Writing Prompt – Big Up The Small Things! (In honour of National Tea Day)

Poet John Cooper Clarke said that you can “underline the importance of everyday things when you big them up in a poem … the kind of things that people (usually) ignore”.

Today’s challenge is to write a poem about something that people don’t normally give a second thought to. 

Life has changed a lot for everyone recently, and that can affect how we see things. Stuff we took for granted suddenly becomes important. Is there something apparently small and insignificant that means a lot to you, especially now? Maybe it’s something you really miss that you took for granted before.

In honour of National Tea Day, I've had a go at writing something about one of my most favourite "small things" …

Me with a beloved brew!
(And, no that's not a tea cosy on my head … What? It's cold in the shed. Shut up!)

LIFE TASTES BETTER WITH TEA! 

(AKA MY TEA RANT!)


it’s a cup of tea
for me
a mug’s better
actually
no messing about with saucers
and you get more tea in a mug!

a cuppa
a brew
a mash up
one lump or two?

you want to know the secret
for making a perfect cuppa?
I’m a generous fella
So I’ll tell ya

for a start
YOU DON’T PUT THE MILK IN FIRST!

boiling water
from a kettle
(not one of those satanic urns
that constantly churns
simmering until the water tastes like tin
and your tea’s only fit for the bin)

tea bag
in mug
boiling water
then give the bag a bit of a stir
GENTLY!
don’t bludgeon the poor thing to death

tea needs time
                                 and space
       to bloom
you need to coax those tannin textures
set free the earthy delights
exotic notes from the far flung fields of Hebden Bridge

tea should be the colour of beer
not lager (another travesty to the taste buds)
then put the milk in while the bag is still brewing
and give it a stir

then check the colour
and if you need to confer
a Pantone Colour Matching Chart
can be a useful aid
available online
expensive
but a worthwhile addition to your shopping cart

bag in the recycle bin
and then you’re done

now for me
tea tastes best out of doors
but take yours where it belongs

purists will tell you
that the only way to make proper tea
is with leaves and I’d probably agree
but if I started on that
this poor excuse for a poem
would become epic

we’re here today to talk about the small things
and as my mother always told me
if you can’t be good
be brief

(failed again, Ma!)


I think I've earned a cuppa after that! Sure you can do much better too. Have fun. Post your poems in the comments below! Now, I wonder if there's any biscuits left …


PS. Normal service and the Title Prompt Series I started yesterday will continue tomorrow. I couldn't ignore National Tea Day!