Cinquain
A very popular five-line stanza. Originally it was a very casual French form where the lines
could be of any length, and the form could have either any rhyme scheme or no rhyme.
Now, however, when anyone refers to a Cinquain, they usually mean the version of form set out by
Adelaide Crapsey.
This form still consists of five lines, but now has a specific syllable count starting with a two
syllable line, and followed by three lines which increase by two syllables each time and the final
line reverting to a two syllable line again. The example below might explain it better.
In addition, the lines are usually iambic, that is, the stresses fall on every other syllable, eg:
First two
And two make four
And two to four is six
And two and two to four is eight
The end.
Ryter Roethicle
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Cinquain Chain
Many poets have written Cinquains as a sequential series of unlinked poems.
As a variation to this it is possible to link them by using the last line of the first
stanza as the first line of the next. The final stanza linking the last line back to
the first line of the first stanza.
Sunshine
sunshine
warm on my face
tilted to catch spring breeze
refreshing, uplifting after
winter
winter
ice drapes on roofs
frigid air, frozen breath
car won't start, cloaked people scurry
cranky
cranky
suffocating
winter's chill seizes heart
seasonal depression's cure is
sunshine
Lori Martin
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Cinquain Swirl
Taking the chain one step further the first line becomes the link between the former
stanzas and swirling effect is created and the poem can go on 2, 4, 6, 8, 2, 4, 6, 8, 2,
4, 6, 8, 2, etc returning to the original pair so the cycle is complete.
Sunshine
"Someday"
he'll say when asked
when we'll be together;
impatient, discouraged,
vision short-sighted, heart can't see
someday,
mythical time
where all hopes and dreams dwell
while future plans wrestle with Fate's
someday
rides a rainbow
into happier thoughts
then dances a Passe doble
someday
I'll find my smile,
my heart will stop aching,
life will be painted in pastels
someday
Lori Martin
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Cinquain Challenge Replies
- Maryse Achong
- Ashes
- Happy New Year Again
- My Beads
- Says Who
- Sometimes
- Spoken Words
- Trini Love Poems
- Written Words
- Lorainne Dafney
- Left
- Sweetheart
- Utopia
- Peggy Nelson
- At Peace
- Blind Love
- Drifting
- How Many
- I love My Body
- Life Gives
- Rainbow
- Swirling
- Thank God
- Touch Me
- Will You
- Your Face
- Ryter Roethicle
- Cappuccino
- of Love
- Destiny
- Hobbies
- Music, Trees, Rain
- Nature: Two sides of the coin
- of Love
- Prayer for Twinklewriter
- Simpler Times
- That Voice
- Thoughts
- Transcendental
- Dinah Serritelli
- Results
- Nicola Wynter
- Everyday Matters
- Loves Way
- Other
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Maryse Achong
Ashes
Ashes
On my forehead…
Remind me that Lent is
Here; forty days to think about
Ashes.
-----
Happy New Year Again
Chinese
New Year - the Rat.
Gung Hay Fat Choy to all
As I celebrate roots that are
Chinese.
-----
My Beads
My beads
Have always been
A source of comfort; and
Are kept within reach of my hand.
My beads.
Asking her to
Put in a word for me
Because I am too unworthy.
My beads
Even when I
Don't say the prescribed prayers
I roll them and I know He hears
My beads.
-----
Says Who
She said
She did not think
That she could love again;
But that was then and this is now,
She said.
-----
Sometimes
Sometimes
Without warning
Thoughts of him will swamp my
Mind, and once again I start to
Miss him.
Miss him
In so many
Ways, and I wonder if
He is able to miss me too;
Perhaps.
Perhaps
He is beyond
All thought and emotion
Still, I'd swear that he's at my side
Sometimes
-----
Spoken Words
My love,
He said to her,
I'm so happy that we
Met after being alone for
So long.
So long
Wrapped up in lives
That kept us too busy
To reminisce about romance,
'Til now.
'Til now
Valentine's Day
Had been for years just one
More day, but not this time around,
My love.
-----
A Trini Rootsman Declares His Love
Sweet gyul
You're worth more dan
De earring in meh ear
De designer cloze ah does wear
To me.
To me
You are like ah
Shot ah rum in meh coke,
Like ah good punch line in ah joke
Fuh true.
Fuh true,
Dis eh no lie,
You're important to me
More dan ah good stew or curry
Sweet gyul.
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A Trini Chick Replies
Boyfren,
De only man
I want, is you honey,
Better yet if yuh have money,
Doux doux.
Doux doux,
I like to dress
Up in nice tings for you,
An 'bling' does go a long way too
Yuh know.
Yuh know
You'll always be
The one love of meh life,
But I eh want to be yuh wife,
Boyfren!
-----
Written Words
You wrote
Notes on the wind
And sent them on to me,
But I did not understand; then
You wrote.
Words in the sand
But they were washed away
Ere I had time to read them; but
You wrote
Words on my heart
That will live on in me;
These words that I'll never forget,
You wrote.
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Lorainne Dafney
Left
See the
fountain basin
filled with shiny pennies
wishes, forgotten forever
still wait
-----
Sweet Heart
Letters
with frayed ribbons
yesterday's Valentines
remain as beautiful as the
first kiss.
-----
Utopia
Endless
is the search for
utopia as one
travels seeking direction and
answers
Answers
millenniums
away, somewhere on the
roads left to be discovered by
mankind
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Peggy Nelson
At Peace
A Man
Clad in fatigues
Folded arms holding cap
Thick trickles of blood on face
War torn
War torn
Vivid pictures
Of military life
Exposed to negative world wars
Flaming
Flaming
Painful pictures
Embedded of wars blood bath
A stunning thought not forgotten
Of deaths
Of deaths
Who sacrificed Unexplainable realism
For your comfort and bliss
Your thoughts
Your thoughts
Irreverent
Cause your home sitting FREE
Today
Today
Thoughts are driven
Though realities soul
As more brave men cover your arse
More die
More die
Defending rights
Hoping to see world peace
He lays in the garden of peace…
A man
-----
Blind Love
Blind Love
One Lad, One Lass
Bonded by vows as one
Vows broken by a secret love
Who's Blind?
-----
Drifting
Drifting
Away to be
In dreams were love comforts
And holds me in his caring arms
Drifting
Me away were
Passions of his love are
Beyond earthly reality
Drifting
Off to see him
Telling him I'll join him
For pain on earth revolves and keeps
Drifting
-----
How Many
How Many
days till love comes
infesting mankinds heart
will it crawl or swiftly infect
How Many?
-----
I Love My Body
Fat Cells
On my body
Whiskers growin' on chin
Old age dotted spots are growing
Wild
Wild
Looking hair days
forever hangs on face
Ain't no wonder I can not see
The truth
The truth
I've connected
All the old aging spots
I've Mapped out trips from all my scars
I have
I have
Taken out my
Dentures, leaving soaking
in beer, at Some run down bar by
My home
My home
Overflows with
Snowflakes from my long legs
Don't need any winter storms here
At home
At home
Unzipped tight blue
Jeans filled with belly fat
Coming forlorn when seeing huge...
Fat cells
-----
Life Gives, Life takes once More
Loves Lost
Within the whirl
Of a raging stream swirl
A passion tossed far beyond and
Once known
Once known
Some wasted days
Spent powerless until,
good-natured moments trickled in
Once more
Once more
With sweet inquire
hearts align with loves gain
releasing the torturous past
Life gives
Life gives
Life takes away
Life stands in confusion
Life's hope rebuilds and departs from…
Loves Lost
-----
Rainbow
Colors
Of the archways
Brilliant colorful shades
Lingering in serene rainbows
To view.
-----
Swirling
Swirling
Winds quickly snatch
Hold once again of hopes
Hurling and meshing to a new
Swirling
Swirling
Flinging wishes
A land once dreamt before
Many hopeful situations
Swirling
Swirling
Plummeting old
dreams, Old wishes, old hopes
Rising new word worthy art for…
swirling
-----
Touch Me
Touch me
Touch me softly
Touch me with your sweetness
Touch me on this Valentine's Day
Touch me
-----
Thank God
Thank God!
Our soul's alive
heart's beat fast from relief
An answered prayer for son Ryan
Thank God!!
Thank God!!!
The wait's lifted
Captain Ryan's in flight
home to his love ones he adores
THANK GOD!!!
-----
Your Face
Your face
One look, I'm hooked
Reading miles replied
Capturing your shimmering smile
To keep
To keep
To paste within
Memories dear to me
Memories to gaze at through times
Pages
Pages
Of words
Written sweetly
Sheltered inside my heart
Where no soul could erase etchings
I love
I Love
What I have reaped
Of growing, glowing love
Collecting paintings of his love
Given
Given
Inspiration
Caressed upon my breast
Healing the spinning webs caught in
Closure
Closure
Of chaotic
Opening a new life
more trustworthy, I see it on….
Your face
-----
Will You
Will You?
Be my Darling
Locking hearts together
On this very exclusive day
Will you?
Hold our friendship
In your heart forever
And lock up our blissful friendship
Will you?
Be my lover,
companion throughout life
In every path we walk each day
Will You?
Stand beside me
Hold hands each step we take
And be my only valentine
Will You?
Whisper your love
Or shout it plan and clear
I'll love you darling forever
Will You?
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Ryter Roethicle
Cappuccino
Nothing
beats cappuccino
under a white umbrella
and the pretty girl who smiled
at me.
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Destiny
Beyond
Barriers of time
The endless Universe
Stretches forth the bony hands of
Dest'ny.
Dest'ny
Calls out to you
With infinities grace
The universe will fill our souls
Ecst'sy.
Ecst'sy
As time stands still,
Fate has called us forth
It is our time….Love….it is our
Leg'cy...
Leg'cy...
A time of love
A time two souls meet again
Then part once more, until we meet
Beyond
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Hobbies
Some men
Save butterflies
Beauty a possession
Their prizes, pricked and impaled
On show
Some men
Will kill animals
With high velocity bullet
That shatters thick protecting bone
For sport
On show
Local hero's
Wife a collectors dream,
Dripping with diamonds, but lacking
In love.
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Music, Trees, Rain and Memory
Music
plays such soft sounds
evoking such sweet moods
warm and tender feelings and thoughts
of love.
Trees wave
welcome they say
relax and stay awhile
find energy and peace with me
content.
Rain falls
cleansing the Earth
washing away our sins
purifying our social life
san'ty.
Mem'ry
a time long gone
a time of unlocked doors
music, singing, laughter and friends
I wish!!!
-----
Nature: two sides of the coin
Dusk falls
Cicadas chirp
in the pool a frog burps
the night becomes alive with sound
I smile.
crickets
song or just noise
every night it happens
the noise is keeping me awake
bastards.
we walk
with care today
beware of snakes they say.
Joe Blakes are on the move again
summer.
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of Love
If only
I could say to
you each day I love you
In some new way my vow of love
renew'd
Do you
believe there is
someone out there sharing
part of your soul as you share theirs
I do
If you
Love as if there
Is no tomorrow then
by the time tomorrow comes so
will you.
-----
Prayer for Twinklewriter
Although
your world is far
from mine yours cold and white
mine red and hot they are linked
by us.
Not friends
divided by
vast seas but a group here
united in our prayers for you
be well
-----
Simpler Times
Would you
Go back to times
When life was slow and easy
The horse drawn cart or even further
Think now!
Think now!
Of what you wish
Is there a need to lose
Or is it simply we that change
Would you?
-----
That Voice
That voice
strident, to loud
demanding much too much
I cannot give you what you want
ever
ever
too long a time
infinity to short
measure it in lifetimes on Earth
no time
no time
it goes to fast
and then slows down to crawl
as pain seeps in and floods my mind
miss you
miss you
I ask myself
it is worth it all
to see you smile I cannot be
bitter
bitter
read flavoured
sweetness isn't all things
sometimes vinegar beats sugar, I like
that voice
-----
Thoughts
Far out
past the reach of
man is a land of hopes
dreams and wishes in this land is our
life's plan
Each day
We kiss, each day
We love each day I love
You more each day you love me too
Each day
-----
Transcendental
Mortals
hopeful ever
trusting in love always
fate lets them down again then
rewards
rewards
eternal love
what is victory worth
if it were won too easily
nothing
nothing
we have nothing
we are born and we die
and for a while we meet and love
mortals
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Dinah Serritelli
Results
Result
Of not knowing
More than I can handle,
Throwing out all things media?
Solace!
Frantic
Activity
Media circuses
All hustling to be number one
Distort.
Truth ~ lies
All mixed in one,
Confusing the people
Who do not need to know so much,
Bollocks.
But I
In not knowing
More than I can handle
Finds the contentment within me
Calming!
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Nicola Wynter
Every Day Matters
laundry
mostly not mine
belonging to others
dirty clothing fouling up time
not mine
not mine
that pile of dust
just like rust, ruining
what once had so much shine and hope
looks dull
looks dull
my epitaph
no fancy epithets
to make them wonder how I lived
each day
-----
Loves Way
my love
is like the rain
that sweetly falls on you
and whispers through the long winters
of time
of time
that lingers long
stretching the horizon
to the infinity that drops
your name
your name
is like the spring
that rebirths my love
with each spoken utt'rance
of it
Other
of two
there is but one,
what remains of those two,
I held on and waved with on hand
to you
to you
I gave my heart
the only one I have
just for one, not one other
but you
but you,
though you found one
other that you liked best,
she wasn't me, just one other
than I
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