Villanelle # 12

In January, I will explore the style of the Villanelle. This form of poetry has a lot of rules. I am normally a rule-breaker, so I take up the challenge of pirouetting across this restrictive dance floor with a degree of trepidation. Villanelle # 12 I will call The Treasure Hunt.

My first love is poetry. I played with rhythms as a child as a favorite toy, writing line after line and verse upon verse down in a notebook my mama gave me. The words became undecipherable squiggly lines dancing across the page.  I remember sitting on my Uncle Harvey’s porch, making up poems only I could read. I learned to write real letters after I started school. That’s when my adventure with poetry started. I found myself in a dance with a fickle dancer. As soon as I got the steps right, the beat changed, and the singer sang a different tune. COVID-19 and retirement have given me the gift of time to explore, study, and capture the essence of poetry, making all its different moved on the page.

The rules I followed writing Villanelle 12 #

The rules for creating a Villanelle are simple and straight forward. This style of poetry must have 19 lines and five stanzas. The closing stanza has four lines. Also, line 1 gets repeated in lines 6, 12, and 18. Thus, line 3 gets repeated in lines 9, 15, and 19. There are so many rules and so little time.

The Treasure Hunt

These days it’s hard to find a decent Saturday endeavor

So we travel to a distant junk shop or antique store

Considering one person’s trash is another’s treasure

 We climb into our car and go on a search for pleasure

Discovering a worthwhile amusement can be a big shore

 These days it’s hard to find a decent Saturday endeavor

I must admit I’m the one who puts on a lot of pressure

When Rooster would rather stay in bed and snore

Considering one person’s trash is another’s treasure

The thought of a wordless blog is a traumatic terror

So adorn our face with masks and walk out the front door

These days it’s hard to find a decent Saturday endeavor

The spoils go to the victor without measure

When there are so many unique junk shops to explore

Considering one person’s trash is another’s treasure

We’ve braved the elements and drove through rough weather

Our Indiana blogging trips are becoming a chore

These days it’s hard to find a decent Saturday endeavor

Considering one person’s trash is another’s treasure

Who is Molly Shea?

Molly Shea is an accomplished fictional short story writer from Indiana who writes short stories and novels about a fictional town called Tecumseh.  To read more of her short stories and adventures, click here.