Do you like to compose poems or short stories? If yes, consider participating in the monthly SSAI Literary Challenge.
Every entry gets a chance at winning a free provincial SSAI Membership (Value = $5.00) (One free membership per person per year.) (Only original submissions accepted.)
Submit your limerick to info@saskseniors.com. In the subject line, write Literary Challenge. By submitting an entry, you give your permission for SSAI to include your entry on its website and/or to submit it to Gray Matters for publication.
JANUARY CHALLENGE:Write a LIMERICK using the name of your community.
A limerick is a short, five-line poem with a strict rhyme scheme and a bouncy rhythm. The rhyme scheme is AABBA, with the first two lines rhyming, the third and fourth rhyming, and the fifth line rhyming with or repeating the first line. Limericks are often humorous, nonsensical, or lewd, and are known for being easy to memorize. The word “limerick” is thought to refer to an old tune called “Won’t You Come to Limerick?” that had a similar rhyme scheme and meter.
Example: There was a young schoolboy of Rye,
Who was baked by mistake in a pie.
To his mother’s disgust,
He emerged through the crust,
And exclaimed, with a yawn, “Where am I?”
Extension to January LIMERICK Challenge.
Shellbrook challenges all SSAI Clubs to send in their limericks about their own communities to Shannon at the SSAI office by the end of February. Let’s have some fun with this challenge. Be sure to include the author’s name so that they can be entered into a draw for a free provincial membership (value $5.)
There once was a town called Shellbrook
Where everyone reads a good book
Their knowledge is sweet
Quite an intellectual feat
Bring a book when you come to Shellbrook.
In Shellbrook, there once was a crook
Who gave away all that he took
To the poor and the lame
She was a woman of fame
That generous crook of Shellbrook.
In the quaint little town of Shellbrook
The people wished for a Chinook
Well, it came and it warmed
The whole town was harmed
It’s no longer Shellbrook, it’s just Brook.
In Shellbrook, there once was a man
Who always said, “Yes, I can!”
When they told him he couldn’t
And repeated he shouldn’t
He yelled at them, “Yes, I can!”
FEBRUARY CHALLENGE:Write an ACROSTIC using the word FEBRUARY.
An acrostic poem is a poem where the first letter of each line spells out a word, phrase, or name. The word or phrase that is spelled out is usually the theme or message of the poem. Most often, it’s the first letter of each line that spells out the word, but they can be placed anywhere on the line. When they’re placed elsewhere in the line, it forms a kind of hidden ‘code’.
Example: Here is an acrostic poem using the word CATS.
Cuddly
Acrobatic
Tenacious and terrifying
Softly purring
F – Fierce winds blow
E – Excited children build snowmen
B – Bundle up in the cold
R – Repeat ‘B’ above
U – Unpredictable weather
A – Ardent skiers rejoice
R – Rev up your snowmobile
Y – Youthful glow on our faces
F – Family Day
E – Earmuffs
B – Black ice
R – Retreat
U – Unpredictable
A – Antifreeze
R – Radiant
Y – Youthful glow