A daily poetry practice to generate and sustain the Life/Lines among us, for published and novice poets alike
Join us to receive a daily poetry prompt every weekday during April. Sign up here!
Prompt
Write a short poem (rhyming not necessary) that includes each of the following 5 words (anywhere and in any order). Poems should not exceed 7 or 8 lines.
aroma
sizzle
crisp
satisfied
sharing
Send us your poem via our Submissions page or post on Twitter or Facebook using the hashtag #lifelines.
Today’s words were contributed by guest curator Beverly Wendland, provost and executive vice chancellor for academic affairs at Washington University in St. Louis.
Poems submitted for April 12
Crisp sourdough pancakes
and sizzling bacon
and my satisfied children.
The aromas of a Saturday morning
worth sharing.
Aimee Wittman
***
I remember the sizzle
of my dad cooking.
Sweet sauce he’d drizzle
while I stood looking.
When crisp, the meat
had reached perfection.
The aroma so sweet
this tasty confection.
Using his example
As a guide
I cook and sample
‘til satisfied.
Then toast with wine
that’s good for pairing,
ready to dine …
and time for sharing!
***
Coffee aroma dissipated.
Late morning,
sitting on the front steps
not sharing the solitude.
Satisfied, nearby doors
are shut and locked.
Crisp breeze blowing
across my bare arms.
L. Dennis
***
Wayward wandering aroma,
withered not crisp.
Much willed dissatisfaction,
deliberately withheld sharing
wisely impede sizzle.
***
Eating my breakfast of fruit and nuts
An aroma drifts in through the open window
Taking me back back back
The smell of sizzling bacon
Frying crisp
Then the deeper bubbling sizzle
Of eggs hitting the hot grease
Served up with toast
Dripping butter
Random images float in
0n the waves of aroma
a black and white spotted puppy
yellow tomcat
screened in back porch
Mickey and I
Sharing the branch
Of an apple tree
No way to go back
To that time that place
That world
I will have to be satisfied
With these memory-laden
Whiffs of the past
Carol Haake
4/12/21
***
Food of the gods
The aroma of that one crisp bacon permeates the air
satisfied with its perfect sizzle.
I believe it to be
The food of the gods
It is my non guilty pleasure
I am determined there will be
No sharing despite the covetous
Glances coming my way
I am immune to bribes and I Disdain begging
It is so unbecoming
Sara Burke
***
In the kitchen food sizzles on the stove;
the aroma of crisp pieces fills the air.
Sharing food makes everyone satisfied.
The way to someone's heart is through their stomach.
Love blooms when someone is content.
Margaret Fourt Goka
***
Friendship
like the sharing of a long, lingering meal
is less about the daily bread
meat and potatoes
than the taste of words passed like favorite dishes
crisp talk that matters and endures
sizzle and aroma of ideas and heart’s desires,
satisfied.
Steve Givens
***
can’t satisfy me with
sizzle
reel me in needs more than
aroma
don’t care if my bacon’s not
crisp
got to bite it and
chew it
and if I like it I ain’t
sharing
Warren Hauff
***
Colliding Thoughts
With a fractured sense of purpose
we gather around the firepit sharing
indictments, what ifs, and might-have-beens.
Inhale the aroma of wafting wood smoke,
feel satisfied watching embers sizzle,
and fragmented old memories ascend
on a crisp night breeze.
Linda O’Connell 4/12/21
***
The aroma of sadness
sizzled in my heart
like a crisp rose
sharing the rose
with everyone will help you,
they say,
But
It had never satisfied me.
Jey Sushil
***
The sizzle of bacon, sweet and crisp, lure
to vegetarians, gateway drug for
the intoxications of the flesh.
Food that once had a face,
soft brown eyes, eagerness, is dead
and burning in our kitchens, giving off
a heavenly aroma. That must mean
the creature died well?
Except he probably didn’t.
Dig in—put a fork in it, as Lou Reed said.
I hope you’re satisfied.
Warm breath has left the universe because
your tummy rumbled.
And now, please pass the bacon; I was only
sharing the guilt.
— Jeannette Cooperman
***
Across the sea we're faring,
and bunks and beds we're sharing.
Below the decks aroma
is hardly pleasure-dome. A
sizzle from the galley
means freshly netted walleye.
If crisp is how it's fried,
then my belly's satisfied.
— John Randall
***
Steak through the Heart
Steaks sizzle, sharing their aroma
throughout a big open room, tables
crowded with loud, happy diners
chatting and chewing crisp seared edges
Of rare meat. Satisfied until I wake,
the Lexington Chop House evaporates
into nothing but a memory, a mirage.
Rebecca Carron Wood
***
Remember the sizzle
of my dad cooking.
Sweet sauce he’d drizzle
while I stood looking.
When crisp, the meat
had reached perfection.
The aroma so sweet
Gave me an erection!
But that was when
I was a teen.
Longtime it’s been
those days I’ve seen.
Now, in senior years,
my own December,
my dad, through tears,
I remember.
Using his example
As a guide
I cook and sample
‘til satisfied.
Then toast with wine
that’s good for pairing,
ready to dine …
and time for sharing!
***
The aroma will suffice.
She cannot be satisfied
Maybe sharing is
Selfish because it lets the beast
Sizzle until
Crisp, more permanent than temporary
***
Four Family Dinners
A satisfied family sat by the hearth sharing the aroma of a crisp, sizzling steak.
A dank aroma, a sizzling hatred long un-satisfied by vengeance, and crisp
enmity poisoned the meal the long-separated family was forced to be sharing.
The family was sharing lies again, when a crisp truth came sizzling forth--then quickly they became satisfied once more by the usual aroma of deceit.
Sharing crisp jokes and the genial aroma of wit, this family could never be satisfied
by enough sizzling puns.
Robert Henke
***
Sharing bacon
sizzle aroma crisp—
Satisfied.
Jo Schaper
***
Picque-nique
Not until the foul aroma fills the sky In form of smoke
And skin sizzles to a crisp
Like cracklins, does the sharing
Of sinister sadistic satisfied smirks begin.
~J. Thomas
***
The aroma of frying bacon is in the air...
Make it crisp; but sizzle with care.
Satisfied it's crunchy, but not burnt...
Sharing bacon is breakfast dessert.
Cat
***
The Card Catalog
I miss the card catalog -
the old-time kind
that stood on sturdy legs.
It took up half the library it seemed;
such a grand place for sharing.
A major station
of information,
sizzle and smoke!
In its presence,
curiosity awoke!
I was so satisfied
to search through
the wooden drawers,
with their brass pulls
and faint aroma
of oil and oak,
well-stoked with cards,
so crisp and clean,
sliding on brass spokes
as my fingers stroked the edges
and I took notes
with stubby pencils.
Libraries haven't
been the same since
card-catalogs -
the old-time kind,
exist only
in the past tense.
J Kiefer
***
Are you satisfied now? Are you finally happy? Are you done
acting like a child? Outside the July sun
sizzles the pavement; aroma of smoking tar
through the window. Here's the thing
about misery. The thing about agony. The trick to it.
Make it crisp, quick. Always, above all else,
avoid sharing.
Gwyneth Henke
***
Click. Click. Click! Woosh of heat and flame
The mingled aroma of coffee brewing and bacon sizzling in the pan
A satisfied smile--sharing crisp and chewy bacon
while pleading puppy dog eyes gaze up longingly
KWin
***
sharing our crisp tales
of survival
sad yet satisfied
amid the aroma of blossoms
bacon sizzles
John J. Han
***
She came running into the kitchen,
hearing the sizzle of the crisp bacon,
smelling its sweet aroma from across the house.
Jumping up onto the counter, she swiped
the bacon from the pan and ate until she was satisfied.
"I guess we're sharing," my husband said to the hungry feline thief.
Beth Miller
(This is a true story of one of my cats, Mulligan, who stole a piece of bacon out of the frying pan one Saturday morning. It turns out she had hyperthyroidism, which made her ravenous.)
***
Food for Thought
The aroma of the apple crisp
The sizzle of the drink
Satisfied the craving
Sharing happiness we think!
Jan Newman
***
There is a sizzle that
Comes from Apple Crisp
In a cast iron pan
The aroma translates
Tart taste to a sensation
That dances in the nose
A dish meant for sharing
Leaving all satisfied
— Chad Savage
***
So deliciously satisfied am I
before I even taste;
before I even walk into the room.
-Just to smell the distinct aroma;
just to hear the crackle and sizzle!
I anticipate with great longing and deep desire-
my palate now yearns for what it knows is there: crisp bacon!
This is definitely not for sharing!
Laurie J
***
MAINE
Evokes memories of crisp autumn air,
the sizzle of ocean side fires, and the
aroma of withering flora and beach tides.
Sharing lobsters, potatoes, corn and
fine wine brought on such a mutual
satisfied ambiance sitting with a view of
a sumptuous seaside sunset.
Betty Springfield
***
Bacon
An alluring aroma
the sizzle's sound
a perfect crisp
sharing a taste of heaven
with a satisfied tongue
— M.A
Welcome to the Kitchens of St. Louis
Hear the sizzle of bacon in the skillet
See the juicy red tomatoes by the lettuce
Dad sliced and neatly set upon the platter
Smell the aroma of crisp apple pie
Baking in the oven
It all hits you the second you walk in the door
Nothing makes us more satisfied
Than creating, then sharing
A delicious meal with friends and family and neighbors
Food is love
Simple daily acts of love make the difference between a house and a home
K.J. Boehler
***
Sustenance
The satisfying sizzle of hamburgers on the grill,
Well-done, but not too crisp.
The aroma brings back memories of other years
When sharing a meal was not so rare.
Seeking the sustenance of flesh.
Pam Hughes
***
I woke to the aroma of bacon
Soothed by the delightful sound of the sizzle
Mixed in with the happy hum Mom was mak’in
I climbed out of bed and grabbed my housecoat
Floated down the hallway as if in a sailboat
I seized a slice of crisp bacon and was thoroughly satisfied
Then, I snatched the serving dish and scurried away
“I’m not sharing” loudly I cried.
Maureen Kleekamp
***
When pigs fry
Because we each loved a pig, we gave up bacon.
Sharing our woes became the way we bonded;
satisfied that we’d always be right. In your house
the sizzle of searing flesh, the unmistakable aroma
as our husbands’ vice: carnivores. We loved them too
but old loves hold tighter. The crisp crunch of radish,
lettuce and assorted vegetables held us, radiant and right.
— M.E. Hope
***
It had been years
since my khakis were
crisp and creased.
And I gave off a sad aroma.
My mind didn't exactly sizzle
as I sat in my buddy's car
and noted how satisfied he was.
"Something's off," I said.
"Thanks for sharing," he responded.
— Matthew Freeman
***
the aroma of competition was in the air,
as hands and arms went flailing among the racks of marked down wedding dresses.
She was oh so satisfied while making the crisp snatch from another’s grasp.
(sharing was rarely a part of her nature)
and her retort had a sizzle to it.
“This Vera Wang is MINE!”
d. bates
***
STOP! BACON THIEF!
Sneaking into the home, down the hall, past the stair
He’d’ve known were he in a coma
The crackle and sizzle heard loud and clear
And there was no denying the aroma.
No cook stood nearby, near the stove, no one caring
Satisfied went he for a crisp steal
A fistful, a mouthful his greed beyond sharing
What was left cooking was what he left for their meal.
Ted
***
Strange Fruit Redux
the aroma of burnt flesh
then the sizzle of its searing
next the sight of its crisp horror
a satisfied mob sharing the murder
by Lloyd Klinedinst
***
Prayer to my Beloved
Satisfied sharing
A sizzle ‘til
Crisp
You my
Aroma
James Goodman
***
Ode to Then
We’d float in on the beautiful aroma of Thai or Vietnamese
the crisp sizzle of stir fry so delicious, creamy curry, luscious noodles
all perfect for sharing.
Then came COVID...carryout, curb service, zero contact pay.
Dinner in a bag left us fed but not satisfied.
Peggy Jacobsmeyer
***
makin crisp bacon,
brewing fresh coffee,
smelling that aroma
makes you satisfied,
especially after sharing
a full plate of serious conversation, cut, forked, chewed
until a clean plate is left.
---Dan Cuddy
***
the dog’s smell
the dog’s muzzle twitches
over an aroma sharp
with sizzle
it’s a crisp, foul scent
he’s satisfied to roll in it
it’s a odor worth sharing
Terrie Jacks
***
#lifelines
There is a crisp chill in the air
A slight sizzle in the atmosphere
The lingering aroma of flowers
Tree branches sharing a smile
Bestow petals in my path
Covering the rough walkway
Looking satisfied with their handiwork
©Anupama Kadwad
***
Ode to Bacon
Sharp sizzle on the old cast iron pan
Aroma of Applewood
Cutting through the haze of an early Saturday morning
First crisp strip is for the cook (maybe sharing with the dog).
He is never satisfied with just one bite.
***
Crisp sourdough pancakes
and sizzling bacon
and my satisfied children.
The aromas of a Saturday morning
worth sharing.
Aimee Wittman
***
Headline image: Erol Ahmed via Unsplash