The Tritina, or: Form verses creativity

Sangeetha & David’s new poetry project

Once upon a time, two poets who’d never met in person spontaneously began writing verses back and forth to one another over the Internet. Their first poetry project took them some nine months: a 100 verse Hyakuin.

Once they’d completed their oeuvre, the two decided to continue their creative journey together; and Sangeetha came up with a fun new idea, which David loved – to explore different poetic forms together, working through the Alphabet from ‘A’ to ‘Z’.

Every week, for twenty-six weeks beginning in January of the year 2022, they would take turns selecting poetic forms beginning with the letter corresponding to that particular week (1=A, 2=B, etc., etc.) and write poems to one another using that form.

David suggested they call their new project ‘Form verses creativity’, and so it began.

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T for Tritina

David’s Tritina

I become irritable when I want to compose poetry
but cannot... Different than my addiction to caffeine,
without which, I simply start to fall asleep.

Strict bedtimes are pointless. I can only fall asleep
after responding to at least one intriguing poetry
prompt. Nothing at all to do with caffeine.

In fact, no amount of caffeine
has ever prevented me from falling asleep.
This is unhealthy, but I can laugh at myself through poetry!

I compose poetry but consume no caffeine while asleep.

Sangeetha’s Tritina

Words audition to be chosen, to be in my poetry,
some with pretty poise, some high on caffeine 
so fashionably late at night, so trying to not fall asleep

It's always 2 am, unable to fall  asleep
that my brain gets in a mood for soulful poetry
and it's not just my words, but my blood that needs caffeine

Today... er night, though, there's no caffeine
on my kitchen shelf where inspiration is fast asleep
so I'm afraid those words are not getting into any poetry

I must say though, poetry with zero caffeine is just what I need to fall asleep

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Tritina?

The pattern of word-repetition is as follows, where the words that end the lines of the first tercet are represented by the numbers “1 2 3”:

• 1, 2, 3 – End words of lines in first tercet;
• 3, 1, 2 – End words of lines in second tercet;
• 2, 3, 1 – End words of lines in third tercet;
• (1, 2, 3) – Words contained in the final line.

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Let’s write poetry together!

When it comes to partnership, some humans can make their lives alone – it’s possible. But creatively, it’s more like painting: you can’t just use the same colours in every painting. It’s just not an option. You can’t take the same photograph every time and live with art forms with no differences.

–Ben Harper (b. 1969)

Would you like to create poetry with me and have a completed poem of yours featured here at the Skeptic’s Kaddish? I am very excited to have launched the ‘Poetry Partners’ initiative and am looking forward to meeting and creating with you… Check it out!