We all make promises. Sometimes we even write them down and sign our name on the dotted line—perhaps this is only a promise to pay a bill in full or to agree we understand the terms and conditions of a service or maybe this is a promise to stay together, a wedding vow, or simply to stay in the living world. Take a promise you’ve made or that someone made you and treat it as if it were written in blood on paper crumpled and torn. Words are missing. What fills those spaces?

You can make this a true erasure poem or rearrange the words if need be. Perhaps use the form as a word list and restrict yourself to only those words and phrases.

The poem, “Book of Memory” by Rebecca Hazelton doesn’t really fit the prompt, but I like it and hope you will too.

If you wish, you could use this customer agreement for your word list.

Good luck!