Eggshell [15 Words or Less Poems]

Welcome to 15 Words or Less Poems Day! Are you ready to wake up your poetry brains with our weekly exercise (guidelines here)?

Most of my pics seem to come from airports or planes lately! All this next month I’ll be using pics taken on the way home from South Bend, IN to Minneapolis, MN.

tiny toy machine 15wol

 

This image makes me think of:

  1. a dinosaur nest with eggs in it
  2. close-up of a bottle of pills
  3. the ball pit at McDonald’s

And, here’s my first draft. 

eggshell 15wol

 

It’s your turn! Have fun and stick to 15 WORDS OR LESS! (Title doesn’t count toward word count)

40 Responses

  1. I wouldn’t tiptoe
    barefoot through
    bogs of nesting
    crocodiles
    ouch those
    were my toes

    poem By Jessica Bigi

    1. Hahahah! So funny, Jessica–this one has a different, more playful tone than what you usually share. I always admire your gorgeous imagery, but it’s fun to see this lighthearted approach, too!

    2. A very clever verse Jessica. I love “bogs of nesting crocks.”

    3. The past tense in the last line is too funny. Love that you came up with this.

    1. Nice Amelia. I can see your verse as a table centerpiece for the holiday.

  2. Captured memories,
    wait for release-
    bringing us pleasure
    until we cease.

    1. Meant to tell you, Laura, that I enjoyed your poem. Made me think how vulnerable we are at times.

      1. Thanks! While writing it, I was remembering holding Maddie as a baby, and how she was fragile as a baby bird, with her spine feeling like a row of building blocks under my hands…vulnerability oflife, indeed.

  3. For some reason your interesting poem reminds me of the thinning eggshells of the DDT disaster. Every time I see a brown pelican, I am grateful they survived. And thank you for your kind words about my poem at YDP Tuesday. Here’s my effort today:

    bubble mix
    dipping wand
    puff of air
    round rainbows

    pop, pop, pop

    1. I was just reading something about gratitude, and I love your statement about being grateful the brown pelicans survived. What a lovely, lighthearted poem–I especially like the “round rainbows.”

      So fun to see your poem Tuesday! Congrats!

  4. My first thought was jellybeans! I like the way you use filters, Laura. Can’t wait for tomorrow, National Poetry Month and the beginning of your project/posts here.

    Molecules wander,
    tiny spaceships
    bearing pieces
    of everything.

    —Kate Coombs

    1. Oooh, I love this science twist on it, Kate! Molecules and spaceships–love thatyou came up with this.

    2. PS Thanks! I miss the Waterlogue app (I changed from iPhone to Android, and there’s no Android version of it). But I do find using filters gets a little more to the shapes and makes the pics a little more abstract, so we can interpret them more ways…if you know what I mean. :>)

  5. Good morning Laura. Your pic speaks to the view of my deck and porch floors this morning after March winds passed through.

    Spring’s Remake

    Glass enclosed
    vingnette
    atop pastel stage
    mimics winter’s snow via
    peach, pear petals.

    1. What a beautiful, soft image. And I agree with you below; Thursdays are far more fun with Laura’s 15 wol.

    2. Great title, Martha. I love the image this puts in my head, and the color introduced by pastel and peach and pear…Nice! Happy spring!

  6. My first thought when seeing this picture was smeared paint on an artist’s palette.
    After looking harder, yeah, I could see eggs and I like your delicate eggshell poem.
    But I kept seeing paint.

    Artist’s Mistake

    Canvas bare, white,
    needed colors bright.
    Too much blue
    and wrong hue.
    This won’t do!

    1. Pat, I never cease to be amazed at the many interpretations of a single photo. Make that canvas into whatever you wish it to be. I love Thursdays.

    2. Fun, Pat! I have a poem somewhere about a kid mixing colors until they’re just a muddle of muddy brown. Love your title–draws me right in.

    1. The textures here are wonderful, Buffy! The shells, the downy softness, and then peeping feels sharp and shrill, even though it’s not actually a texture word. Cool!

  7. The image reminded me of the center popper thing on a game of Trouble. Rebecca reminded me with her trapped poem.

    Trouble-Pop!
    Come on out-
    1,2,3,4-
    round about.
    Pop‑I win!

    1. I love popping that Trouble thingy–almost as much fun as bubble wrap! And the way each syllable pops as I say it–happy Poetry Month!

  8. Laura, Your title had me rocking, even before I saw the picture and I had to go where the poem wanted to go.

    Egg Shell

    Everyone’s safe color
    for doors and walls
    used to shut out
    our true colors.

    1. I sometimes tend toward the boring and neutral, because I can’t decide and don’t want to commit to something bolder. Busted! Love your poem–and it’s true. I’m feeling more appreciaive of the teal bedroom, berry bathroom, and orangish den upstairs in our house :>) Thanks for the reminder that hiding our colors is never a good idea!

  9. Swirling colours of imagination
    Bounding into depths
    Of creativity and wonderment
    To explore new worlds

    Anne McKenna

  10. At Birch Aquarium

    Backlit
    baby
    sharks
    swim
    inside
    unbroken
    shells.

    1. Ooh, fabulous image! “Backlit” makes me totally see this image so clearly.

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 2,499 other subscribers

Are You Looking For?

Poetry Friday posts

Classroom Connections posts

All my poetryactions

Go to my Poetry page for:

  • National Poetry Month projects through the years
  • Small Reads Roundups (poems grouped by topic)
  • Introductions to several favorite poetry forms
Tags
#waterpoemproject15 Words or Less Poems20for2030 Painless Classroom Poems50 State Poemsacrosticsactivity pagesactivity sheetALAA Leaf Can Be...Amy Ludwig VanDerwaterA Need to FeedanthologiesanthologyA Rock Can Be...art projectsaudiopoemsawardsbad newsBarbara Juster EsbensenBilly Collinsbiopoemsblog tourbookalikesbook festivalsBookSpeak!book spine poemsbook trailersbop poembyr a thoddaidcafepresscalendar poemsCamp Read-a-LotCan Be... bookscan be... poemsCapstoneCarol Varsalonacascade poemsCatherine FlynnCCRA.W.3CCRA.W.4CCRA.W.5centoschapter bookschoral compositionschristina rossetticinquainsCLAclassified ad poemsclassroom connectionclassroom connectionsClover Kittyconferences and conventionscrown sonnetscybilsdansaDare to DreamDavid Elliottdeeper wisdom poemdefinitosdiamantesdiversitydizaindodoitsuDot DayDouglas Floriandownloadablesdrum corpse.e. cummingsekphrastic poemsepistolary poemsequation poemsessentialethereeseventsexquisite corpseFairy Tale Garage Salefamilyfibonaccifiction picture booksfinding familyfirefightersforeign editionsfound poemsfree author zoomsfree versefrom studentsgeesegeorgia heardghazalGift Taggiveawaygolden shovelgoldilocksgratitudehaikuheart of aheart of a teacherHeidi MordhorstHelen FrostHighlightshow-to poemshow to make a rainbowI Am FromI Am poemsidiomsif you want to knit some mittensIf You Were the MoonILAimagepoemsinterviewin the middle of the nightIRAIrelandIrene LathamJ. Patrick LewisJanet WongJoyce SidmanKendraKerlanKidlit Comboslailaura's board booksLaura's booksLaura's poemsLaura's readingsLaura ShovanLee Bennett HopkinsLilian MoorelimericksLinda Booth SweeneyLion of the Skylist poemslittle free librarylive writingLullaby and Kisses Sweetlyricsmadness poetrymargaret simonMarilyn Singermary lee hahnmask poemsMeet My FamilyMelissa StewartMentors for Rentmentor textsmetaphorMichelle Myers LacknerMillbrookMinnesota Book Awardsmoonmy reading lifemy writing processN+7naaninarrative poemsNational Poetry Month 2012 (haiku a day)National Poetry Month 2014 (riddle-ku)National Poetry Month 2015National Poetry Month 2016National Poetry Month 2017 (#wonderbreak)national poetry month 2018 (haiku a day)National Poetry Month 2020National Poetry Month 2021 (#EquationPoem)national poetry month 2022 (sticky-note poems)National Poetry Month 2023 (Digging for Poems)ncteNerdy Book Clubnifty newsnifty stuffNikki Grimesnonfictionnonfiction booksNonfiction Writers Dig Deepnovelsnovels in verseodesOne Minute Till BedtimeoppositifyOskar's VoyagepadletpantoumsparodiesPatreonpeacepersonalpet poemsphotopoetryphrase acrosticspicture booksplagiarismpoempicspoemspoems for two voicespoemsketchpoetic pursuitsPoetry 7poetryactionspoetry activitiesPoetry Blastpoetry booksPoetry FridayPoetry Friday AnthologiesPoetry Princessespoetry promptspoetry sistersPoetry Tips for Teachersprogressive poempublishing processpuddle songPutridquotationsraccontinosRandy Salasread-aloudreadaloudreading poetry in the classroomRebecca Kai Dotlichrecipe poemsrefugeesresearchreviewsrevisionrhyming booksrhyming nonfictionrhyming picture booksRhyming Picture Books the Write Wayrhyming poemsRiddle-kuriddle poemsRock Can Be...Rock the Blogrondeau redoublesRudyard Kiplingsalas snippetsSCBWIschool visitsScotlandseasonssecrets of the loonSELsestinasshrinking daysskinnyskypeslice of lifesmall readssnack snooze skedaddlesnowman-coldsonnetsStampede!storm poemstorytimestorywalkstudent poemsstudent workSylvia VardellTanita Davistankatautogramteachableteacher resourcesteen/adult poemsterza rimasthankfulthank yous and referencesthe business sidethings to do iftracy nelson maurertrioletstunie munson-bensonvideosVikram MadanvillanellevillanellesWater Can Be...wealthy elementaryWe BelongWhat's InsideWhy-kuwinterwonderwonderbreakword of the yearwordplaywordsmithswork for hirewritingwriting bookswriting processwriting promptswriting the life poeticyoung authors conferencesYouTubeZap Clap Boomzenozentangle
Show More Show Less

Join Laura's monthly newsletter for eductators

Get three of Laura's favorite poetry activities when you subscribe to "Small Reads."