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Sunday, October 3, 2010

Poetry Bus of Happiness

Yes! Yes! The Poetry Bus!
You've been waiting and waiting and looking at your watches and I'm sure plenty have gone home.
But then: What comes around the bend but the Bus? A little dented and muddy from its fall in the ditch, but the gears still work and here it comes for you.
I'll be collecting tickets tonight (I hope, depends on computer access) and most definitely Monday. It is a Monday Bus, after all.
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Theme: Happiness

First up: TFE with a real gem.
The Bug has a memorable outing.
Rachel in need of some happiness.
Martin flagging us down.
Emerging Writer writing on the Bus
Helen is on board
and Doc TSFE on the bus about the bus
Karen went down the nowhere road
Here's Titus!
and the infamous Peter Goulding
Stafford having a tickly happy visit
Jinsky with two.
Domestic Oub jumps on with a sparkler.
Dramatic anarchy from Niamh
Stillness with Socks
Enchanted Oak leaps on with style
Mrs Trellis gives a few points.
Flagging down the Bus before it gets away are Chiccoreal
and the famisher of Pixies

For my own poem, I was thinking of Happiness for driving on the 18th and wasn't very far along cooking something up, when along came the Emerging Writer with a comment to write a poem about the Poetry Bus itself. Thus the Happiness Bus, and here it is:

Mariana smoothed out her dress, touched her hair again, smiled nervously,
relaxed a bit and smiled for real.
She looked at her watch again, so early yet but she didn't want to be late
Every passenger who got on, she wanted to hug and tell them
She was riding to her first day at work. She glowed, and rubbed her ticket in wonder.
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Huddled in the back, Jeremy rummaged in his rucksack for a package of biscuits
He couldn't believe his luck: eighty euros in the old man's wallet
Eighty euros to start a new life
not a lot, but he fingered the bruises on his face and figured it was better that than stay home
He looked out the window at the dawn, and wondered where the bus was going
Away would be fine.
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In the second row, driver side,
Nick spoke softly into Lydia's ear
There was still pink confetti in her hair.
They were going to the seaside, to their honeymoon
He loved the bus for taking them there
He loved the sky for its gentle light
He loved Lydia asleep on his shoulder.
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Sixteen days on the road already, in a week I'd have to be back at work,
but today was still paradise
town to unpronouncable village,
foot paths, trains, this rattly old bus
through fields and forest, industrial suburbs, always something new,
someone to meet, a foreign way of saying hello, and a coffee please.
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Here it comes up the hill
grinding to a stop at a pile of rocks in the middle of these emerald fields dotted with sheep, striped with stone walls
where an old woman waits, plastic bonnet in case of rain,
shopping bag waiting to be filled with the wonders of Town,
sturdy walking shoes.
One more passenger happy to be on the Bus.
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26 comments:

Titus said...

If there's a crisis, it's always handy to know you have an emergency genetic scientist up your sleeve.
There are few Poetry Buses able to say that.

Off Book Festival-ing again today, but laters.

Rachel Fox said...

Love your happy bus. I know I was the one saying 'have a week off' but I wrote something on Friday (coincidentally) that might fit your bill so I'll post it later on and come back with the link.
x

The Bug said...

Here's my ticket - I'll come back later to read yours!

http://danabugseyeview.blogspot.com/2010/10/poetry-bus-goes-to-happy-place.html

Rachel Fox said...

Eh voila - here I am.
x

Totalfeckineejit said...

I'm loving this one NanU, I think if you kept at it it could be a book of short stories or a novel! It's a fantastic idea all the individual life stories on the one bus.Fantastico! Love these lines

'He loved the sky for its gentle light
He loved Lydia asleep on his shoulder.'
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Helen said...

THIS is the bus I want to ride ~ for always!

Martin said...

Here's something that might fit. Played Out

Emerging Writer said...

I hope the 'old man' is a bruiser of a father, not a random old man...and I do like the 'in case of rain' lady.

I have my Poetry Bus poem ready now http://emergingwriter.blogspot.comhttp://emergingwriter.blogspot.com/, hopping on board.

Doctor FTSE said...

I've bought a ticket to the wrong destination! I had posted a poem to TFE's alternative prompt - to write about "nothing or anything, or about the Poetry Bus" itself, before HAPPINESS appeared. The result is HERE. I will leave the bus, even throw myself under the wheels, if I have erred and strayed too far from the Spirit of the Bus . . .

Helen said...

I'll attempt this two ways

http://woonietest.blogspot.com/

link_words

Karen said...

Love the various stories on the bus. Wouldn't it be interesting to have a little bio of each of us done this way? Just a vignette to capture who we are and why we ride week after week...

I wrote and posted before I knew it was about happiness - back when TFE said it could be about anything or nothing at all.

http://keepingsecrets-karen.blogspot.com/2010/10/spinning-wonder.html

Titus said...

Mine's up now:

http://titusthedog.blogspot.com/2010/10/bus-past-present-and-nanuture.html

Titus said...

And ooh, I like that poem. Lots.

Peter Goulding said...

Yes, that's a very interesting poem - so much going on in there - like a novella! I'm up - http://stammeringpoet.blogspot.com/2010/10/happiness-is-poetry-bus.html

Stafford Ray said...

I've always been interested in what a gentetic scientist has in her genes!

Jinksy said...

Two tickets have to be better than one?! My duo may be found HERE

Domestic Oub said...

I'm aboard!

http://domesticoubliette.blogspot.com/2010/10/poetry-bus-happiness.html

Niamh B said...

Love your poem this week - almost like a short story too, there's loads in it.
Thanks for coming to the rescue of the bus - my ticket's up as well now.

Louise said...

Just to say, I'm on board the poetry bus!!!

Enchanted Oak said...

Your poem is wonderful, capturing the full range of Bus Riders.
I'm waving at you here in California.
Here is my Bus ticket

Mrs.Trellis said...

I show you the miserable face of happiness . . .

The Bug said...

I'm finally back to read. LOVE these stories! Reminds me of Maeve Binchy (hope you don't mind - I told someone else the same thing recently - maybe I need to pull one of her books to read!).

Stafford Ray said...

I just hope the thief doesn't steal the guy's girlfriend or the old lady's shopping. Seems happiness needs to be guarded closely!

NanU said...

I imagined the young man at the back as escaping a bad home to a new future, Stafford. It seemed alright for him to steal a stake from one responsible for his hell. Didn't mean to make him out as a bad person.

Don't Feed The Pixies said...

ok - it's not the greatest pome of all time, but mine is up

chiccoreal said...

Dear Nanu: Love your happy happy on a hill and going to town on a bus happiness story! I am soooo Happy! Please go to my blog for my brand new take on Happiness: I'll take at least two; good stuff! http://logb-chiccoreal.blogspot.com/2010/10/poetry-bushappiness-is.html