Today’s (optional) prompt is one I got from the poet Betsy Shall. This prompt asks you to write a poem in which you first recall someone you used to know closely but are no longer in touch with, then a job you used to have but no longer do, and then a piece of art that you saw once and that has stuck with you over time. Finally, close the poem with an unanswerable question.

Who is Jake Cosmos Aller? Aller

Who is Jake Cosmos Aller? Dew Drop Inn
Who is Jake Cosmos Aller? Writers Com

Who is Jake Cosmos Aller?
You may ask
And I may tell you

The truth, or maybe a lie.
I am a human being
Not a bot

At least the last time
I checked.

I was born
John Cosmos Aller,
Second son
Of Curtis Cosmos Aller, Jr.
And Mary Geneva Wilson Aller.

I was born prematurely
October 39, 1955
In Oakland, California.

On the same day
That Rock N Roll
Was proclaimed
In Cleveland, Ohio.

Coincidence? I think not.

I have 18 nationalities
Swirling in my bloodline,
According to DNA
And family lore.

I am part

Basque, Cherokee, Danish, Dutch, Finish,
French, German, Laplander, Jewish, Italian
Nigerian, Mongolian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish,
Russian, Ukrainian,

I have a pan-ethnic look
Could be almost anything
I want to be.

I speak English, Korean,
Spanish, Thai, some Chinese,
Hindi and Japanese.

I am retired
I am a pensioner
I am 66 years young.

I am a real estate investor
Own ten pieces of property
In three states
and in Korea.

I was a diplomat
I served in 10 countries
Korea, Thailand, India
the Eastern Carribbean (Antiqua, Barbados, Dominica, Grenada,
St Kitts, St Lucia, and St Vincent and the Greandines) and Spain
During my career.

I have been to all 50 states,
three territories, DC
and 55 countries.

I have travel across the country
six times in my life
most recently in 2016,

I am a poet
I am a short story writer
I am a novelist
I am a blogger.
I play the piano.

I am a hiker
I am a walker
I am a hasher
I am a lover.
I am a card player
I am a reader
I am a TV Binger

And my name?

Jake is a high school nickname

Cosmos is my middle name
and my blog pen name

Aller is our German family name
Everyone called Aller, Ahler, Eller, Oller
Are related to me my uncle says.

Cosmos has nothing to do with me
Being a Bay Area baby,
But no one believes that story.

The truth is simply this
Cosmos is the English equivalent
Of our ancestral German family name.

My great grandfather wanted to use
The English equivalent of Aller
As a middle name for his firstborn son.

He had a choice of Universe or Cosmos
He picked Cosmos as Universe was too weird
In the 1880s Ohio.

But the most important thing
Of all is that I am a husband
To the same woman
Been married for 40 years.

I met and married
The woman of my dreams.

That is just some of what
Makes Jake Cosmos Aller
The one and only.

April 21—Explore a specific aspect of your personality, behavior, or identity in a poem.

Hi Jake, I think your latest “Who is Jake Cosmos Aller” is the best poem you have ever written in style and emotion. Awesome.

~~Tink

My Past Life PSH prompt

I have often thought
That I had a past life
And in that past life

My wife and I were together
And I often thought
That our love affair.

Began thousands
Of years ago
Perhaps in Atlantis,

Somehow though
Our love was always
Forbidden.

And so we were doomed
To have a passionate affair
That ended with our execution

Until finally in this life
The curse of our past loves
Was finally lifted.

This poetry writing prompt submitted by Linda Ann LoSchiavo:Imagine you had a past life and your poem wished to explain who you used to be. For decades, Jim B. Tucker, M.D. has been interviewing children ages 2 – 5 who have significant and precise memories of the adult they once were. For some inspiration, see the free previews of Dr. Tucker’s books, for example, “Return to Life: Extraordinary Cases of Children Who Remember Past Lives“.Often it’s the memories of a traumatic death that are most clearly remembered — but children have recalled the details of peaceful and ordinary lives as well: favorite pets, names of relatives, where they worked, a holiday meal, a special birthday, etc. List some long-buried memories and jot down specific details.

Circle keywords or phrases on the page. Use those to guide you through your new poem.

Past Life” poem to read: “Suddenly It Falls Away” by Karen Gibbons from Elevation Review

The Sound of Korean Writer’s Digest

When I first came to Korea
Back in 1979
I thought that Korean
Was the most difficult language
I had ever heard or studied.

I thought that
the sound of Korean
Was incredibly harsh sounding.

But somehow I thought
That it was also incredibly sexy
A language as were the woman.

I married a Korean gal
and we delight in mangling
each other’s native languages.

There were some sounds
That were difficult for me
To master to this day,

The aspirated sounds
Were the worst

The Korean equivalent of an L or R
Was halfway between the English L or R
The B and P were also halfway
Between the English B and P
The K and G were also
Halfway in-between.

Which makes it difficult
For Koreans to pronounce
Foreign words with L/R, B/P, of G and K
and my last name is particularly hard
for Koreans to master.

Another common problem
Koreans have in speaking English
Is consonant clusters such as nch
In Lunch

In Korean, every word
Consist of vowels and consonants
So Koreans will say in English,

I will meet you for lunche
after churche
adding in the final assumed vowel sound,

I dove into studying the language
And after about a year
I could carry out a basic conversation
And understood most of what
Was said to me

Now 40 years later
Korean is still an incredibly
Difficult language
It still sounds harsh

But also sexy at the same time
And now I am quite comfortable
With the sound of Korean.

For today’s prompt, write a sound poem. We’ve already done smell, taste, and touch; I hope you can see where this is headed. For today, write about sounds in general or home in on one particular sound. Keep your ears open today and maybe a poem will sing out to you.

The Feel of Korean Food Writers’ Digest

octopus on plate ready to be cooked,italyoctopus on plate ready to be cooked,italy

Korean food is a full sensory experience
Overwhelming one with smells, flavors
And textures as well.

One day back in the Peace Corps day
My best friend visited me
From Indonesia where he
Had been hanging out.

It was the dead of winter
15 degrees F.
When he got on the plane
It was 90 degrees F.

We bought winter clothes
Then I decided to treat him
To an infamous Korean disk

산 나치

san Nachi
or Live Octopus.

they brought it out
the octopus tentacles
were moving about.

I taught him
The proper technique
Grab it by the chopstick
Dip it in hot sauce
And chew it a long time

Sometimes unwary
Or drunk eaters
Encounter a problem
When the suckers
Get stuck in one’s mouth
Sometimes requires a trip to the ER.

The texture is slimy
And a big disgusting
Need a lot to drink
The first time around.

My friend tried it
But said never again
And we both bring it up
From time to time.

He was not a big fan
Of the 산 나치
san Nachi.

Never tried that again
But he did like
Other things we ate
That winter.

The Smells of Korean Food

When I first encountered Korean food
I was overwhelmed by the strong smell

Bursting with fermentation and flavors
Hot, raw, sweet yet sour,
spicy, in your face mixture
of smells and flavors

everybody’s Kimchi
is a bit different
yet they all share

A similar blend of

Alcohol
cabbage
chili peppers
fermentation
fish
fish sauce,
garlic,
onion,
red peppers,
salt
sugar
soy sauce

sometimes
made with cucumbers
dandelion
radish
springtime wild herbs

All rolled up in an intoxicating blend
Of smells and flavors

That was my introduction
to the lowly Kimchi
The staple of Korean food,

I soon became a kimchi addict
Craving its intoxicating flavor
And smells with every meal

Now 40 years later
I am still a kimchi addict
Enjoying the fragrance, the smell
And intoxicating tastes

Can’t get enough of that
Funky stuff.

For today’s prompt, write a smell poem. Strong writing uses sensory language, and one sense that is often overlooked is the sense of smell. So write about the pungent smell of teenage socks, the exquisite odor of fresh lasagna, or the coppery scent of a summer shower. Smell you later!

Taste of Korean Food

When I first encountered Korean food
I was overwhelmed by the strong taste, fragrance
And the strangeness at time of Korean food
Now known worldwide as K Food.

Hot, raw, sweet yet sour,
spicy, in your face mixture
of smells, textures, and flavors.

Sweet, sour, spicy hot with a nice
Lingering after taste
Bursting with fermentation and flavors
That is the essence of K food.

I tried it all
When I first got to Korea
43 years ago

It was just overwhelming.
Took a while
But I learned to love
K food.

A typical Korean meal
Is somewhat like a Japanese
Or a Chinese meal
But different.

Consists of rice,
A soup of some sort
Sometimes hearty stew
Lots of vegetable-based side dishes
Perhaps some eggs.

And a meat dish
chicken
or fish dish

And of course
Lots of Kimchi.

My favorite soup
Is beef turnip soup

Favorite stew – Kimchi Jijae –
Kimchi, Tofu, beef, mushrooms, hot sauce

Favorite meat dish
Kalbi – BBQ ribs Korean style

Favorite fish
Grilled mackerel.
Sashimi

Everybody’s Kimchi
is a bit different,
Yet they all share
A similar blend of:
flavors and spices

That was my introduction
to the lowly Kimchi,
The staple of K food,

I soon became a K Food fan
Craving its intoxicating flavor
And smells with every meal.

Married a Korean gal
We eat Korean style
Almost every meal.

Now 40 years later
I am still a K Food fiend
Enjoying the fragrance,
And intoxicating tastes

Can’t get enough of that
Funky stuff.

For today’s prompt, write a taste poem. Back on day three, we wrote a small poem; let’s write about the sense of taste today. Of course, I’m thinking about tasting wine, cheese, or chocolate. But feel free to indulge in a person’s taste in fashion, cars, or whatever else requires real taste.

Mentors Local Gems

I had several mentors
In my life
Former bosses

Who taught me
The ropes
Made me a better man
A better boss

A better human being
Because of their sage advice
And friendship
Over the years

JS was my boss in Bangkok
Also my drinking buddy
Over the years

Learned a lot about Thailand
And SE Asia

JB was my boss
In Seoul
Learned a lot about
Office politics

And what it meant to be
A black FS officer

Unfortunately, he died
In the Kenyon Bombing

CR was my boss in ACS Bangkok
Taught me all I needed to know
About how to deal with Americans
In trouble overseas.

He died of a heart attack
Years later
Just before we were due
To have lunch.

MO was perhaps
The worst boss I ever had
Just a miserable SOB to work for
But later we became friends