My brain has been traveling here, there, and elsewhere everywhen, you see. Today’s “E” post is for all those elsewhere, elsewhen, and half-remembered moments that slip sideways. In this post, I’m sharing a new poem, a few extraordinary “E” books, and a little wonder about the magic tucked inside just one letter of the alphabet.

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E is Here, There, and Elsewhere

Today’s NaPoWriMo prompt takes its inspiration from Yentl van Stokkum’s poem, “It’s the Warmest Summer on Record Babe,” which blends casual, almost blasé phrasing with surreal events like getting advice from a bumblebee. So, the challenge for today is to try writing with a breezy, conversational tone, while including at least one thing that could only happen in a dream.

Extraordinary E

Elsewhere. Elsewhen.

One winter morning on a summer night,
we wandered at dawn, the sweet hour of twilight,
you know, that in‑between time,
ambling along an erf of the shore
with the soft laughter of shells relating the lore,
like they always do,
of the ersatz‑moon that lived underneath,
which was new, or maybe not,
in the upside‑down, inside‑out world,
as usual.

There I stopped to look at the palms throwing shadows upward
onto roofs and ceilings, shadows stretching like dancers
in the light of this wondrous everywhen golden hour,
which, honestly, felt a bit excessive but fine.

I reached for my camera, as per usual, and – it wasn’t there.
“Didn’t you already snap a pic?” you smirk.
“Yes but not this exact one, ’cause shadows change moods so fast, you see,
and you know how they are.”

Then the world forgets its lines as well,
which didn’t seem related, but still.

Now I try your phone instead,
but the photo refuses to be taken
it slips sideways, donning an eccedentesiastic smile,
like it’s in on something,
and as I look –
just like that –
it is all gone.

The palms. The shadow‑dancers.
The everywhen golden hour on the erf of that shore with laughing shells.
Poof! Just — gone.

Am left with half a memory,
which is a bit annoying,
that feels like it exists elsewhere, elsewhen,
or maybe in a dream.
Hard to tell, honestly.

So we continued to wander.

~ Vidya Tiru @ LadyInReadWrites

E-leglance

Now that you’ve wandered through the lines of the poem, here’s a little E‑leglance – an elegant glance at some of today’s most whimsical E‑words

• Ersatz – a pretend or fake version of something
• Erf – a tiny plot or patch of land
• Eccedentesiastic – a smile that hides what’s really going on
• Everywhen – all the times at once, timeless.
• Elsewhere – somewhere other than here.
• Elsewhen – a moment somewhere else, in time.

Extraordinar-ee Books

Today’s E books are all about extraordinary women!!

And Now, the End of This Post

Dear reader, your favorite unusual or quirky ‘e’ words and books from this post? Or from elsewhere in your thoughts, or other lists? Do share!

I am linking up to A-Z, Blogchatter, UBC, NaPoWriMo.

And you can find all my A-Z posts (this year and previous years’ as well) here:

A to Z Challenge Posts