Chōka, Hanka, Poetry, Tanka, Theme Prompt, Writing Challenge, Writing Prompts

The Introduction: A Chōka

Nancy's Notes 🖊️♬

Written for Tanka Tuesday where our host,
Melissa, asks us to write syllabic poetry
using “forgetting” as our theme.

Image by Me & Copilot

Across the party
I spot a familiar face
smiling, waving, warm.
“So good to see you again!”
I say, buying time,
their name gone, vanished, erased.

“This is my old friend….”
I trail off, gesture vaguely
hoping they’ll jump in ….
they don’t, they just smile wider,
clearly enjoying
watching me squirm, drowning, lost.

I desperately try bluffing,
they laugh, say “it’s been a while.”

Their name was right there …..
now it’s a word on the tip
of a tongue, tied, stuck.

NAR©2026

Nancy’s Notes: Chōka is a Japanese poetic form with a variable length that follows these guidelines: 5 syllables in the odd-numbered lines, seven syllables in the even-numbered lines and finishes with two consecutive seven-syllable lines. I have added an optional hanka …. a short concluding poem attached to the end of a chōka which captures the core emotion of the main piece.

This is “Remember Song” by Tom Rush

#TankaTuesday Poetry Challenge No. 75, Oops, I forgot! 8/5/26

Everything on The Elephant’s Trunk was created by me, unless otherwise indicated. Thanks for your consideration. NAR©2017-present.

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