Photography | Reflections on the Teche

Archive for the ‘Photography’ Category

This Photo Wants to be a Poem: Proud Fisherman

Posted in Photography, Poetry, Slice of Life, This Photo Wants to be a Poem, Writing, tagged Delcambre Seafood and Farmer's Market, Pi-ku on March 15, 2023| 33 Comments »

Delcambre (pronounced Del-comb) is about 20 minutes south of New Iberia. On Sunday evening, we attended a fundraising dinner for the seafood market. I even ate a piece of fried alligator which tasted a lot like fried chicken. We were there to support my cousin Andrew as he participates in a plein air (painting outside) competition. There will be more posts about this later.

Today I want to introduce you to Markavian. I don’t know him, and I’m not sure that’s how to spell his name, but when I took his picture, he proudly told me what his name was. He was beaming from having caught a huge catfish right off the dock. I asked permission to take his picture. There is so much that I love about this picture. His smile. The largest catfish I’ve ever seen. And how it captures the attitude of a fisherman. My husband says that our newspaper’s sports section is usually just men holding fish. It’s true fishing is a big time sport around here. Perhaps Markavian was competing with his brothers. There seemed to be a family in the background, and I caught him just as he was about to go show off his catch of the day.

Catch of the Day, photo by Margaret Simon

Yesterday was Pi Day, so my students and I wrote Pi-Ku, which is a small poem based on the number 3.14. Please leave your own small poem in the comments and encourage other writers with your responses.

Catch of the Day

Boy’s pride smile
caught
largest catfish
Margaret Simon, pi-ku draft

Thank you to Two Writing Teachers for creating an amazing community of writers and a safe, welcoming space to write and share.

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This Photo Wants to be a Poem: Where the Sidewalk Ends

Posted in Photography, Poetry, Slice of Life, This Photo Wants to be a Poem, Writing, tagged #flashdraft, #poemsofpresence, #smallpoems, abandoned sidewalk, Acadians on March 8, 2023| 18 Comments »

The neighborhood I live in used to be known as Paradise Woods. My husband tells me when he was a teenager, it was a popular spot for “parking”. When I walk, I cross over an empty lot to get to another street. Whose land is this? I often wonder. What was here before?

I’ve heard tales that this space was once a dairy farm. Cattle farming was common for early French settlers in southern Acadiana, where we live in Louisiana. Either the LaSalle family or the Daigles owned this property, likely using it as farm land. It’s all legend now. I love thinking about the history of this little walkway as it leads me under a beautiful cedar tree. Who walked this field 100 years ago? We’re all visitors for a short time. If the concrete could talk…

Where the sidewalk ends, photo by Margaret Simon

In the early morn
before the sun rises
before my work day begins,
before the houses wake,
I walk across this path
more sure-footed on solid concrete–
A path that leads to an old cedar tree,
planted by a farmer making shade
for his cattle. I speak to his ghost
and thank him for his hard work,
his dedication to the land,
and his kindness to those
who’ll pass here again
Margaret Simon, flash draft

Every week I invite you to write with me about an image. This post is also a Slice of Life post for this month’s daily challenge at Two Writing Teachers. If you stop by, leave a small poem in the comments and return the favor of reading other poem offerings and writing encouraging words. This is a safe place to write. No judgement allowed. Consider following my blog to get this weekly prompt in your inbox.

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Slice of Life Challenge Day 6: Gifts of Grace on the Bayou

Posted in Gratitude, Photography, Slice of Life, Writing, tagged #techeproject, Bayou Teche, great white egret on March 6, 2023| 8 Comments »

A quick video of an egret in flight on Bayou Teche, Louisiana.

What do you do with a perfect day? The temperature was just right, 70 degrees. Not a cloud in the sky. Humidity low. Sunday is our day to catch up and get ready for the work week. We go to church and come home to our individual chores: cat litter, trash cans, lesson plans, laundry, grocery…and I had writing group. “You think we can squeeze in some paddle time?”

I decided that there were a few things I could put off like vacuuming, so I said a resounding, “Yes!” Perfect days are rare, so I feel we must embrace while we can. So we made a date for 4:00 PM. Jeff hosed out the canoe (ants), I grabbed the paddles, and off we went.

Heading directly into the sunset, the colors change. The old leaves on the oaks are a dark green while the new pollen fuzzies are a golden yellow. People complain about this popping of the pollen. It aggravates allergies and covers cars in a fine sprinkle of golden dust. All part of the healthy life cycle of a great live oak tree.

Some, not all, of the cypress trees are showing new growth. These tiny needles are the brightest neons of green. The truest sign of spring.

As we paddled home, Jeff noticed a plastic chair wedged in some tree roots across the bayou. He said, “I think that’s our lost chair.” A few storms ago, the water had risen and taken with it a plastic chair from our yard. Sure enough it was ours. Jeff managed to back the canoe next to it and grab it with his paddle. The chair was a little muddy but still in tact. I had to take a selfie to get a photo of it, so the angle and perspective are odd, but you get the idea.

Jeff rescued our long lost backyard chair.

We were home before the sun set and were treated to the appearance of a great white egret. Grace from God to praise this perfect day. Click on the video above to see this majestic bird in flight.

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Poetry Friday: Shattered (An Ekphrasis)

Posted in Photography, Poetry Friday, Writing, tagged #Poetrypals, #story, ekphrastic poetry, February Poetry Project, Molly Hogan on February 24, 2023| 17 Comments »

Poetry Friday is hosted today by Tabatha at
The Opposite of Indifference.

I have been off this week and joyfully participating in two writing challenges. I truly wish I could do this every day. Writing to prompts makes my creative juices flow. If I write a poem each day, I feel a certain satisfaction that I’ve accomplished something.

This week the Poetry Sisters challenge was to write an ekphrastic poem, which is a poem written to art. Their theme this year is transformation. In the February Project with Laura Shovan, Molly Hogan used photographs of abandoned buildings to prompt us to think about their story. I went to a mysterious place with this image.

I’ve always enjoyed writing about a mystery. In high school, I had a short story published in the school’s literary journal about a portrait in an abandoned house that ended with a question, a mystery. Many in the Facebook group wanted to know more. Mystery is like that. We want to know. I recently heard on a podcast “surrender to the mystery.” I believe that we don’t know all the answers, and we are not supposed to. So let this poem sit with you in all its unknown.

Shattered

She left the curtains
hanging,
the window open,
the cat in the yard.
She left when the air
was warm and damp
fearing her shame
would shatter her dream.
Margaret Simon, draft

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This Photo Wants to be a Poem: Sunrise Field

Posted in Photography, Poetry, Spiritual Growth, This Photo Wants to be a Poem, tagged Spiritual poetry, sunrise on February 22, 2023| 17 Comments »

Today, Ash Wednesday, feels like a day for an open field, a sunrise, a few clouds. My body is tired. As they say around here, I Did Mardi Gras. Every day– Saturday to Fat Tuesday. I welcome the rest, the coming down from a party hearty high to a calm cloudy Lent. I invite you to peacefulness, to look to the fallow fields for solace and grace.

Sunrise Field by Margaret Simon (You may use this photo.)

I
am still
staring out
toward the field,
fallow and fertile
whispering to the wind
secrets of stillness and peace
believing that time can heal wounds
believing strong faith starts with good soil.
Margaret Simon, draft

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This Photo Wants to be a Poem: Dandelion

Posted in Photography, Poetry, This Photo Wants to be a Poem, tagged #poemsofpresence, #smallpoems, dandelion, Kim Douillard, spring on February 8, 2023| 41 Comments »

Yesterday was a busy day. School, then coffee with a friend, then SCBWI Zoom meeting. By the time I finished, it was 7:30 and the chicken needed to be cooked…So, I forgot to look for a photo until early this morning. Somehow, somewhere one always turns up. It took a while for me to settle on this one. I borrowed it from Kim Douillard’s Instagram feed. I’ll ask for forgiveness later. But I was attracted to the hopefulness of a single dandelion. I think we are all ready for some sign of spring to come.

Wish Flower

Before the mower mows,
a yellow flower grows.

Before the winds of March,
fluffy seedlings spark.

Before the child blows,
the wish already knows.

Margaret Simon, draft

Please leave a small poem in the comments and encouraging words for other writers. Thanks for stopping by.

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This Photo Wants to be a Poem: Frost Forest

Posted in Photography, Poetry, This Photo Wants to be a Poem, tagged #poemsofpresence, #smallpoems, Frost flowers, Molly Hogan, This Photo Wants to be a Poem, winter poems on January 25, 2023| 25 Comments »

I do not live in a cold climate (In South Louisiana it’s cold when the temperature falls below 50.)and most of the time, that is fine with me. But I am fascinated and mesmerized by photos of snow. My friend and fellow Inkling Molly Hogan lives in Maine. She was telling us at our Zoom meeting about her experience photographing in single digit weather. She loves taking photographs of nature. She posted about this experience on her blog post on Tuesday. I “found” a haiku in her post along with an amazing photograph for today’s prompt. You should go to her post to see and read more: Nix the Comfort Zone.

Winter wonderland
enchanted intricate beauty
bedazzled gratitude
Margaret Simon, found haiku from Molly Hogan’s blog.

Leave a small poem in the comments and support other writers with your comments. Thanks for stopping by.

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Poetry Friday: Bubble Fib

Posted in Books, Photography, Poetry, Poetry Friday, Writing, tagged Bridget Magee, fibonacci poem, Greg Pincus, Kim Douillard, Marcie Flinchum Atkins, Two Truths and a Fib, wee words for wee ones on January 20, 2023| 14 Comments »

Poetry Friday is hosted today by my new poet-friend, Marcie. She is a master at haiku and sends me a beautiful photo with haiku card each month. Here is the latest one:

out of tree crumbs–
tiny mushrooms stake
their umbrellas
haiku and photo by Marcie Flinchum Atkins

Today is my day to be featured on wee words for wee ones for my contribution to Two Truths and a Fib Poetry Anthology: A Poetic Introduction to 30 Subjects with a Twist. Thanks to Bridget Magee for her work compiling this book. If you are not sure about which bio statement is the fib, I’ll give you a hint: I teach gifted kids in grades 1-6.

I was inspired to write about Bubbles because my grandkids love to play with bubbles. Aren’t they fascinating? Kim Douillard granted permission for this photo to be included in the book. She takes photos on the beaches of San Diego, California. There is a bubble person who creates amazing bubbles on the beach. I love how she captures the wonder of a huge bubble in her photos.

I want to share my Fib poem. The Fib poem form was created by Greg Pincus using the Fibonacci series for syllable count: 1. 1, 2, 3, 5, 8,…

Blow
Big
Sturdy
Flexible
Shape-shifting whispers
Large enough for you to ride on.
(c) Margaret Simon, 2023

Consider ordering a copy of this book full of fun poem forms and fibs: Click here.

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This Photo Wants to be a Poem: Under the Pier

Posted in Photography, Poetry, This Photo Wants to be a Poem, Travel, Writing, tagged #poemsofpresence, #ThisPhoto, Dr. Mary Howard, Myrtle Beach, small poems, sunset, This Photo Wants to be a Poem on January 18, 2023| 29 Comments »

I can’t resist a good sunset photo. I don’t think I’m alone in this. A brightly colored sunset reminds us that things will be alright. I saw this wonderful photo on Mary Howard’s Facebook. She often posts sunsets from her new home in Hawaii, but this one is from Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. She happily granted permission for me to use it.

“I was in Myrtle Beach SC for a SERRRA presentation. Each night I’d walked the beach to get sunset photos. On this day I noticed that I could actually walk under this and it made for a perfect photo. I’m learning to pay attention to my gut!” Mary Howard

Please post a small poem in the comments and support other writers with encouraging responses. I will be posting my own poem later today.

Sun reluctantly sets
in golden glow
sending us a message
of hope.
Margaret Simon, draft

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This Photo Wants to be a Poem: Full Wolf Moon

Posted in Photography, Poetry, This Photo Wants to be a Poem, Writing, tagged Full Wolf Moon, Iphone photography, Jone MacCulloch on January 11, 2023| 63 Comments »

Did you see the moon last week? The Full Wolf Moon came out on January 6, the 12th night of Christmas. I was struck by a photo from Jone MacCulloch on Instagram. Like Jone, I was taking an early morning walk and tried to capture it with my phone. She used an iPhone 13. They seem to improve the camera feature on every new phone.

When I asked Jone about the photograph, she wrote, “Every morning I take the dog out sometime between 6:30- 7:30 ( when he gets up. I’m always the first up). This was last Friday. I used an IPhone 13. The moon was setting and one thing that struck me was how it is now more northerly in the sky.”

Can you follow your moon muse and write a small poem? Share in the comments and write encouraging comments to other writers.