Caves and Mazes

Posted bywordsandcoffee1Posted inPoetry, W3 PromptsTags:, , , , , , , , , , , , , 
stalagmite or stalactite--
you remind me the difference

we traverse blunt rocks and dripping cold water, a dark and windy maze: 
one foot in front of the other

no road sign, but we trust each other

I wrote this poem for the We’ave Written Weekly prompt #194, which was provided by Nolcha Fox. The prompt asks us to do the following:

Cherita is the Malay word for story or tale.

A traditional cherita unfolds in three verses, each growing in length:

  • Verse 1: one line
  • Verse 2: two lines
  • Verse 3: three lines

You’re also welcome to rearrange the order of the verses. Any of these patterns work:

  • 1–3–2
  • 2–1–3
  • 2–3–1
  • 3–1–2
  • 3–2–1

Your challenge: Write a cherita inspired by one, two, or all of the following themes:

  • Cave
  • Special delivery
  • Missing road sign

Let the structure guide the story—and see where it takes you.

I’m so glad to see a cave-related prompt in here because my family has made a few trips to caves. When you grew up near a region with old mining shafts and now have a husband who LOVES rocks, you’re bound to find yourself in a cave or two. 😅

I have a pretty severe fear of heights, but I don’t have much claustrophobia, so traveling underground doesn’t bother me. I enjoy the twists and turns of caves, especially the ones that have large, wide-open spaces. The rock formations are fascinating, and it’s interesting to think of these hidden gems deep beneath our feet. My two oldest kiddos actually took a school field trip to a local cave last year, and the second oldest keeps asking to go back. It’s not really a winter activity, but we plan to visit in the spring. I thought I’d share some other cave images from a trip in Ohio a few years ago.

27 thoughts on “Caves and Mazes”

  5. Lovely! I have some great memories of a family trip to Mammoth Cave. And some not so pleasant memories of spelunking with an Eagle Scout of a boyfriend in HS. We went in the spring and it was muddy and cold and we crawled for what seemed like miles! And when we could stand we were bent in half…

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

Leave a comment