Poetry Prompt: Good Mischief

We believe there should be a little more mischief in our lives. The “all-in-good-fun” kind of mischief that gets you invited to the good parties.

If you’re feeling stuck or lacking ideas of what kind of trouble you can get into, we’ve got all the inspiration you need. Take for example comedian Jeff Wysaski. He is well-known for posting prank informational posters around malls, grocery stores, and zoos. Once, he placed posters he’d created with phony animal facts around the Los Angeles Zoo. Some of his made up facts contained humorous misinformation like: “If you give a tiny trombone to 76 ducklings, they will lead the most adorable parade you’ve ever seen, ” and “All barn owls think that one line in the ‘Friends’ theme song is ‘Owl be there for you.’ Don’t tell them the truth. It would devastate them.”

Although most people appreciate the good humor, there are a few who don’t find his hi-jinks funny and consider it an act of vandalism. Whichever side of the fence you land, we can all agree on Jeff’s ability to get into mischief.

If you’d like to have a few of your own witty posters created by Jeff to place on the poles around your neighborhood, you can get them here. Now look at what you’ve started.

Try It: Mischief Poetry

Are you ready to get into a little playfulness? Is there a favorite memory of yours or another’s mischievous acts? Write a poem about the caper. Flirt with the story to make it an act of poetry. Or maybe you’ve been inspired to renew a spirit of making mischief. Practice your skills at shenanigans and actually get out there and be mischievous. Then write a poem or post a photograph of your tomfoolery. We’ll be reading and chuckling. 🙂

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Featured Poem

Thanks to everyone who participated in last week’s poetry prompt. Here’s a Yellowstone-inspired poem by Prasanta we enjoyed:

Freely Roam

You know I long to roam, at my will
Like wildlife and buffalo
In the wild backdrop of forested hills

I see herds on the path, just downhill
Past steaming springs, bubbling above ground
It makes me long to roam, at my will

I hike back trails and hear unknown trills
Listen to muffled messages in tall grasses
Against a wild backdrop of forested hills

Pronghorn deer fly with effortless skill
Unbound in the valley below
And it makes me long to roam, at my will

I hear the osprey –  a shrill
Cry amidst a settled peacefulness here
And it makes me long to freely roam, at my will
In the wild backdrop of forested hills

—by Prasanta

Photo by Eddie van W., Creative Commons via Flickr.

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How to Write a Poem uses images like the buzz, the switch, the wave—from the Billy Collins poem “Introduction to Poetry”—to guide writers into new ways of writing poems. Excellent teaching tool. Anthology and prompts included.

“How to Write a Poem is a classroom must-have.”
—Callie Feyen, English Teacher, Maryland

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