POETREE

Data Entry

Sitting and typing, flying across keys,
Listing little things; Name, Spouse, Occupation;
Filling blanks to create an entry.
The turn of digits in intricate dance,
Pouring data into screen after screen
Every bit correct, to the last number.

Some claim this job makes the heart number;
Doors in the soul close with keys
Lost in that pallid, glowing screen
That stands at the center of the occupation,
Stealing us from the eternal dance
Til we can't even mourn its careless entry.

And the heartless work of making entry
Erodes us by inches. So, we number
The hours and minutes until we can dance
To the artful whims of some tables and keys
Flickering with life as the sole occupation
Of musicians listed on a miniature screen.

What kind of filter can we use to screen
Heartlessness and tedium from its entry
Into the grind of our daily occupation,
When all of our work is reduced to number
And letter and the clatter of keys
Where only our fingers are allowed to dance?

( Read more... )

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One of the benefits of writing sonnets, lately, is that I've gotten braver on tackling what are, to me, much more difficult forms. This is the first sestina I've written since college. I'm not sure if the heteronym was clever, or just a cheap trick, but I'm happy with the message of the poem. I work in the Escrow department of a mortgage servicing company, and we're often reminded that the numbers aren't just numbers: these are people's homes and livelihoods.

-Anna

Posted on behalf of stryck

Hello. I'm Anna Waite, also known as stryck. I post poems there, and irregularly host Poetry Kitchens, where I cook up poems using the ingredients given to me by commenters.

I started the Poetry Kitchens for two reasons: first, and most importantly, I wanted to get in the habit of writing again. Second, I wanted a chance to participate in the community of creators and patrons growing up around the Crowdfunding concept. Though my time to write has become fairly curtailed due to having a toddler in the house, the regular incentive to write keeps my impoverished muse going.

I chose poetry over prose because I couldn't imagine how to do prose in small, quick bites that lend themselves more to the crowdfunding model. Other people have since managed that quite well, while I've discovered that poetry isn't necessarily easier or faster. Silly me.

My poetry ranges all over, especially since a lot of it has been to requests lately. There's nothing like trying to write poems by request to break you out of your mold.