The Candy Poem

Poetry should provoke our senses and make us ponder, remember, and wonder.

Today, using a piece of candy and our creativity, we are going to write a poem that will do just that. Follow these steps, which will guide you into making a number of comparisons between the candy's appearance and the things you know and love.

  1. Be sure you have paper, pen or pencil, and a piece of hard candy.
  2. Use your eyes first ~ consider the color.

    3. Look at the candy. What does the color remind you of? Then write a sentence that begins (color) like (whatever it reminds you of).

    Example: Brown like my mother's hair as she played peekaboo baby…

  3. Use your eyes again ~ consider the shape.

    4. What does the shape remind you of? You can shrink it or make it gigantic in your mind. Consider the fact that it is wrapped as if it is 'shy', 'wrapped up in itself', 'protected,' or some other human quality. Make such a comparison so that someone who has never seen the candy knows exactly what it looks like.

    Example: Shaped like the box that stored my Lincoln logs

  4. Use your eyes one more time ~ consider the light

    5. Hold your candy up to the light…what does it look like now? Is it shining? Can you see through it? What does it remind you of?

    Example: Dark like my bedroom with a little moon shining in.

  5. Use your ears ~ hold the candy to your ears.

    6. Close your eyes and unwrapped the candy. Listen carefully to the sounds it makes. What does the sound remind you of? Have you heard similar sounds before. BE SPECIFIC!

    Example: Crackling like bacon cooked on Saturday mornings while my father tumbled down the stairs to make us laugh.

  6. Use your nose ~ smell the candy.

    7. Now what does the smell remind you of? Be thoughtful and specific, because the sense of smell is the most memory-producing of all our senses. Close your eyes and think…let the smell really remind you of something special..

    Example: sweet root beer frothing over a cold glass Nana poured for us.

  7. Use your mouth ~ taste the candy.

    8. Now, the best part, put the candy in your mouth. Let is slowly melt and flow down your throat. As the candy melts, what sensation do you get? What does this remind you of? What does it make you think about? Again, let your senses freely flow and associate with memories in your brain.

    Example: Blind brown sugar rolling like cool waves in the Boston harbor.

  8. Finally, use your brain ~ make a closing poetic statement that somehow unites the images you have created and give your poem a title.

Example: Father, mother, Nana and my childhood, melted into time.