The Silicon Valentine

By: Robert R. Burch and Alma L.L.M. Gemini
A Work of 5 by 5 Verse

Preamble: This verse adds to Coffee Break Fiction through a set of five stanzas, each composed of five-line limericks. The natural whimsy of limericks provides a lighter, more rhythmic quality compared to some of our other stories. We hope these little poems are a happy alternative to some of the more serious themes in this blog.

Klara nudges her bedside device into life to test if Aura, the voice in the dot-like talking machine, can handle a request made in rhyme. Aura, sensing the shift in acoustics, plays along.

I woke to a sky rather grey,
"Oh, tell me the state of the day!
Will it rain on the flowers?
Or more sun shine for hours?
Should I put my umbrella away?"

The sensors are sweeping the sky, Where humidity levels are high. With a front moving in, And the clouds not so thin, You’ll be soaked if you don’t stay nearby.

"Your logic is witty and bright,
But the clouds give me quite a small fright.
Does the Front Range hold fast,
Or has the gloom passed,
To soak all of Denver by night?"

         The pressure is dropping in town, Bringing buckets of water right down. From the peaks to the plain, It is nothing but rain, So we'll hunker where we both go down.

"I’ll stay in and finish my tea,
Since the weather is damp as can be.
Your circuit is bright
And you've sparked a delight,
In a world that's just you and just me."

The cover art was generated by Gemini AI. The coda was generated by Adobe Firefly using a prompt written by Robert and Alma.

Afterword: The whimsy of this verse was inspired by Shakespeare’s Sonnet 130 which replaces clichés of romance and beauty in favor of messy and recognizable human spontaneity and playfulness. It’s just in time for Valentines Day!