Poets United Midweek Motif ~ Foolishness

“Shall we their fond pageant see?
Lord, what fools these mortals be!” 
― William Shakespeare, A Midsummer Night's Dream

“Children and fools always speak the truth.” 
            ― Mark Twain, On the Decay of the Art of Lying

source

Midweek Motif ~ Foolishness

I skipped this theme during the USA April Fool's Day which seems more cruel than kind to me with its pranks and practical joking. But the motif is a good one for us humans who can look or act like fools or be "fools for" something.   

Challenge: 
Write a poem on human foolishness.  

A Coat

BY WILLIAM BUTLER YEATS

I made my song a coat 

Covered with embroideries 

Out of old mythologies 

From heel to throat; 

But the fools caught it, 

Wore it in the world’s eyes 

As though they’d wrought it. 

Song, let them take it

For there’s more enterprise 

In walking naked.

Nightclub 

BY BILLY COLLINS

You are so beautiful and I am a fool

 to be in love with you

 is a theme that keeps coming up

 in songs and poems. 

There seems to be no room for variation. 

I have never heard anyone sing

 I am so beautifu

l and you are a fool to be in love with me

, even though this notion has surely

 crossed the minds of women and men alike. 

You are so beautiful, too bad you are a fool 

is another one you don't hear. 

Or, you are a fool to consider me beautiful. 

. . . .  

(Read the rest HERE)

  

you are sucha fool

by ntozake shange

you are sucha fool/ i haveta love you 
you decide to give me a poem/ intent on it/ actually 
you pull/ kiss me from 125th to 72nd street/ on 
the east side/ no less 
you are sucha fool/ you gonna give me/ the poet/ 
the poem 
insistin on proletarian images/ we buy okra/ 
3 lbs for $1/ & a pair of 98 cent shoes 
we kiss 
we wrestle 
you make sure at east 110 street/ we have cognac 
no beer all day 
you are sucha fool/ you fall over my day like 
a wash of azure

. . . . 

 (Read the rest HERE)

~

For those who are new to Poets United: 

• Post your enlightenment poem on your site, and then link it here.
• Share only original and new work written for this challenge. 
• If you use a picture include its link.  
• Please leave a comment here and visit and comment on our poems.

(Our next Midweek Motif is "earthiness" or "our planet"--4/22 is Earth Day.)

Good luck to all of you who are writing a poem a day during April.  I am using prompts from Poetic Asides, NaPoWriMo, Magaly Guerrero  and Imaginary Garden with Real Toads.  We'd love to know if you are attempting the challenge.  Please share links to the sites you are using for prompts and community during the challenge.   

Thanks!  ~Susan for Poets United

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