The curmudgeon went clumping along,
Mouthing a rude, curmudgeonly ~
BLEH!
RUBBISH!
He was thinking 'bout all that was wrong
With those rhymers with whom he didn't ~
HARUMPH!
FEH!
A poet of whom he wasn't so fond
Had approached him, but he didn't ~
UGH!
GO AWAY!
He'd turned, stomping off to dun pond
Where he'd oft go to stare off ~
FIDDLE STICKS!
SCREW 'EM!
Stunned to see the fish cavorting in pairs,
He was caught totally ~
WHAT?
AAAAH!
Sinking, gurgling desperate prayers
Wet, dark death to which nothing ~
Nnn...
BLGRBRGLRGBL!
They glided 'bout him, bubbling rhymes
Tinkles deep in his mind, fine bell chimes
???
???
Nudging gently, time after time
Sweetest kisses like stanzas sublime
...
...
Laying gasping ashore
He'd transformed at his core
Verses soulful poured forth
From mild man; curt curmudgeon... no more
d’Verse: Word Play
I’m sharing this poem, which I wrote two years ago, for Grace’s prompt at d’Verse, which is to employ word-play in a poem. I love playing with words; I’ve written a lot of poems in a similar vein.
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!
The Skeptic's Kaddish ๐ฎ๐ฑ 
This was creative genius. So much fun to read ๐
โค๏ธ๐๐ป Nigel ๐๐ปโค๏ธ ~ thanks!
What a character. Love this one!
๐๐๐ป Grace ๐๐ป๐ ~ thanks!
~David
Haha! This one was so funny. All my frown lines have gone. Masterfully done, David.
๐๐๐ป Tanmay ๐๐ป๐ ~ thanks, friend!
Brilliant ink David!
๐งก๐๐ป Maggie ๐๐ป๐งก
You managed a rhyme despite the curmudgeon’s protestations! Your word play, as always, is superior!!
๐๐๐ป Muri ๐๐ป๐ ~ thanks!
Excellent ๐๐ผ
๐ค๐๐ป Sadje ๐๐ป๐ค
I love the wackiness of this one. It’s so visual and off-beat in a slapstick kind of way. When I saw “curt curmudgeon” in the last line, I immediately thought it would make a great name for a cranky old action hero in a comic book (Kurt Kurmudgeon). ๐
๐งก ๐คฃ Mike ๐คฃ ๐งก ~ excellent!
Very clever and amusing too ๐
๐๐๐ป Ange ๐๐ป๐ ~ thank you!
Oh that’s just amazing tail and fin work of the fish
One fish Two fish
Either way the curmudgeon was nicely schooled.
BLEH HARUMPH FEH! GO AWAY FIDDLE STICKS SCREW ‘EM!
WHAT?AAAAH Nnn..BLGRBRGLRGBL
Love the curmudgeon’s gasping and gurgling sounds too
๐๐๐ป Abi ๐๐ป๐ ~ thank youโฃ๏ธ
โฃโฃ๐๐
You are welcome.
Brilliant David! ๐๐Very funny & clever as usual! ๐ค๐ค๐๐๐๐ Particularly enjoyed these lines here:
โRUBBISH! He was thinking โbout all that was wrong With those rhymers with whom he didnโt ~ HARUMPH!
๐๐๐ป Ken ๐๐ป๐ ~ thanks so much