Posted in being mamére, Poetry Friday, Writing, tagged #beingmamére, #poemsofpresence, Bayou Teche, nature on December 12, 2025| 18 Comments »
Winter Hope
Winter has come
with rain upon rain.
Mud bank creeps
as bayou sneaks
higher and higher
with each downpour.
Water, water, water
is all we hear until a cloud white
egret steps softly into view.
Look! Look!
We call the toddlers to the window.
They see with new eyes of wonder.
I see with new eyes of wonder.
See! See!
Margaret Simon, draft
Posted in Poetry Friday, Spiritual Growth, Writing, tagged #wordlepoem, advent, Inklings challenge, spiritual journey on December 4, 2025| 18 Comments »
Advent is here! Our priest announced last Sunday, “Happy New Year” because the Episcopal liturgical year begins with Advent. Jone inspired us to write about the Advent words- hope, peace, joy, and love.
For Spiritual Thursday, I offer an image poem for each word of advent.
If you are interested in joining the Spiritual Journey posts each month and hosting one month, fill in this Google sheet or send me an email.
For the first Poetry Friday each month, the Inklings do a challenge. This month Heidi asked us to write a letter to an article of clothing. Last year, I bought a cozy robe at the L.L. Bean store in Maine. The weather has turned dreary and cold here this week, so my robe is doing its job keeping me warm. I didn’t write a letter, though. I took an idea from fellow Inkling Molly Hogan to write a Wordle haiku with the three words I guessed today. If you haven’t done Thursday’s puzzle yet, you can come back later.
Blue plush peace fleece
a strip of fake fur cuff
Tulip in winter.
To see how other Inklings did the challenge, check out their posts.
Posted in Blogging, Photography, Poetry, Poetry Friday, This Photo Wants to be a Poem, Writing, tagged #imagepoems, #poemsofpresence, Denver street art, free verse poem, Joyce Sidman, letter poem, This Photo Wants to be a Poem on November 27, 2025| 19 Comments »
I am happily home and cozy after being in Denver for a week of busy (NCTE) and, after Jeff came, walking. We clocked over 20,000 steps on Monday.
Today I am taking a day off before my family comes for Friday Thanksgiving. I wanted to take this opportunity to thank the poetry community, so wonderfully kind and generous. Some of you I hugged and talked to at NCTE. Others of you stop by this blog and give support through comments. Reflections on the Teche (pronounced Tesh) is my happy place because of you, my readers.
Today’s photo is a crochet-wrapped tree. I’m using a free verse form today following a prompt from Joyce Sidman after her book Dear Acorn, Love, Oak: a compliment, a question, and a wish.
A Tree that Grows in Denver
Single crochet,
double crochet,
cluster-hills & valleys,
green, pink, purple
blooming round
a tree that juts from concrete.
Your colors give warmth
when times are tough.
Will you twirl with me?
I hope your dancing colors
fill the gloom with bright
like a vine that’s lost control
and only seeks the light.
(Margaret Simon, draft)
If you are feeling the muse of this photo, leave a poem draft in the comments. Support other writers with your responses.
Posted in Poetry Friday, Writing, tagged Donika Kelly, Retirement on November 14, 2025| 19 Comments »
A quick post this morning as I dash off to teach 5th graders at The Hilliard Museum. The museums in Lafayette are hosting 5th graders this month, and I have the privilege of doing the creative writing portion of their tour. It’s fun to be teaching again.
Susan Thomsen challenged poet-teacher folks to write after Donika Kelly’s poem “Poem to Remind Myself of the Natural Order of Things.” The challenge was to write about a popular viral video, but I went rogue and wrote a poem to remind myself why I retired.
This was a quick draft in the early pre-dawn hour.
Poem to Remind Myself of the Reason I Retired
after Donika Kelly
Observe the sun rise
over the bayou where water
evaporates into a misty cloud.
Open the door to the scent
of sweet olive and look
for a chickadee nest.
Call your daughter
while she drives to work.
She has time to talk honestly
without background kid noise.
She speaks the words,
“I love you.”
O Margaret, you are still yourself.
Margaret Simon, draft
Posted in Poetry, Poetry Friday, Writing, tagged Ethical ELA, Gumbo on November 7, 2025| 23 Comments »
It’s the first Friday of the month and time for the Inklings Challenge. This month’s prompt is from Linda Mitchell who challenged us to respond to Ethical ELA’s September 2025 Open Write by Kelsey Bigelow: “What is the happiest thing you’ve ever tasted?”
This was a lucky break for me because I already had a draft written, so with my Inklings thoughtful comments, I revised and have a poem to offer today.
My husband was born and raised in Cajun country where they ask, “Who’s your mama? Are you catholic? And can you make a roux?”
I don’t have to learn to make a roux because when it comes time to make a gumbo, Jeff is the best! Just last weekend when the air finally turned cool enough, he made the first gumbo of the season. Around here, when the cold front comes in, the weather man announces, “It’s gumbo weather!”
For our family, Black Friday is the day for making turkey and sausage gumbo. This year we may skip the Thanksgiving and go straight to the gumbo. Making gumbo takes two days. On the first day, you make the stock and the next day combine the stock with the roux. It’s a slow process. It takes patience and dedication.
Black Friday Gumbo
The happiest thing I’ve ever tasted
is your gumbo,
A slow stew on Thanksgiving night
in a stock pot of left-over turkey bones,
the trinity of bell pepper, onions, and celery.
Scented steam perfumes the kitchen.
Friday morning chill is heated by oil and flour
you stir for what seems like an hour
waiting for the brown of peanut butter.
Hunched and humming, listening to the game,
you stand taller
and hand me a spoon to taste.
Our love is certain in this simple touch
of lips to wooden spoon.
That first sip tingles on the back of my throat
like our first kiss, longing and true.
Margaret Simon, draft
To see how other Inklings approached this prompt:
Mary Lee
Linda
Heidi
Catherine
Molly
Posted in nature, Poetry Friday, Writing, tagged #poemsofpresence, #wordlepoem, #writeout, haiku, Inklings on October 24, 2025| 18 Comments »
Some of my Inkling writing group friends have been inspired to write poems using Wordle guesses. I’ve tried a few times, but as a person who plays Wordle infrequently and always starts with the same word, the practice didn’t appeal to me.
Mary Lee’s rule is when she guesses in three words, she writes a haiku. Yesterday I got it in three tries. I wrote the words down, pearl, rival, and drill, and went about my day.
Newly retired, I’ve found the mornings to be a sanctuary. I take a walk with my dog, fix a pot of oatmeal, and eat on my back deck watching birds. Oh, the retirement life!
At the feeder, I get a variety of birds. (Tufted titmouse, chickadee, cardinal) The thing about using Wordle words forces a metaphor that may or may not work. I was finally pleased with this one, so I am sharing today. Have you tried writing Wordle poems?
A pearl of titmouse
rivals chipper chickadee
early morning drill
Margaret Simon, draft
Posted in nature, Poetry Friday, Writing, tagged #poemsofpresence, #writeout, Bayou Teche, trees on October 17, 2025| 16 Comments »
I have lived in the same neighborhood for 21 years, and for all of that time, there was an empty lot in the cul-de-sac at the end of the street. This empty lot was my crossover space for walking from my street to a neighboring one that also follows the bayou. The crossover lot was also a picnic area with my grandkids. Together we named where the live oak drapes nearly to the ground “the forest”.
Earlier this week I walked to the forest with my grandkids. Many of the oak limbs were gone! And the rest of the trees had big white X’s on them.
“Mamére, what will happen to the trees?”
“Someone bought this lot, so they are taking down the trees to build a house.”
“So where will we play?”
Sadly, I had to explain that when someone buys their own property, they can do what they want with the trees.
I wish it weren’t true. My heart is sick over this loss.
The National Writing Project annual Write Out with the National Parks Service is happening now. Consider taking time outside to write and post with #writeout.
Prompted by Pádraig Ó Tuama’s invitation to write about a place you know go to, I wrote a poem for the trees.
Paradise Woods on Duperier Oaks
This one is for the trees
on the empty lot,
the tall sweet gum
forever littering the street
with spiked balls
and feathery leaves,
felled
for a concrete driveway.
I weep as I pass the old oak
whose branches, trimmed
exposing bare skin and bones,
once held children
the “forest” where they played
hide-n-seek, Catch-me-if-you-can.
If I could, I’d save you now.
Old growth cedar, I apologize
that the invasive sound of chain saws
disrupts your silent steeple.
I praise trees,
your seeds send roots,
and secrets.
Trees, you are our saviors.
Forgive us.
Margaret Simon, draft
Please head over to Laura Purdie Salas’s site where she features my little Wood Duck Diary and a tanka poem. Thanks, Laura!
Posted in being mamére, Poetry Friday, Writing, tagged Bayou Teche, canoeing, Maggie Smith, metaphor on October 10, 2025| 13 Comments »
Last weekend we kept two of my grandchildren overnight. It was an opportunity to get them out in the canoe on the bayou. Leo is almost 7, so Jeff decided it was time to put him in the front to paddle. He doesn’t have a powerful stroke, but he knows how to put the paddle in and push. He was also very curious and aware of the nature around us. We watched an egret fly from place to place as we got closer to it.
I’ve been listening to Maggie Smith’s Dear Writer. I need to just buy a copy because I want to reread her wisdom and model poems, but the audio has her voice which I also love on The Slowdown. She has wonderful insight into metaphor, especially extended metaphor.
I offered this poem for critique with the Inklings last weekend. I used the metaphor cypress lighthouse and one of them asked, “What is a cypress lighthouse?” I guess I wasn’t clearly using the word lighthouse as a metaphor. Maggie Smith suggests letting the title hold more weight for a poem. I’ve attempted this because I wanted to keep the lighthouse metaphor.
To the Great White Egret in a Tall Cypress Tree
The new slant of autumn sun
blooms in a cypress lighthouse.
You light up like a swamp lily,
shining above our bayou.
How could I describe the richness
of my life?
Watching your white wings
hold a stillness—
a moment
of daylight,
perched and ready
for what change
may come.
Margaret Simon, draft
Posted in Photography, Poetry, Poetry Friday, Writing, tagged #smallpoems, Georgia Heard, Heidi Mordhorst, Inklings challenge, recipe poem on October 3, 2025| 12 Comments »
Today is the first Friday of a new month, October, and time for an Inklings challenge. I asked my writing group friends to exchange photos for an image poem. I invite you to participate in image poetry every Wednesday right here with This Photo Wants to be a Poem.
My exchange partner was Heidi. She had the opportunity to visit fellow Inkling, Molly, in Maine this summer. I am quite jealous that they all made blueberry jam together. I could not resist the delicious collection of jars in Heidi’s photo.
Georgia Heard inspired my poem by sending her own recipe poem through her newsletter.
Click on each link below to see other image poem posts from Inklings.
Linda @A Word Edgewise
Catherine @Reading to the Core
Molly @Nix the Comfort Zone
Mary Lee @A(nother) Year of Reading
Heidi @my juicy little universe
Posted in Books, nature, Poetry Friday, Writing, tagged Michelle Kogan, tanka, TECHE Project, wood ducks on September 26, 2025| 26 Comments »
I wrote the book of tanka and haibun poems to capture the miracle that my husband and I have witnessed each year by watching a Ring camera in our wood duck house.
Irene Latham wrote: “Readers of all ages will JUMP at the chance to celebrate the life of wood ducks in this inviting volume. Delightful verse, scientific facts, and striking photographs combine in this heartwarming tale of real-life animal adventure (and the humans that make it happen).”
The humans that made this book happen are my dear friends David Dahlquist and Mary Ubinas, through a donation to the TECHE Project. All proceeds will benefit the TECHE Project. One of the goals of the TECHE Project is to promote the well being of wood ducks along the 135 miles of the Bayou Teche through educational workshops and placement of wood duck houses.
My hope is this small book will inspire others to take the time to notice and wonder about nature and our environment. Wood ducks are beautiful birds that were once considered endangered. When we watch the dozen or more ducklings jump from the house a mere 24 hours after hatching, we do not know their fate. I don’t like to think about all the dangers lurking in the bayou waters, so I write poems about them. I’m sharing a few here. The book is available now on Amazon. I will receive my first shipment in a few weeks, so you can also order from me.
February 24
House Hunting (Haibun)
The hens are showing up! Now that the drake scouts have identified a safe nesting box and area, it is time for the hen’s approval as they begin to inspect the boxes for themselves.
Dawn, when sunbeams stream,
an expectant glow invites
a wood duck couple—Female shimmies through the hole,
Chatter-chipper to her mate.la maison de chasse
L’aube, quand les rayons du soleil coulent,
une lueur d’attente inviteun couple de branchus—
La femelle se trémousse dans le trou,
Chatter-chipper à son compagnon.Margaret Simon, from Wood Duck Diary
New Chicks
Gentle peeps echo.
Jumping onto mother hen,
New chicks jitterbug.
Like petals on a pinwheel
fluffy down spins together.
Nouveaux poussins
Doux piaulements résonnent.
Sautant sur maman canne,
Nouveaux poussins font le jitterbug.
Comme des pétales sur un moulinet
duvet moelleux tourne en rond.
Margaret Simon, from Wood Duck Diary
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 