Poetry Friday round-up is with Heidi at My Juicy Little Universe
A few weeks ago, Mary Lee Hahn posted her poem Gratitude List as an exercise after Laura Foley’s Gratitude List. I immediately saved it to do with my students. This was the week of Gratitude, eating popcorn (Popcorn & Poetry), and writing our own Gratitude List. My students responded well to Laura Foley’s as well as Mary Lee’s poems. See this post to read these mentor texts.
As always, I write alongside my kids, so with a handful of popcorn and pictures from my trip to Tara’s farm, I fashioned my own version.
Praise be the morning mist,
the dewy grass, the crisp air,
and that moonrise last night
we raised a glass to.
Praise be a gathering of friends,
travels across miles, and the dog
that greeted each of us with a wagging tail.
Praise be the morning coffee, pancakes
covered in blueberries and maple syrup,
sweet, cool watermelon.
Praise be the wildflowers
in a canning jar.
–Margaret Simon (For Tara Smith)
I want to share a few lines from my students, too.
Praise be this afternoon
for gifted, the relaxing writing,
the fun of talking to friends,
reading a book.Praise be Frootloop breakfast,
the hard floor under our feet
and a roof above our heads
and sunshine
after the flood.–Madison, 3rd grade
Reflections on the Teche 
Praise be indeed
And
Praise be the joy
given by images that soothe &
words that welcome,
from Reflections on the Teche.
I needed to read your beautiful words this last Friday of summer at the farm, and remember our time together, dear friend. I am grateful for you.
So beautiful, Margaret! And lucky you to visit Tara’s farmhouse. Inspirational!
Beautiful!
Love Madison’s
“and sunshine
after the flood”
Yes. Praise be! Lovely.
Praise be poetry. Great memories, “frootloops” and all. đŸ™‚
Lovely to write this for Tara and to share and write with your students, Margaret. It’s a wonderful end to the week.
I love how you are continuing the praises… such a rich and beautiful time you must have had with Tara at her gorgeous farm!
Beautiful writing by the students, too. This line particularly struck me:
“the hard floor under our feet” – what a thing for an 8-year-old to have to think about. Continued prayers for Louisiana.
Love this Margaret. Makes my heart ache.
Love this, Margaret — especially “… and sunshine / after the flood.”
I stored away Mary Lee’s poem to use with my students, too. Thanks for sharing yours. It’s beautiful. And it’s great to know there’s sunshine after the flood. Ruth, thereisnosuchthingasagodforsakentown.blogspot.com
I am warmed by your gratitude, Margaret, and the sunshine that is Madison’s poem.
**tears**
Why tears? I’ve been so frustrated that I can’t make things better for the teachers and classrooms and people of Louisiana remaking their lives after the flooding…and here you show me that my little poem of Gratitudes inspiring gratitudes in you and your children is doing just what I thought I couldn’t do. I’m humbled and honored.
And to know that my poem will travel all the wait to Haiti and do the same “work” there…oh, my.
Aw, Mary Lee, this touches me, too. Poetry is like that.
Margaret, gratitude lists allow us to reflect deeply about our place in the world and how we react to life. Both you and your students created gratitude poetry that are powerful texts of thanks. You wrote with gratitude for friends and Madison for sunshine after the flood. With positivity you both shared your gratitude based on Mary Lee’s mentor text. (interesting that I just reread that text earlier today.)
This is so beautiful, Margaret. I love the photos and the words of you and your students.
I echo the “praise be” for these poems, Margaret. Lovely. =)