▼

Tuesday, October 30, 2018

DMC: "The Binder and the Piece of Paper: A Dialogue" by Elizabeth Steinglass




The Binder and the Piece of Paper: A Dialogue

 I am a binder—
loyal and true.
I keep loose leaf papers
looking like new.

               I won’t go in there.
               Rings aren’t for me.
               I want to be seen.
               I want to be free.

Free papers fly,
then they get tossed.
The depths of a bag
is where you’ll get lost.

               I want to be useful.
               My words should be read,
               but the snap of your teeth
               fills me with dread.

I swear it won’t hurt.
Quick! The day’s over soon!
With me you’ll be safe
(at least until June).

 © 2018 Elizabeth Steinglass. All rights reserved.


Calef Brown has challenged us to write a poem that tells the story of two anthropomorphized objects. They can be an odd couple, close friends, mortal enemies, or meet each other for the first time. The poem can be about an adventure they have together, a conflict, a game they play, anything. Click HERE for more details and to read this month's Spotlight ON interview.

Post your poem on our October 2018 padlet by October 31st. While some contributions will be featured as daily ditties, all contributions will be included in a wrap-up presentation this Friday, November 2nd, and one lucky participant will win a signed copy of Calef Brown's latest collection of ghoulish poetry from Carolrhoda Books:






at

12 comments:

  1. Michelle Heidenrich BarnesOctober 30, 2018 at 9:13 AM

    This is such fun, Liz! Where do I purchase such loyal (and vocal) binders??? I'd set them loose to sort and organize my entire household. :D

    ReplyDelete
  2. Matt Forrest EsenwineOctober 30, 2018 at 9:14 AM

    Ha, the pen, hand, paper, and binder just cannot get along, can they? One has to wonder what the pencil is thinking about all that??

    ReplyDelete
  3. Linda BOctober 30, 2018 at 9:44 AM

    Love your imagination here, Liz, that "the snap of your teeth/fills me with dread." is such fun. If only those papers would be made to feel more comfortable. . .

    ReplyDelete
  4. Liz SteinglassOctober 30, 2018 at 12:47 PM

    Thanks for sharing my silliness! It's fun to imagine what inanimate objects would say.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Buffy SilvermanOctober 30, 2018 at 1:11 PM

    So much fun--the ending brought me back to my daughter's sixth grade days, when she and some friends emptied their binders and had a bonfire with the poor pages. (Of course the binders were probably ready for the trash by then too.)

    ReplyDelete
  6. JanieOctober 30, 2018 at 3:33 PM

    I love the snap of your teeth line. Nicely done!

    ReplyDelete
  7. David McMullinOctober 30, 2018 at 5:56 PM

    This is an excellent combo. Love it!

    ReplyDelete
  8. RosiOctober 30, 2018 at 11:29 PM

    Wonderful poem. The snap of your teeth was such a great image. Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Molly HoganOctober 31, 2018 at 5:35 AM

    A clever pairing for this challenge! I love that the paper wants to be free. Well done!

    ReplyDelete
  10. jan godown anninoOctober 31, 2018 at 9:00 AM

    Ouch! I feel that
    "snap of your teeth"

    My very own fingers have been clipped by my beloved binders.
    This dialogue is much fun, Liz. And Michelle.
    I have to say it alsocaught my eye (& fingers) because Calef Brown is new to me, from summer, with his FLAMINGOS on the ROOF, Poems and Paintings
    a cheer gift from
    my generous writing partner, author Ann Morrow (NF pubbed by Scholastic.)

    Here is my new bossa nova!

    Happy paper/binder wrangling to all, especially to Liz!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Bridget MageeOctober 31, 2018 at 4:04 PM

    Well done, Liz! The paper trail is there to support this pairing... ;)

    ReplyDelete