Posted in Poetry, Writing, tagged found object poetry, Laura Shovan on February 1, 2016| 2 Comments »
Photo by Robyn Hood Black
I am participating in Laura Shovan’s February poem-a-day challenge on writing to found objects.
Box
Tongue in groove he tells me
is how they used to do it,
before nails
before cardboard and glue.This old box
traveled over miles
snow-covered hills,
through the mountains, perhaps.I slide the wood
across grooves
breathe pine, spicy pipe tobacco,
remember my grandfather’sstories of the railroad,
how steam would rise above
houses and whistle
his way home.–Margaret Simon
Posted in Gifted Education, Poetry, Poetry Friday, Writing, tagged creed poems, I believe, Irene Latham, sonder on January 22, 2016| 11 Comments »
Poetry Friday round-up with Tara at A Teaching Life.
Over at Holly Mueller’s blog, Reading, Teaching, Learning, a group of us are writing about the spiritual aspects of our OLWs. Last week, we wrote about the word Believe. Irene Latham’s creed poem inspired me. I posted it on my kidblog site and asked my students to reflect on the meaning and to respond with their own beliefs. Today I am sharing Irene’s poem and my students’ responses.
I Could Say I Believe in the Ocean
But what I mean is,
I believe in water:
leagues wide
and miles deep,
still-cool-cold on one shore,
warm-salty on the other.I believe in clownfish
and anemone,
riotous coral reef
and cruising grouper,octopuses origami-ing
themselves into
castaway bottles
and now-you-see-em-
now-you-don’t krill
diving into
the mouths of whales.I believe in turquoise
and teal, cobalt
and blacker-than-black.
In shipwrecks
and tsunamis
and deep-sea
luminescence.I believe in a world
with enough anything
for everyone
where I am a boat
floating quiet
as a moon jellyfish,weaving between sharks
and icebergs,
allowing the current
to carry me
wherever it will.
– Irene Latham
Student response poems:
I believe in life,
A world where nature blooms beautifully on the ground,
Where the sun is the light bulb of Earth,
Where animals are in love,
And a world where people are all treated equally no matter how different. –Kielan (6th grade)
I believe in unicorns,
dancing through the skies,
I believe in magic,
right before my eyes,
I believe in mermaids,
swimming through the seas. — Lynzee (1st grade)
And this response from Vannisa prompted me to look up the word sonder. I found an interesting YouTube video.
“I believe that you can’t judge a person when you first meet them, or barely know them. Every person you interact with or even just pass by, has a story and memories of their life that you know nothing about. I think it’s an interesting concept to think about. The word for this, which I think isn’t an actual word, is sonder. Some people live by quotes, but I think that sonder is a great word to live by. –Vannisa (6th grade)”
Posted in Gratitude, Poetry, Poetry Friday, Writing, tagged Barbara Crooker, Douglas Florian, nothing, poetry, Today's Little Ditty on January 15, 2016| 19 Comments »
Join the Poetry Friday round-up with Keri at Keri Recommends
Last week Michelle Barnes interviewed Douglas Florian who challenged poets to write a poem about nothing. On Saturday, I had a bunch of nothing much going on and I read a poem by Barbara Crooker that was about nothing and the joy of a day when nothing goes wrong. I stole a line and off I went.
with a borrowed line from Barbara Crooker, “Ordinary Life” in The Woman in this Poem selected by Georgia Heard.
This was a day when nothing happened.
I swept the floor.
Leaves piled with swirly
dust–not many left on trees
this winter day, but the sun
shone through a break in the clouds
making my gathering glisten.
I stopped to switch laundry
pulled long sleeves from the dryer.
Soft warmth brushed my cheek.
View from my kitchen window, by Margaret Simon
The dryer hummed a rhythm.
Time enough for another cup of coffee,
another deep breath of nothing happening.
I promised God to be present.
He said, “It’s all in the way you look at things.”
So I swept
words into a small pile
on a page
where nothing much was happening.
–Margaret Simon
Posted in Poetry, Spiritual Growth, Writing, tagged believe, OLW, poetry, spiritual journey on January 14, 2016| 9 Comments »
Join the Spiritual Thursday round up at Reading, Teaching, Learning.
Paper Whites, Margaret Simon
For the next few weeks, blogger-friends and I will be posting about the spiritual aspects of our chosen words for 2016. This week we are writing about Carol Varsalona’s word, Believe.
I took this picture of paper whites blooming in my front yard this week. When I see flowers blooming, I believe deeper in the true magic of life. I didn’t plant these flowers, and yet, every year they pop up and show their little white star-like faces. They shine. Wake me up. Make me Believe.
I encouraged my students to create an acrostic with their words. An acrostic is when you use the letters of the word as the beginning letter for each line of the poem. Sounds easy enough, so I decided to write one with the word Believe. In my notebook I wrote about 3 half-possibilities. Each one kept sounding sappy.
But Believe is not a sappy word.
Believe is a strong word,
a word that holds on for dear life,
never letting you completely fall,
Believe buoys you up,
especially when troubles want to push you down.
Believe is a word you can count on,
holding its own weight.
Trusting in you to show up
when the sun is rising,
be ready for this new day.
Believe is a certain word,
proud yet humble,
a handkerchief that your grandmother stitched
calmly drying your tears,
then showing you the stars.
Believe believes in you.
–Margaret Simon
Posted in Creativity, Photography, Poetry, Slice of Life, Writing, tagged Big Magic, Creativity, fear, Lake Martin, poetry, tanka on January 12, 2016| 9 Comments »
Join the Two Writing Teachers blog for Tuesdays Slice of Life Challenge.
I’m reading a new book, Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear by Elizabeth Gilbert. I’m not sure where I read about this book. I know Leigh Anne is reading it, and so is Catherine. So here’s the thing: If there’s a group of us reading this book who want to chat, we could start a virtual book club. We could chat in Voxer or Google Docs. If you want to join in, email me at margaretsmn at gmail.
Four years ago I jumped into publishing and put out a middle-grade novel, Blessen. At the time, I found an old diary that told me I’ve wanted to be an author all my life. Notice my expectation as a teenager that maybe confidence came from someone else.
“I would love to be a writer if only someone would give me confidence!”
If growing up has taught me anything, it’s that confidence comes from courage that comes from your. own. self. No one else can give it to you.
Elizabeth Gilbert says she lives in fear everyday.
Creativity is a path for the brave, yes, but it is not a path for the fearless, and it’s important to understand the distinction.
Fear will always show up when you are trying to be creative. You can tell it to go away. But it’s always there. I love that this great author is telling me this.
I’ve grown to cherish this blogging space because I feel safe here. Whoever you are, reading and leaving me kind comments, you are my angels. You help me feel like my words are worthwhile and mean something.
Since my OLW is present, I am showing up. I’ll listen for the muse, the magician, whatever his name is and answer with a yeah, ok, let’s do this crazy creative thing together.
Being present this past weekend, my husband and I visited Lake Martin for the sunset on the way to our dinner/ dancing date. It was not the best of all sunsets. I got my boots muddy. But we showed up. With a little magic from the lens and Picmonkey, I created an inspiring image. On Sunday, I wrote a tanka for the image. And I am sharing it here. Kicking fear to the curb! See ya!
Photo and poem by Margaret Simon
Posted in Poetry, Spiritual Growth, Writing, tagged God's presence, Richard Rohr, Spiritual poetry, W.H. Auden, white pelicans on December 31, 2015| 4 Comments »
Join the Spiritual Thursday round up at Reading, Teaching, Learning.
We cannot attain the presence of God because we’ re already in the presence of God. What’s absent is awareness. Little do we realize that God ‘s love is maintaining us in existence with every breath we take. As we take another, it means that God is choosing us now and now and now. —Richard Rohr
An elderly couple came to the door and handed my father a pamphlet.
“Are you seeking the kingdom?”
My father replies, “You don’t have to seek it. I know where it is. Right here. Right now.”
“We are talking about the kingdom of GOD?” pressing the pamphlet forward into his hands.
“Yes, you don’t have to seek the kingdom. It’s here. You just need to pay attention.”
At those words, the evangelists turned and left.
Moments before this visit, Dad was reading W.H. Auden’s poem, For the Time Being. “And because of His visitation, we may no longer desire God as if he were lacking. Our redemption is no longer a question of pursuit, but of surrender to Him who is always and everywhere present.”
What makes the paper whites bloom
on this cold morning? Opening
up like lace droplets
on the dormant garden?Who tells the white pelicans
to go to convention on the lake?
A gathering of pruning, splashing,
fishing. Awkward grace
in a cloud of white.A poem will come if you let it.
Sit with His presence for a while.
Moment by moment, we are here
to praise.–Margaret Gibson Simon
Photo by Margaret Simon, all rights reserved.
Posted in Blogging, Poetry, Writing, tagged Irene Latham, Wild on November 9, 2015| 11 Comments »
Read more Wild posts in Irene Latham’s Blogiversary Round up.
Irene Latham is one of my very favorite Poetry Friday bloggers. She’s also an awesome author and sweet writing friend. She is having a “blogiversary” celebration rounding up blog posts for her 10 year blog anniversary on the theme of WILD! How wild is that?!
When you get a wild hair about something, you go off into new territory. Live outside the box, so to speak. The urban dictionary defines a wild hair as a decision to do something unexpected.
Wild Hair
Give me wild hair today,
the kind that waves at everyone,
happy to be alive
and free.Give me wild hair today,
remind me to reach for the sky,
grateful for the curls,
ready to be me.–Margaret Simon
Posted in Poetry, Poetry Friday, Teaching, tagged chalkabration, fall poetry, student poems on October 9, 2015| 12 Comments »
Poetry Friday round-up with Laura Purdie Salas.
Photo by Kam Abbott
The weather actually cooled off last week, so with the crispness of the air and the ending of September, we ventured out to the sidewalk to chalk fall poems.
I love to post poems that my students write. Today I celebrate a new writer in my class. Kaiden, 5th grade, joined us at the end of the year last year. (Gifted classes are revolving all year.) I love how he used the repetitive rhythm of the word fall as well as imagery about the season.
Fall
by Kaiden
Crisp brown leaves crunching under our feet
Fall
The cool breeze blowing against our faces,
Fall
The appearance of scary monsters and pumpkins,
Fall
A possible stroll through pumpkin patch,
Birds migrate south,
Fall
Vannisa, 6th grade, is back this year and adding in a little research into her fall poem. She actually looked up which meteor showers occur in the fall. I love how she wanted to connect meteor showers with fireworks.
As we Fall
by Vannisa
As we fall into winter,
the weather chills
and the leaves come down.
They fill the ground with
a fiery red
and blazing orange.As we fall into winter,
we can no longer watch fireworks
like 4th of July,
but we can watch
the shooting stars of
Orionids and Leonids
and watch the days get shorter
until Spring comes back again.
by Emily
Posted in Celebration Saturday, Poetry, tagged Dr. Seuss, Heidi Mordhorst, Laura Purdie Salas, summer poem swap on August 8, 2015| 12 Comments »
Ruth Ayres invites us the celebrate each week. Click over to her site Discover. Play. Build. to read more celebrations.
August oppresses me. I know I shouldn’t let it. But the heat and heaviness of the air gets to me. Yesterday was my anniversary. I’ve been married an amazing 33 years to the best guy in the whole world, but I was in no mood to celebrate. I was hot and tired. But then this came: a package and a poem.
Heidi Mordhorst sent me a poem. We are exchanging in the Summer Poem Swap designed by Tabatha Yeatts. Heidi visited Greece this summer. We had a connection because I went on a trip there 4 years ago. The image captures the amazing blue of the Aegean Sea. And her poem captures the magic. Thanks, Heidi, for lifting my soul.
Laura Purdie Salas is one of my favorite poets and teachers. She has a great website and has published a number of teacher aids for writing poetry with students. I can’t wait to share this newest publication with my students. Catch Your Breath: Writing Poignant Poetry.
School started this week. I haven’t started pulling my students yet, but I saw them and hugged them in the hallway. I love having this kind of connection with my kids. I teach them year after year, so our relationship strengthens each year.
At one of my schools, the year theme is reading and books. We all wore Dr. Seuss t-shirts on the first day. I love the quote on the back. Reading is magic. I strive again this year to open this magic door for my students.
What are you celebrating this week?
Posted in Poetry, Slice of Life, Teaching, tagged Malala Yousafzai, summer poem swap, Tabatha Yeatts on August 4, 2015| 11 Comments »
Join the Two Writing Teachers blog for Tuesdays Slice of Life Challenge.
Today is my first day back to school. The kids come on Friday. Ready or not?
This year our gifted team plans to focus on heroes. For one of our Summer Poem Swaps, Tabatha Yeatts sent a prompt to write a poem from the words of someone. I chose to look at Malala Yousafzai’s words with the theme of heroes in mind. I found this image and quote.
One child
can step by step
walk across stones
wobble, fall, rise
to hope.One teacher
can line her shelves
with books, voices
pointing the way
to climb.One book
can open young eyes
to injustice, prejudice, pain
so they can build a road
to peace.One pen
can move a single hand
to create new lines, new words
new art, making a change
to the world.–Margaret Simon
Who is your hero? Can you write a poem off his/her words?
April 1 Tabatha Yeatts at The Opposite of Indifference
April 2 Cathy Stenquist at A Little Bit of This and That
April 3 Patricia Franz at Reverie
April 4 Donna Smith at Mainely Write
April 5 Janice Scully at Salt City Verse
April 6 Denise Krebs at Dare to Care
April 7 Ruth Hersey at There is no such thing as a God-forsaken town
April 8 Rose Cappelli at Imagine the Possibilities
April 9 Margaret Simon at Reflections on the Teche
April 10 Janet Clare Fagel at Reflections on the Teche
April 11 Diane Davis at Starting Again in Poetry
April 12 Linda Baie at Teacher Dance
April 13 Linda Mitchell at Another Word Edgewise
April 14 Jone MacCulloch at Poetry Rocks
April 15 Joyce Uglow at Storied Ink
April 16 Carol Varsalona at Beyond Literacy Link
April 17 Robyn Hood Black at Life on the Deckle Edge
April 18 Michele Kogan at More Art for All
April 19 Kim Johnson at Common Threads
April 20 Buffy Silverman
April 21 Irene Latham at Live Your Poem
April 22 Karen Edmisten
April 23 Heidi Mordhorst at my juicy little universe
April 24 Mary Lee Hahn at A(nother) Year of Reading
April 25 Tanita Davis at Fiction, instead of Lies
April 26 Sharon Roy at Pedaling Poet
April 27 Tracey Kiff-Judson at Tangles and Tails
April 28 Joyce Uglow at Inking My Thinking
April 29
April 30
Our address on the Bayou Teche
Order on Amazon.
April 1 Linda Mitchell at A Word Edgewise
April 2 Tricia at The Miss Rumphius Effect
April 3 Robyn at Life on the Deckle Edge
April 4 Donna Smith at Mainely Write
April 5 Denise at https://mrsdkrebs.edublogs.org/
April 6 Buffy at http://www.buffysilverman.com/blog
April 7 Jone at https://www.jonerushmacculloch.com/
April 8 Janice Scully at Salt City Verse
April 9 Tabatha at https://tabathayeatts.blogspot.com/
April 10 Marcie at Marcie Flinchum Atkins
April 11 Rose at Imagine the Possibilities | Rose's Blog
April 12 Fran Haley at Lit Bits and Pieces
April 13 Cathy Stenquist
April 14 Janet Fagel at Mainly Write
April 15 Carol Varsalona at Beyond LiteracyLink
April 16 Amy Ludwig VanDerwater at The Poem Farm
April 17 Kim Johnson at Common Threads
April 18 Margaret at Reflections on the Teche
April 19 Ramona at Pleasures from the Page
April 20 Mary Lee at A(nother) Year of Reading
April 21 Tanita at TanitasDavis.com
April 22 Patricia Franz
April 23 Ruth at There's No Such Thing as a Godforsaken Town
April 24 Linda Kulp Trout at http://lindakulptrout.blogspot.com
April 25 Heidi Mordhorst at My Juicy Little Universe
April 26 Michelle Kogan at: https://moreart4all.wordpress.com/
April 27 Linda Baie at Teacher Dance
April 28 Pamela Ross at Words in Flight
April 29 Diane Davis at Starting Again in Poetry
April 30 April Halprin Wayland at Teaching Authors
Reflections on the Teche 