PAD Day 16: Brave Little Penguins

 Today's prompts:

WBP: Write a "form"and/or "non-form" poem.

NPWM: "...write a poem in which you closely describe an object or place, and then end with a much more abstract line that doesn’t seemingly have anything to do with that object or place, but which, of course, really does.... An abstract, philosophical kind of statement closing out a poem that is otherwise intensely focused on physical, sensory details."

PSH: "Write an epistolary poem to the subject of a current news report.

An epistolary poem is simply a poem that is read as if it were a letter." (Jerry Garcia)

Here is my poem that uses all three prompts. The form is the "hay(na)ku," which I have written and explained in detail before, but basically is a haiku-like form consisting of one word in the first line, two in the second , and three in the third. (There is no syllable count.) This is actually a string or chain of hay(na)ku. I believe this poem fits pretty well with the second and third prompt as well. It's based on the amazing recent NatGeo video of baby emporer penguins jumping into the sea that has gone viral.

To the First Emperor Penguin Chick to Jump off the Ice Cliff
 
These
legions of

fuzzy little butlers
 
march
resolutely to
the iceberg’s edge,
 
stand
and contemplate
whether to jump.
 
You,
brave leader,
slide right off
 
and
belly-flop
into the sea
 
from
fifty feet
above the surface.
 
Soon
dozens are

leaping, following suit,
 
happily
swimming off
into frigid ocean.
 
I
am afraid
of nearly everything.
 
 
 
Here's the link to the video on YouTube. It's amazing, filmed by a naturalist with a drone:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4PwDFddpo4c