This evening I hosted a Poetry Germination Workshop where nine poets got together at a coffeehouse and we wrote to seven different prompts over the course of ninety minutes. The first prompt I stole from Poetic Asides below. We also wrote poems about “October”, “Prohibition”, “Paul Gauguin”, “Squash Blossoms”, “Husbandry” and did a round of Poetry On Demand where I pulled the word “Strife”. So while I’ve posted five poems in five days here, I’ve actually got eleven written so far this month!

For today’s prompt, write an intelligence poem. Of course, intelligence is subjective. What is common sense for one person makes no sense to another. But intelligence is more than IQ and test scores. There’s artificial intelligence, intelligent animals, and military intel. And I’ve found that many poets have a special intelligence of their own.

Intelligence

There’s an intelligence
in the way rivers
follow the curve
of the earth
cutting a canyon
to the sea.

There’s an intelligence
in the way flowers
track the sun
and the roots
of trees stretch
towards water.

There’s too much intelligence
in the way humans
personify Mother Earth
as though She planned
this all. We’re too smart
for our own good.