Poems for Pregnancy Loss
For National Poetry Month, I have written four miscarriage poems. Reading miscarriage poems and challenging myself to write miscarriage poems has been a remarkable experiment. I don't typically focus on stanzas, line structure, repetition, or rhythmic patterns. I'll admit, trying to piece the right words together for a poem is harder than it looks!
Writing these four miscarriage poems was not going to be easy. I wanted to devote the proper time and energy to creating meaning behind each one. So I set out to research what type of poems would resonate with me most. As I thought about the kind of miscarriage poems I wanted to write, the poetry with fewer words and rhymes caught my eye. Ultimately, I decided to write an Aquarian Poem, an Amanda's Pinch Poem, an Acrostic Poem, and a Canzonetta Poem.
I have also selected four other poems about stillbirth, miscarriage, infertility, and adoption. These four poets clearly express the negative effects with beautiful subtlety. I felt like I knew each of these women after I read their poems.
Why Write A Poem About Miscarriage?
To me, a poem is a personal observation best served on paper and in our hearts. It's an expressive medium that allows someone to share the most intimate parts of themself, without answering to the rules of common written language. My favorite part is that a poem has the freedom to take on many forms.
Poetry is a portrait painted with words, a song that changes its chord for every reader, or the best outlet for self-reflection. Poetry is different. It's dangerously honest. Below I have provided a few definitions that might find useful:
A composition in verse. Merriam-Webster
A piece of writing in which the expression of feelings and ideas is given intensity by particular attention to diction, rhythm, and imagery. Google Dictionary
A poem is a collection of spoken or written words that expresses ideas or emotions in a powerfully vivid and imaginative style Literary Devises
Benefits of poems
I love poems because they take me to a deeper, more expressive part of myself. They pull the most complex emotions out and force me to grapple with them. This type of writing encourages honesty, don’t you agree? I also love poems because one word may provoke a million different thoughts or questions. Let’s see what famous poets have to say about poetry.
“I would define... the Poetry of words as The Rhythmical Creation of Beauty.” Edgar Allan Poe
“Poetry lifts the veil from the hidden beauty of the world, and makes familiar objects be as if they were not familiar.” Percy Bysshe Shelley
“We make out of the quarrel with others, rhetoric, but of the quarrel with ourselves, poetry..." William Butler Yeats
Words mean more than what is set down on paper. It takes the human voice to infuse them with deeper meaning. Maya Angelou
National Poetry Month
The month of April is National Poetry Month. To celebrate poets and poetry, I have written four miscarriage poems. These four miscarriage poems explore the emotions I felt during my pregnancy losses. I have also provided four poems that represent the unique and challenging roads that women travel in hopes of becoming a mother (infertility, miscarriage, pregnancy loss, adoption, etc.)
An Aquarian Poem
Heartbeat
how I have prayed
to one day hear the hum
of a beautiful hummingbird
heartbeat
An Amanda's Pinch Poem
In the tiny shop of Eads street, I sip my tea
Time is what I need, western culture please allow
I'm not who I was, it's so obvious
A heartbeat is a heartbeat, right?
A heartbeat is a heartbeat, right?
Grappling with the unimaginable
Unaccounted-for yet too great to disavow
A tiny space you took, yet you took all of me
An Acrostic Poem
H - Hours pass slowly, like a year to a child
E - Every pregnant woman is a sharp reminder that we are no more
A - As if you were only a beautiful dream for one night
L - Love carries a new meaning, a new weight
I - I must find me again; I believe we will meet again
N - Novice mourner, seasoned kneeler
G - God grants childlike faith, to help pass the time
A Canzonetta Poem
A plastic stick broadcasted my miracle
It took us six months to create a new star
But along the way my love story became satirical
Optimistic fools are the ones who scar
I long for a ticket to the past, one day before the news
When I presumed you were still in genesis
Maybe then I could remember life in hues
And go on living in colorful innocence
You were a secret whispered in my ear at nightfall
A beautiful mystery I'll never figure out
So, I sit here pondering a way to make sense of it all
To understand why God allows a cruel turnout
There is one thing more powerful than deaths hold
And the sting of endless potential and dreams for you after maternity
It's the hope you are strong, lovely, inclusive, respectful, courageously serene, and bold
It's the hope you are all these things and more, on the other side of eternity
My personal selection of poems
A poem for mothers experiencing a stillbirth...
For My Little One
by Mary Cathleen
I never saw your twinkling eyes Or touched your precious feet. I never shared a tiny yawn Or rocked you fast asleep. I never kissed your tiny hands Or saw your little smile. I never held you in my arms, But I held you for a while. Although I never saw your face Or heard your precious laughter, You're still my child whom I love And will forever after.
A poem for women experiencing a miscarriage...
My Little Angel
by April Westlake
I never got to hold you, Or kiss your little head Or watch you sleeping soundly, All snuggled in your bed. I can't count your tiny fingers, Or you even smaller toes I won't see your smile, Or your cute little button nose. You're gone too soon - we don't even know If you're a girl or boy, Our hearts are filled with sorrow When they should be full of joy. I know you are in heaven, Where there is no pain or tears. You'll never get hurt or sick, In heaven, there are no fears And though I'm sad you're not here right now For us to hold today I know we'll hold you in our arms When we're in heaven with you someday
A poem for women experiencing infertility...
by Kristin Kekich
There's a room in my house. Just down the hall from mine. There's a room in my house. But it's empty.
There's a spot in my womb. It's an inconspicuous, invisible little spot. There's a spot in my womb. But it's empty.
There's a bed in the hospital. It's on the third floor, with a bassinet beside it. There's a bed in the hospital. But it's empty.
There's a space in my arms. One I never noticed I had, Till there was a space in my arms, And it was empty.
A poem for women going through the adoption process...
By Kim Nelson
I was cleaning the house…just an ordinary day… when the phone rang and nonchalantly I answered… "Hello"…"Hello, this is Sheila, we have your baby!" Silence… then, the sobs welled up… and no words would come out…
my ordinary day…cleaning the house kind of day… turned to whip through the house… racing to call my husband… our family and friends… Getting together the onesies and blankets... "We're having a boy!"
Eight hours away the boy we hadn't met yet… only a long day's drive and a day separated us… What shall we name him we asked while driving? the final meal before we were to become parents… the sleepless night in the hotel… the wringing of the hands moments, minutes before…
and then one not so ordinary Friday afternoon… my trembling hands and bursting heart… receive the gift of a six-day-old little baby boy… tears streaming down my face… I cannot believe it, the day has finally come! the day I was never sure would happen, was here!
walking out of that office room… hands now full… heart now filled… one little miraculous boy… a precious son… what an EXTRAORDINARY kind of day!!!
Check out the new #1 Amazon Best Seller, My Miscarriage: And Other Uninvited Events