D Thank you

Dez-Nothing like this to refresh! I live on Ice tea with lemon in the summer. I add extra lemons~ ;-D

Ollie-Thank you; I liked your take, too~

Eileen-Thank you; I tried to work from sour towards sweet~ I loved your interview~

Rashmi-Thank you so much :-D

Yvonne-I remember that poem; You are clever like that ;-D

Jaccstev-Thank you so much; I need to find that poem...thanks for telling me about it!
Ella said…
Jaccstev-I found it; It is so beautiful! I feel flattered you would think of me, really thanks so much for sharing. I loved it~
flaubert said…
Nice, Ella. I love this line
"Lemon sun filters sieved dreams"
what a delightful image.

Pamela
signed...bkm said…
Beautiful metaphors Ella...after reading these I feeling refreshed and clean like that lemon-ie clean feeling...very nice....bkm
Ella said…
Pamela-Thank you; I now want some of those lemon treats~

bkm-You make me think of Lemon Pledge...love the scent of lemon fresh~ Thank you!
Mary said…
Nice poetry Ella. Ah, youth...teen years could definitely be lemonish.
Ella said…
Thanks Mary, yes there were some bitter n' sweet memories, involved~ Thank you! Love you little dog, so cute!
Uma Anandane said…
Beautiful words well weaved together
madhumakhi said…
Nice one. Lemons are kinda a good metaphor for teens. Quite refreshing, sometimes sour, sometimes bitter; and they add that extra zing to everything. I'm a teen going through that lemony stage. I totally related to the poem.
Simply wonderful. I love making lemonade from lemons.

<3, New Follower
Everyone loves a giveaway
Judy Roney said…
I like the winding of this poetry through places with words I didn't expect. Lovely.
Ella said…
Thank you for your kindness. I just remember this time in my life, being bitter and sweet.
Ella said…
Iwrite4U-Thank you, so much~

Madhumakhi-Thank you; I hope your lemon stage is mainly sweet xXx Nothing is all one way. Hang in there, it will get better~

Madeleine-Thank you for your kindness~

Tanya-I did toss your name in the hat; Thanks for
following, I will be by again to visit~

Judy-Thank so much, I like that you didn't expect it. It is nice to surprise people :-D
Suzanne said…
And there's nothing like a good lemon bar. They're easy to make -- they go under the category of things people should make from scratch. They're just superior to a packaged mix. Love your poem, but I really think of lemons and lemonade for the summer. I'm sure you gave a nice feeling of warmth to many out there who are still under snow.
Ella said…
Hi Suzanne-Lemons were year round at my home growing up! Our Christmas cookies had lemon extract, in them. Thank you and yes, nothing like those amazing lemon squares...yum!