Take Care of Things that Grow (Villanelle)

Posted bySecret BreePosted inWordsTags:, , , , , , , ,
Original Image found here on Pinterest

Take care of things that grow
And take pleasure in the wild;
Love can make things glow.

Change unfolds gradually, as most know
With time, small advances are compiled;
Take care of things that grow.

In the moments that bring you woe,
Like the loud tantrums of a child,
Love can make things glow.

You may experience many a heavy blow,
but not one life should not be exiled;
Take care of things that grow.

It takes extra courage to go with the flow,
Have patience, all will be reconciled;
Love can make things glow.

Anytime you’re feeling low,
Take a step out into the wild,
Take care of things that grow;
Love can make things glow.

Villanelle: A poetry form with five tercets and an ending quatrain. There are 19 lines with a rhyming scheme of A1BA2 ABA1 ABA2 ABA1 ABA2 ABA1A2. The first line repeats as line 6, 12, and 18, and the third line repeats as line 9, 15, and 19. 

I wrote three completely different villanelles until I felt comfortable sharing one with you. Personally, my Shakespearian Sonnet (Secret Sonnet) still takes the cake as the hardest form I have attempted so far, although Villanelles are up there.

42 thoughts on “Take Care of Things that Grow (Villanelle)”

    1. Oh thanks Mouse! I got there and I didn’t even want to throw my book across the room with this one 😏 Mostly because my ‘book’ was the laptop and that would have been expensive.

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  7. a terrific inspirational poem: you have truly mastered the villanelle, inspiring me to have another go; and the choice of song is exquisite: it has been many decades since I’ve heard that Paul Kelly song 🙂

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    1. Oh thanks John! I was eagerly awaiting your feedback. Phew, I passed haha. Oh, I don’t actually know the song you are talking about 😅 So I can’t take any credit for making an exquisite choice, I will however race off and look up all of Paul Kelly’s songs now haha.

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  14. Nice villanelle! You should try a secret sestina next! 😋 Man that form is strenuous and hard to write. It takes hours too!

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    1. A Sestina! Haha, I love a challenge, but that’s asking a lot 😅 I always struggle with iambic pentameter (when I’m overly conscious of it). Knowing me, I’ll probably add this to my list and build up my courage .

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      1. I think they key is to not write in strict pentameter. Bending the rules a bit, like adding an anapaest here and there or starting a line in trochaic pentameter works too. And then you can experiment with the rhyme scheme too although the sestina leaves no room for rhyme experimentation 😅

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    2. I wrote a sestina today! I’ll let it ‘rest’ for a while and go back and take a look at it, but thanks for the creative push Vishal. I’ll see if I can write another one soon and pick the one I like best 😄

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      1. Hey that’s awesome! What metrical scheme did you use? And did you have fun playing around with the meanings of the repeated end words? That’s the most important part! Enjoying yourself, especially when writing something that long! I think there’s an example of one written by Ezra Pound on the internet. There are also satires which use the form to criticise its length 😅 So yeah, can’t wait to read the secret sestina!

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      2. Seriously the metrical scheme gives me a headache haha. I’m writing my third one now. Apparently I have gotten into the zone haha. I doubt they will be any good and I know there will be errors, but I am enjoying it. I enjoy the challenge of it, even if I’m doing it poorly.

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      3. I normally use iambic hexameter. It gives me more space and isn’t as restrictive as the penta or tetra meter. But most poets swear by the pentameter. It’s awesome that you’ve gotten into the zone! I would never be able to write three sestinas a day lol. That’s really quite a challenge. There are always bound to be errors (every writer makes mistakes which is why writing is more editing than creating lol) but I’d go easy on the doing poorly bit. The fact that you’ve started your third means that you’re getting better with each attempt.

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      4. I’ve currently using pentameter, but I will absolutely keep your idea up my sleeve! Thanks again for the encouragement, tips and suggestion to even try one… They weren’t on my radar (too scared of them 😅)

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      5. You’re welcome. I’m glad I encouraged you. But hey, I’m no poetry expert! There was a time when I was obsessed with it. Now I write, but there are times when I’d rather kick back, listen to music and enjoy myself 😄. I like reading work by other people though (yours included).

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