I’ve long been a fan of chalk art. Years ago Betsy Hubbard led a weekly chalkabration in which bloggers posted chalk poems. I’m not sure why we stopped doing this.
Chalk art is temporary. Perhaps that is freeing to the artist, allowing for freedom from perfection. We know the next rain will wash it away.
There is an old Tibetan Monk tradition of making sand mandalas. “These sacred cosmograms are said to transmit different positive energies to the environments that they inhabit and the people that come to view them.” I believe this is true on a smaller scale with chalk art. The act of doing the art itself is meditative. And the viewer is pleased by the art’s energy.
Today I want to offer the form called “cinquain.” The form is five lines and follows the syllable or word count or 2, 4, 6, 8, 2.
Artist
patterns petals
with a stroke of his hand.
He walks away, letting his mark
spread joy
Margaret Simon, draftPlease leave a small poem in the comments and give encouraging responses to other writers.
Reflections on the Teche 
Margaret: I agree about chalk art. I have photos of my grands making chalk drawing also. It seems iconic to childhood.
Freely
Fat chalk in hand
Fantastic creations
Flow from the mystery of minds
A-Float
Karen Eastlund, draft
like “mystery of minds”
I like thinking of “minds a float”…..so lost in space, deep intention, drifting, in the zone, captivated by art and treasure. FLOW….. that is meaningful to all of us but children embrace it readily I have found if we provide the right atmosphere and chalk drawing is freeing in my opinion. Nice, Karen!!
Love how you used the form and alliteration!
This creates a strong image of the child artist, Karen. What is going on in that young brain? Ah, I see, through the art!
Karen, what a wonderful flow of “F”s, and a great total image! So much fun to read aloud!
Karen, I love the sound of all your alliteration. I clearly see fat chalk in a child’s hand. Ooh, “mystery of minds.”
Your wonderful poem captures how children create with ease, and then easily leave the imprint’s joy for the benefit of the rest of us! I love children’s art and the intensity their faces show as they create—in the photo, we sense the intensity even without seeing a face!
SEVENTEEN MONTHS
Look now
where my hand goes:
up and around, across
fingers barely hold the chalk—I’m
drawing!
You capture the joy of learning a new skill, Carol!
Thank you, Rose!
I agree with Rose, and add that you capture the spirit of childhood wonder and awe……the photo, the poem, the child, are in synch today with creation to me. And we rejoice in the capacity of the young. Thank you for your poem, grandma Carol!!!
Thank you, Janet….Ooh! I love that name, Grandma Carol!
I have a granddaughter who is 20 months and I relate to that triumphant joy of “I’m drawing!”
It’s such a thrill to watch them discover, experiment, figure things out…and their wonder as they master something!
Carol, I love the joy expressed in your last 2 words. Ta da!!
Thanks, Jane! “Ta da!” exactly!
Carol, I love how I see your child drawing with chalk “Up and around, across.” I love hearing and feeling the excitement of “I’m drawing!”
Thank you, Gail!
Remember Forest Fairy Drawing, Age 4?
Have you seen one with your eyes?
Spied a flittering among golden buds? Pinched yourself just a bit? Found some time to gaze and sit? To ponder what a fairy wears diving and buzzing in summer air. Sweet the dreams we have when young! Oh watch his chalk fly as the story’s sung.
draft Janet Clare F.
Love seeing his shirt and his drawing. So sweet. And your cinquain, a pleasure. “letting his mark/spread joy!” How true and they are so engaged!!! Thank you, Margaret.
Oops, my attempt a fighting my spacing demons did not work. Here it is with too much space but the line breaks are correct.
Remember Forest Fairy Drawing, Age 4?
Have you seen one with your eyes?
Spied a flittering among golden buds?
Pinched yourself just a bit?
Found some time to gaze and sit?
To ponder what a fairy wears
diving and buzzing in summer air.
Sweet the dreams we have when young!
Oh watch his chalk fly as the story’s sung.
draft, Janet Clare F.
The opening questions pulled me right into the wonder of your poem, Janet.
I love how your title draws us in to the wonder and dreams of a child.
Janet, I love how fanciful this is, a remembrance of innocence.
Thank you Jane, Rose, Margaret. Thinking of ending the last line with “as his story’s begun” I wanted the child in the poem more. Still thinking. (And wondering.) And glad to have a few moments today to be present here; a place that I love and has served me so well with friends, poems, comments, encouragement and contemplation.
Oh, I loved being asked to “believe” again….I grew up clapping wildly during the yearly showing of Mary Martin’s Peter Pan when Peter asks us to believe in fairies….”Oh, watch his chalk fly…”: love it!
Janet, I love how your first question invites the reader in under your spell. Great rhyme! Love these images:
Spied a flittering among golden buds?
diving and buzzing in the air
Oh watch his chalk fly as the story’s sung.
TO Carol, A huge me too on the Tinker Bell clasping and that movie and Mary Martin. In the ’50s black and white TV. On once a year. Oh how I loved it! I directed/produced it a few times ( not professionally) at a camp with a performing arts program I directed. Sat in 2nd row to see Cathy Rigby on Broadway…..so many memories…..somewhere there’s magic.
Thank you, Gail. Sometimes quick writes just come along without too much pondering and I might try a cinquain, too. Thanks for your words and sharing the lines that resonate for you. We should be in touch!!!!
Thank you for this sweet reminder of chalk drawings and the joy it brings. My grands love it, too. When I looked at the drawing I saw a dragonfly.
sidewalk
dragonfly drawn
with brightly colored chalk
wings into hearts bringing joy and
wonder
I purposely didn’t say what he was drawing. Fun that you saw a dragonfly. “Wings into hearts” I love.
I saw a dragonfly, too, Rose. You have brought this one to life in your poem.
Rose, I love the image of the chalk dragonfly who “wings into hearts”—wonderful!
Rose, I Iove the flow of your cinquain. I adore the imagery of “wings into hearts.” Thank you for bringing me joy.
I always have trouble logging in on the website to comment. Don’t know why. Always wants a password and I have no idea. So I’ll drop it here instead. The first line came to me, and I was pretty sure it would end up last somehow, but it didn’t. It stayed put and the rest just rambled out…lol! (I’m trying it on the website)
Fullness of Joy
I chalked it up to skyward fate
The clouds merged looking baleful.
The sidewalk beauty washed away
When rain came down by pailful.
But that’s okay nothing just stays
Some beauty’s just a day full.
That’s all we need to keep up hope
And keep our joyboat’s sail full.
By Donna JT Smith ©️2024
It worked! I love “joyboat’s sail full”. I hope you can see comments.
Donna, what fun wordplay, with a good message.
I love the rhymes you created!
I love chalked in line one, Donna. You are a wordsmith for sure. (Catch that one?) And But that’s okay nothing just stays……and we know that all too well, but you bring Frost to mind here for me. And beauty even in small doses and hope, well we need it for sure to sail on. We will soon sail on near you!!! I will be in touch!
Donna, I really enjoyed this poem, and if you don’t mind—with credit to you, of course, I would love to read to my granddaughter today, who will love the rhyming and rhythm!
Donna, I love your juxtaposition of “when rain came down by pailful” to “But that’s okay nothing just stays some beauty’s just a day full.” I love the positivity of the next two lines. “And keep our joyboat’s sail full” is a great line.
I love this photo of your earnest young artist, Margaret, and your cinquain that includes the after-the-photo effect.
Drawing
Temporary
Sidewalk canvas lifts hearts
Of passersby, and fills them with
Delight.
~Jane Heitman Healy, draft
Your poem fills with delight as well, Jane!
We who have spent our lives watching children interact naturally with the world and in other ways, too, can sense that these drawings matter. Matter to the passerby and to the artists, too. Delight is the key ingredient in so many knowing smiles. And a cinquain to boot!!!! Lovely, Jane.
Jane, you capture what an incredible gift to everyone else one child’s “canvas’ can be….It’s how I feel when walking around our nearby park, where children feel free to chalk-draw on the sidewalks. They always make me smile!
Delight was a word I was thinking of using. Such a simple thing that makes us all happy to see.
Jane, I love “Sidewalk canvas lifts heart.” Perfect ending that is so true. Delightful cinquain. 🙂
Thank you, Gail, Margaret, Carol, Janet, & Rose!
Margaret, such a sweet photo! What a great idea to have at a restaurant. I agree with you that drawing chalk art is mediative. I also find that coloring with crayons, coloring with colored pencils, or creating art with a collage of different mediums are mediative. Seeing your grandson drawing with chalk brought memories of my girls and I drawing with chalk together. We made a hopscotch board with chalk, too. I love your action in your cinquain. “Patterns petals” has a great sound. “Letting his mark spread joy” is full of heart.
sisters
create a chalk
green eyed cat pouncing on
it’s fluffy, tail, sisters giggle
sun fun
Gail Aldous draft
Thank you for your inspiration and the opportunity to write a poem. 🙂
Thanks for stopping by to write. What a sweet memory of sisters enjoying each other.
Margaret, thank you. They wrote a lot of cat stories, too.
Sweet poem, Gail. I like the lines flowing into one another.
Thank you, Rose. I’m glad you liked it.
If one is a cat-lover one truly knows that pouncing and the twitching, inviting tail…..for a second, “what is that thing? should I swat it? Bite it? Race from it? Play with it?” I am drawn back to our two beloved cat children from our early marriage years by the sisters giggling, the sun fun and that pouncing cat they have drawn. Thanks for a poem that brought me right in to the experience, Gail.
Janet, I’m glad my poem brought you fun memories of your children. Yes, let’s get in touch. I think I still have your cell phone #. My email is the same. I would love to meet you somewhere. 🙂
Gail, this is so real and sweet to me, as I have 2 granddaughters, sisters, who often decorate my sidewalk with their “sun fun” chalk art. The sisterly bond and giggles are just right.
Thank you, Jane. I’m glad my poem resonated with you about your granddaughters giggling and decorating your sidewalk. 🙂
Gail, I love the image of the sisters together (miss mine!) creating and giggling…delightful!
Thank you, Carol. I’m glad you love the image of the sisters giggling and creating together. I’m happy it made you think of your sisters, too.