30 Day Poetry Challenge Day 5: Write a poem about lemons without using the following words: lemon, yellow, round, fruit, citrus, tart, juicy, peel, and sour.
The scent of a candle
Intoxicating
Spice in my tea
Meyers grow like experts
at beaming sunshine
with hints of honey and thyme
Mix them with cream cheese–
dessert!100 things to do with a Meyer lemon
Posted in Poetry | Tagged Meyer lemon, poetry | Leave a Comment »
30 Day Poetry Challenge Day 4: Write a haiku (a three line poem where the first line has 5 syllables, the second line has 7 syllables, and the third line has 5 syllables). Haiku are often about nature, but yours can be about anything.
During the March Slice of Life Challenge, a fellow slicer wrote a series of haiku about his day: Kevin’s Meandering Mind
The storm woke me up at 4:30. The dog, Charlie, was upset. I decided to enable his insecurities and cuddle with him on the couch.
Wakened by the storm,
Frightened, we cuddle safely
in each others’ arms.
It’s Spring Break this week, Holy Week. I scheduled a facial and massage at the spa.
Melting cares away
Massage relieves all tension
relaxation time
Looking out on the bayou after the storm, I saw this egret fishing in the bog behind our house.
Stealthily steps in
egret fishes, alert with
head poised for the catch.
One of the goals of my week off was to repaint my bathroom. Today, I went to the paint store.
Pick a paint color
Refresh my bathroom walls with
Gratifying Green.
My after school writing students do not have their break until next week, so they came over to write.
Counting syllables
Grace, Isabell, and Patrick
write their best haiku.
Living on the bayou, I watch the daily barge pass by. Today’s barge was named Louisiana Sunrise.
Watch the barge go by
Louisiana Sunrise
churns the brown bayou.
Can you make a haiku of your day?
Taking the back way
Paddling on the water-way
soft bayou sunset
This video was posted by the 30 Day Poetry Challenge. It speaks to the art of Western Haiku.
Posted in Poetry, Slice of Life | Tagged bayou, haiku, nature | 2 Comments »
30 Day Poetry Challenge #3: Find the nearest book. Turn to page 8. Copy the first ten words and create a poem.
From page 8 of The Hunger Games: “a few blackberries from the bushes around us. And may…”
Blackberry Time
A few blackberries from the bushes
around us and may
I hold the flavor
on my tongue
now turning purple.
The juice running down through
my fingers staining
my jeans. The vine grows
like a weed
among thorns
with this small gift of plump purple bites
never asking permission
to invade the flower bed.
Like the love of a teenager,
sweetness grows out of pain.
And a prompt from Bud the Teacher: “Some apples are gifts for special people. Others are poison. Which one is this?”
Comment: Sometimes when kids leave home, they leave behind disgusting things.
An Apple
Did you leave
the half-eaten apple
in the drawer behind
the peaches
rotting slowly?
Now that you are gone,
shall I take a bite
to remember you by?
No one is worth
the risk.
Posted in Poetry, Slice of Life | Tagged apple, blackberries, poetry | 5 Comments »
For Minga, my walking partner, friend, and mother-in-law.
30 Day Poetry Challenge #2 “Who was the last person you texted? Write a five-line poem to that person.
Can you walk today?
Tomorrow, I know, you’ll be walking in
Morocco–yes, the one in Africa.
My traveling Minga mouse,
I’ll always remember Greece.
Posted in Poetry | Tagged Greece, Morocco, walking | Leave a Comment »
This is April Fool’s Day for sure. I just typed a new blog post and when I went to preview it, nothing appeared. So here is my second try.
I finished the 31 Days of March Slice of Life Challenge. Whew! Didn’t think I could do it. Now for the 30 Day Poetry Challenge. The first prompt is to write an acrostic poem, this form uses the letters in your name to create the first letter of each line. My inspiration comes from the Sunday Symphony in the Park.
Melodies played in the park
Arranged in harmonious
Rhythm. Tapping my flip-flop foot.
Gathering of folks young and old
Adoring butterflies and bubbles
Round the picnic blanket
Easing on a Sunday afternoon
Taking time to listen.
Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
Read other Slice of Life writers at The Two Writing Teachers
Happy Birthday to my naturalist friend, Jim Foret. You keep me on the alert for full moons, endangered trees, and nesting birds. You inspire everyone you know to be more alert. Here’s a little poem for you:
Full Moon Alert
for Jim Foret
The full moon rises
glorious among
a respectable row of planets–
pregnant moon.
The alert comes again.
He is the custodian of the night sky–
calendar keeper—
friend to the birds, the bogs,
butterflies and bees.
He counts the Purple Martins,
announces the Mississippi Kites.
He hears the sacred drumbeat,
tells the stories, and inspires all.
Humbly hold someone’s hand
and show her the moon.
Posted in Slice of Life, Uncategorized, Writing | Tagged full moon alert, naturalist | 2 Comments »
I am so proud to be the teacher of the Louisiana Regional Student of the Year. I am privileged to teach gifted students. This means that once a student is identified as gifted, I pull them out for services each year throughout elementary school. I have had Kaylie in my class now for 2 1/2 years. We have gotten very close. On Tuesday, she found out she had won the Regional Student of the Year. First she was nominated by her school, then she competed at the parish level, then the regional level. Now she will be in competition for the State Student of the Year. This is a pretty amazing accomplishment for an 11 year old girl. She is amazing, though.
On Wednesday, Kaylie came early to class. We sat quietly absorbing the news. She told me she gets two free nights’ stay in Baton Rouge and a savings bond. She looked at me and gently said, “It’s because of you that I got this.”
I gave her a hug and said, “I don’t believe that for one minute.” But she went on to explain. She said she was not a writer when she came to my classroom. I made her a writer. That statement has been my lifelong goal.
Once at a turning point in my teaching career, my husband asked me point blank, “What do you want to do?”
I responded, “I want to teach writing. One day I want to hear an author on NPR thank me.”
Kaylie isn’t on NPR…yet. But this moment made my heart swell. I opened the door. She has stepped in royally. Writing is a major component of the Student of the Year competition. At each level, she has to write an essay on a prompt in a given amount of time. Obviously, she does not give in to the pressure. What a gifted writer she is!
Kaylie has won a number of writing contests. The most memorable for me was the LA Writes! state youth writing contest. She won first place with a poem she wrote in my class. We were celebrating National Poetry Month and the daily challenge was to write a bad poem. I used Billy Collins’ poem Litany as inspiration. Kaylie went to the computer and composed this brilliant first place poem:
Perfect Nonsense
*after Billy Collins’ Litany
You can be the watering pail in the pine tree.
You can be the left shoe on the roof.
You can even be-somehow-just-maybe the buttered slice of burnt toast on a Sunday morning.
You are NOT the billowing clouds.
You are DEFINITELY NOT the sandy aftertaste when a wave knocks you down.
And you are most DEFINITELY CERTAINLY ABSOLUTELY TRULY NOT the pancake swimming in syrup on the hottest day of the year.
Whereas I, I am the dandelion that gently blows away.
I am your mamma’s ruby red lipstick for dinner at her best friend’s house on Thursday night.
And, as you know, I am the spit-on microphone that sits lazily in the studio.
I am me.
You are you.
We are US.
Posted in Poetry, Slice of Life, Writing | Tagged Billy Collins, Slice of Life, Student of the Year, teaching writing | Leave a Comment »
Read other Slice of Life writers at The Two Writing Teachers
Teaching poetry and writing poetry can be frustrating and hard. We struggle together trying to make our words sound right. Yesterday I tried to write a rhyming poem about writing poems. I got advice from my students. When I read it to them, they smiled apologetically as if they were saying, “I love you, Mrs. Simon, but that poem’s no good.”
So I tried a “Where I’m From” poem, the form inspired by George Ella Lyon. My after school kids were successful, and they cheered at mine. So we are sharing them with you.
Where I’m From
I am from ladder-back chairs around the kitchen table,
from Ding-Dongs and ham sandwiches in a baggie.
I am from the back porch swing and telling stories,
from tall pine trees, St. Augustine grass, and the Sycamore.
I’m from “Bless this food,”
music in the left hand,
from Dorothy and John.
I ‘m from dinner at the dining table, and Tiger football,
from “sit up like a person,” and “elbows off the table.”
I’m from cornbread dressing, green peas, and pecan pie.
I’m from the river overflow of the great Mississippi
to the barge on the bayou,
Southern girl with Southern strength,
holding on to time.
Where I’m From
by Grace
I am from healthy foods, Dial soap, and Crest toothpaste.
I am from a field of sugarcane, growing tall and sweet.
I am from an old oak in the back,
azaleas in the front, irises around the pond.
I am from opening one present on Christmas Eve
and blond moments with Donna and Mallory.
I am from Sunday mass at eleven and
lots of football watching.
I am from “Keep your elbows off the table,”
and “Shoot fire!”
I am from fights with my dad over Oreos, and
with my mom and sister over artichokes.
I live in a big white house surrounded by love and
more animals than most people I know.
Where I’m From
by Darby
I am from the Lazyboy couch,
from biscuits and bacon.
I am from the flower garden with bright summer colors,
from wine vineyards and orange trees.
I am from the math wizards, Stanley and Kory.
I am from Sunday Catholic church.
I am from always use your manners
to the Golden Rule.
I am from the pizza eaters.
I am from always finding the bright side of life.
(Quote of the day from Darby when we were making pre-writing lists: “I like to write poems, but I don’t like to think about them.”)
Posted in Poetry, Slice of Life, Writing | 12 Comments »
Read other Slice of Life writers at The Two Writing Teachers
Our youngest daughter, Martha, will graduate from college in May with a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology. This year has been all about selecting a graduate school. Her goal is to get a Masters in Social Work. She researched and found that Chicago has the top program. So she applied. When she was filling out the application in December, I never imagined that she would get in, and we would have the difficult job of telling her she couldn’t go.
So, you guessed it, she got in. And she was given a scholarship; however, the scholarship would only cover close to one third of the total cost. Our answer was no. Too much money for a degree in a field that doesn’t make much money. And loans were out of the question.
Weeks went by as Martha waited to hear from other schools. She received an acceptance from University of Texas and was turned down by University of Washington. We were rooting for the UT option. After all, my husband is a former Longhorn. But Martha had other plans, or rather, other dreams.
Chicago came through with a work-study program that made a small difference in the cost. She talked to her father. She is the baby of the family, after all. That was not the only thing going for her. She knows what she wants and why she wants it. We decided to meet the amount Chicago was offering and allow her to borrow the rest.
Now I have to get used to it. Not an easy task. It’s really not about the money. My paycheck has been paying tuition for a long time. What’s two more years? So why am I having so much trouble with the idea? Do I think she’s not old enough to go to a big city like Chicago? Is it the harsh winter weather that scares me?
I think part of me is just plain jealous. She is getting to live her dream. I never would have had the opportunity, nor did I even think about it. I’ve never dreamed that big. I both envy and admire her for being so strong-willed to think Chicago was a possibility and to make it all happen. I am proud of her beyond belief. And to be completely honest, I’ll miss her terribly. To quote God’s message to me when I was sending my first off to the big city of New Orleans, “She is not leaving you.”
Posted in Slice of Life | Tagged college, Slice of Life | 7 Comments »
Read other Slice of Life writers at The Two Writing Teachers
I have been struggling with The Hunger Games hype. Because one of my fifth graders begged me to, I read the first book. The violence bothered me. I couldn’t relate to Katniss. I wasn’t getting into it. But I did finally finish it last week and have wondered about this odd feeling I have about it. Is it intended to make me squirm like this? I plan to go to the movie because I’m curious. I want to see how they portray the book. Will I care more about the main character? Or will I be left again with this discomfort?
Today, I talked to two of my students about the book and movie, both 5th grade girls.
“Why do you like it?”
K: “Suzanne Collins makes you want to keep reading. The way she writes.”
“But what about it makes you keep reading? Is it the romance?”
K: shy blushing grin (I interpret that as a yes.)
Second student conversation:
“Why did you like The Hunger Games?”
R: “It totally changed my outlook on life.”
“What do you mean?”
R; “There’s this kid in my class that others pick on. I realize that that is not important. There are bigger things to worry about.”
“So you see the Hunger Games as a warning of what could happen?”
R: “Yes, and it’s really scary to think about.”
I am still wondering what the appeal is. I am worried about our society that elevates a book like this to such heights. Are we concerned about our fellow man or are we selfish and looking out for our own survival? I feel it is similar to the appeal of shows like Survivor and The Bachelor in which one person is deemed the winner with little concern for others. And sometimes to survive, you have to knock out the other guy. What is this all leading to? Perhaps Suzanne Collins is giving us a warning, and instead of taking that warning, young teens are voraciously reading and flocking to the movie to see who wins. Or is it all about the romance?
What do you think?
Here is a link to my student’s slice about The Hunger Games and other stuff: GT Allstars
Posted in Slice of Life | 7 Comments »
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
April 29
April 30
| M | T | W | T | F | S | S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | ||||
| 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 |
| 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 |
| 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 |
| 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 |
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 