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Posts Tagged ‘15 Words or Less’

This Photo Wants to be a Poem: Yard Art

Posted in Poetry, Writing, tagged , , , , on November 3, 2021| 54 Comments »

Yesterday I wrote about taking a walk with my two-year-old grandsons through our neighborhood. One of my neighbors collects folk art. Their collection has been shown in museums and is quite extensive. Their yard is no exception. As soon as Leo could walk on his own, he enjoyed meandering into this yard to see all the sculptures. One of his favorites is the gigantic bunny sitting on a bench reading. It is made of thousands of wires. And of course, around Halloween, he has a skeleton companion.

Studious Wire Rabbit, collection of Becky and Wyatt Collins.
photo by Margaret Simon

I may twitch
I may rust
Up on my bench
My story you can trust

Margaret Simon, draft

In keeping with the tradition of 15 words or Less, I have written a 15 word ditty-on-the-spot. Write your own quick poem in the comments and respond to other writers with kindness. You can also participate in our Facebook group.

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This Photo Wants to be a Poem

Posted in Photography, Poetry, Writing, tagged , , , on June 18, 2020| 61 Comments »

Morning Web by Jen Gray

Summer is here with peaceful mornings before temperatures rise. This image popped up on my Instagram feed. My friend, Jen Gray, owns a farm in Breaux Bridge, LA where she rents two houses for artist retreats. Unfortunately, I haven’t made my usual retreat there this year. I miss this place.

Jen’s photographic eye fascinates me. This photo has so much to offer, a foggy sunrise and dewdrop spider web. What will you write about? Please leave a small poem in the comments and comment on other poems. Thanks for stopping by.

What remains from
a slow walk in the field?
Dewdrop tears
for a peaceful world.

Margaret Simon, flash draft

A note about process: While writing my flash draft, I typed in about 21 words. In cutting it to 15, I found what the poem really wanted to say. There’s something to be said for small poems.

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This Photo Wants to be a Poem

Posted in Photography, Poetry, Writing, tagged , on May 7, 2020| 23 Comments »

This Photo Wants to be a Poem is a low pressure, quick writing prompt I post each week. Consider joining in the playful poetry today. Leave a comment with 15 words or less structured as a poem. Write encouraging comments on other responses. That’s it. No judgement. Just be present.

Speaking of being present, a group of poet dabblers are writing a poem of presence each day of May on Twitter using the hashtag #PoemsofPresence. This grew out of my Ditty of the Month interview. You can also write a poem of presence on the padlet that Michelle is curating.

Today’s photo was taken last week when we were out on a family walk with Leo, who is 17 months today. He is learning about mischief, and he took Baby Thomas’s hat from his stroller and put it on and ran. It was all such a fun game. I was lucky to capture this shot in the multitude of photos I took.

Catch me if you can!
photo by Margaret Simon

Let me run
in the sun.
Hat askew,
can’t catch you.

Margaret Simon, draft

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This Photo Wants to be a Poem

Posted in Photography, Poetry, Slice of Life, tagged , , on March 19, 2020| 38 Comments »

Welcome to This Photo Wants to be a Poem, a way to wake up your poetry brain. Please write a short poem (15 words or fewer) in the comments. Try to comment on other poems as well. Spread the word through sharing the link on social media.

Shells by Kim Douillard
Kim’s blog is Thinking through my Lens

I’ve been following Kim’s blog for a few years. We’ve never met face to face, but we’ve connect through National Writing Project and #clmooc and Slice of Life with Two Writing Teachers. I love how connections can be made across the continent. Kim lives near San Diego, California. She posts beach pictures often and is quite an amazing photographer. In this post here, she photographed a great white egret in her neighborhood.

Today’s photo from this post grabbed me and said it wanted to be a poem. Kim gave me her permission to use it. You can follow her on Twitter (https://twitter.com/kd0602) and Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/kd0602/).

If this is your first time, don’t hesitate to join in the poem fun. There are no critics here. It’s all good.

A circle of sea
wrapped in sand and shells–
a mosaic by the master.

Margaret Simon, draft 2020

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This Photo Wants to be a Poem

Posted in Photography, Poetry, Writing, tagged , , on March 12, 2020| 32 Comments »

Welcome to This Photo Wants to be a Poem, a way to wake up your poetry brain. Please write a short poem (15 words or fewer) in the comments. Try to comment on other poems as well. Spread the word through sharing the link on social media.

Supermoon by Paula Bourque, used by permission.

This week’s full moon was known as the Full Worm Moon. Other names for March’s full moon are the Crow Moon, the Crust Moon, the Sap Moon, and the Lenten Moon.

This week’s moon was also a supermoon, meaning the fullness coincided with the moon at its closest point to Earth making it appear larger.

Moon, moon,
as you draw closer
I feel safer
knowing you’re
watching over me.

Margaret Simon, draft

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#HaikuforHope: Raw. Art.

Posted in Photography, Poetry, Writing, tagged , , on December 27, 2018| 2 Comments »

Laura Purdie Salas hosts a 15 Words or Less poetry drafting exercise every Thursday.  This image is on her blog today.  Join in here. 

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Celebrate Nothing Much to Do

Posted in Celebration Saturday, Poetry, tagged , on January 20, 2018| 14 Comments »

Find more celebration posts at Ruth’s blog.

 

Not much happened this week.
A layer of ice.
Schools closed.

I stoked the fire.
Carefully added a log or two.
Then let it go out.

Crochet needle looped and looped
a neck warmer for a friend,
prayers for an injured boy.

Ukulele picking.
Hallelujah
From G to E-minor
cramped and challenged
this weak left hand.

Read a book
about Love,
And the face staring back
in the bathroom mirror–
this, too, is love.*

A book about a Fall,
I didn’t look up
I didn’t look down
I just kept on climbing
one step at a time.*

Cooked and cared for
my mother-in-law
recovering from surgery.
“I’m fine,” she insisted.
She’s fine, I know.

Wrote a poem
with only a few words,
lifted it up like a paper airplane,
and sent it out into the world.

* Matt de la Peña Love

* Dan Santat After the Fall

 

 

 

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Light a Sparkler!

Posted in Poetry Friday, Teaching, tagged , on September 23, 2016| 12 Comments »

Poetry Friday is with Catherine at Reading to the Core.

Poetry Friday is with Catherine at Reading to the Core.

 

I am a big fan of poet Laura Purdie Salas.  Every Thursday she posts an image and invites her readers to write a poem in 15 words or less.  I love this challenge.  Her post yesterday reminded me of sparklers.  I left the computer, made coffee, and these words came into my head.  Then last night’s Good2Great chat (#G2Great) was about Dreaming Big.  This is what my Big Dream is all about: lighting that fire of passion in my students.

sparkler-quote

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The Poem in the Tree

Posted in Gifted Education, Poetry, Poetry Friday, Teaching, Writing, tagged , , , on February 20, 2015| 11 Comments »

Join the roundup with Linda at Teacher Dance.

Join the roundup with Linda at Teacher Dance.

I like to keep my poetry in practice, so I often enlist my students in my pet projects.  I love Laura Purdie Salas and her blog site.  Every Thursday she posts a picture and asks writers to post a poem comment using 15 words or less.  Not every Thursday, but many of them, I show her image to my first bunch in the morning.  We talk about the image, someone rings the sacred writing bell, and we write.

Yesterday, Laura posted an old tree.  I listened to my first grader, the youngest of the bunch, explain to a fifth grader what he needed to do.  “Look at the picture.  Then use your imagination.”  We read Laura’s poem and Jacob said, “I’m stealing the word squirrels.”  I swear this kid could lead a writing workshop already!

LPSalas old tree

Old Tree by Laura Purdie Salas

 

 

I posted this poem early in the morning.  The tree image reminded me of the old live oak in our backyard.

 Grandmother Oak

With footholds to climb
Eyes that see time
Stories in my rings
Come swing.

–Margaret Simon

grandmother oak sunset

Grandmother oak in the sunset

 

 

Then I wrote again with my students.

Stories told
from a wisdom of scars
wrinkled into skin
like crevices on this old tree.

–Margaret Simon

 

If you would like to play, go to Laura’s site on Thursday mornings.  It’s a fun place to be.

Old People

Two old men
bickering every day
scaring nature away.
These old hags
should calm down.
–Tyler, 6th grade

 

Another poetry practice project I am doing is on another Laura’s site, Laura Shovan of Author Amok.  I am joining some fabulous poets writing to sound prompts.  Check it out!

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