Posted in Photography, Poetry, Slice of Life, This Photo Wants to be a Poem, Writing, tagged #poemsofpresence, #smallpoems, notes on a walk, This Photo Wants to be a Poem on September 29, 2026| 14 Comments »
Moon Morning
As I walk the old neighborhood,
I note the changes—
the roses that Betty tended are not in bloom,
the tall house sold; young children live there now, toys strewn across the lawn.
Clyde would love knowing them.
Lynn stops me as I pass.
”Do you know me?” He asks.
I can’t recall, but we talk anyway.
The moon hangs on to the morning,
losing its full,
returning to new.
Margaret Simon, draft
Please join me in writing to a photo each week on Substack.
Posted in being mamére, nature, Photography, This Photo Wants to be a Poem, Writing, tagged #poemsofpresence, #smallpoems, Florida, Sandestin beach, This Photo Wants to be a Poem, Travel on June 17, 2026| 4 Comments »
I am currently in Florida on a work trip with my daughter and her son, Thomas. Thomas and I had a fun day yesterday playing in the waves and making friends in the hotel pool. He makes friends so easily which is helpful to his babysitter grandma.
Yesterday afternoon a storm rolled in. I loved sitting on the safe balcony and watching the clouds.
Watching the Storm at the Beach
Becomes a pastime
when you’re with a grandson
who craves your constant attention.
Be open to the possibility of storms.
Stand in the rain
and let it cool your body
into shivers and shakes.
Then return to a warm bath
and Spider-Man pajamas
to watch Argentina play
in the World Cup
cheering them on, only because
you like the color blue.
Margaret Simon, draft
Please consider writing a poem today in the comments. I will be driving back to Louisiana and look forward to reading them.
Posted in Poetry, This Photo Wants to be a Poem, Travel, Writing, tagged #poemsofpresence, #smallpoems, found poem, This Photo Wants to be a Poem on June 10, 2026| 3 Comments »
Last week I was on vacation with my family in the Pacific Northwest. One of our hikes, The Spruce Railroad Trail in Olympic National Park, included a Poetry Walk. I took pictures of the panels and wrote a found poem from them. I invite you to do the same. Found poems are fun. Write the lines that grab you in some way (an image you relate to, words you love to say) and write them in an order that is pleasing to you.
Here is a draft I wrote in my notebook:
Crescent Lake Found Poem
Stenciled on the petal of a bluebell
the earth remembered me
my thoughts
light as moths
smell like grass and salt
smooth home- the river.
Margaret Simon, draft
Posted in nature, Photography, This Photo Wants to be a Poem, Writing, tagged #poemsofpresence, #smallpoems, Bayou Teche, haiku, This Photo Wants to be a Poem on May 20, 2026| 3 Comments »
My morning walk these days takes me through our local City Park that skirts the bayou and also nestles a pond where there are rumors of a lurking gator. This little guy, about 12 inches or so, had his nose in the air and was totally still, allowing me to come close for a photo.
I like turtles. I love to see them lined up on a log sunning themselves. I was researching a poetry book a few years ago and discovered that turtles often ramble up on the top of a gator without a care. Turtles can live a long time in the wild, unless the gator is hungry for turtle soup.
Today, be inspired by this little turtle to write a small poem in the comments. Support other writers with encouragement. Thanks for stopping by.
Bayou-side slider
still as a stone statue
red-ear beams on point
Margaret Simon, draft
Posted in Photography, Poetry, This Photo Wants to be a Poem, Writing, tagged #poemsofpresence, haiku, New Orleans Botanical Gardens, This Photo Wants to be a Poem on May 6, 2026| 2 Comments »
Yesterday I toured the New Orleans Botanical Gardens with my sister who drove from Baton Rouge to spend the day with me. I am here babysitting my grandson who is in his last days of kindergarten.
Beth and I were fascinated by these magnificent ferns. They are epiphytic ferns that thrive in humid environments. I am wondering how one would do in my own bayou-side yard.
Being fascinated by words, I love how the name of this fern is a metaphor for the shape of its leaves. Their fronds look like antlers.
Today’s photo poem is a haiku. Please consider writing alongside me in the comments. Support other writers with encouraging comments.
With outstretched green horns
mounted like taxidermy
strong yet supportedMargaret Simon, draft
Posted in Photography, Poetry, Writing, tagged Ethical ELA, James Edmunds, onomatopoeia, This Photo Wants to be a Poem on April 22, 2026| Leave a Comment »
Today, I am the guest poet at Ethical ELA. Please visit the site to see my prompt for an onomatopoeia poem.
Follow the Kidlit Progressive Poem at Karen Edmisten’s blog.
Happy Earth Day! Please consider writing a poem to celebrate our island home.
Posted in nature, Photography, This Photo Wants to be a Poem, Writing, tagged #EthicalELA, #poemsofpresence, cascade poem, This Photo Wants to be a Poem on April 15, 2026| 10 Comments »
I love April! The days start out cool and warm up, but a gentle breeze keeps the heat tolerable. On Sunday, we canoed with friends to the park where there was a symphony concert. The paddling to get there was made harder by the breeze, but we were able to make it just in time for the concert.
On the way, we spotted this Muscovy duck and her babies. The Muscovy is a domestic duck with a warty red bill. Her littles were adorable scrambling around her so quickly that I couldn’t count them.
My quick internet research said, “Aztec rulers wore cloaks made from the feathers of the Muscovy duck, which was considered the totem animal of the Wind God, Ehecatl.” (All about Birds)
At Ethical ELA, Erica Johnson is leading us in writing a “Playful Cascade” which is a poem form that takes each line of the first stanza making them the last line of the next stanzas. I decided to use tercets, 3 lines per stanza.
Muscovy Ducklings Play
Scrambling fluffs navigate water hyacinth
staying in sight of mother duck—
gymnasts in a bayou playground.
We slowly push along stroke by stroke
keeping watch for new spring life, see
scrambling fluffs navigate water hyacinth.
Whose waters are these, I think I know:
these tiny ducklings move so quick
staying in sight of mother duck.
This journey we share is not all ease.
Time and patience required, we are all
gymnasts in a bayou playground.
Margaret Simon, draft
Please join me in writing about this little miracle of life. Be sure to leave encouraging words for other writers.
Posted in nature, Photography, Poetry, This Photo Wants to be a Poem, Writing, tagged #KidlitProgressivePoem2026, #poemsofpresence, #smallpoems, Ethical ELA, This Photo Wants to be a Poem on April 8, 2026| 2 Comments »
Rose Cappelli has the line from the Land of Poetry Progressive Poem today. She used her secret favorite devise of alliteration. It’s my favorite, too. As I tell students, it just sounds good.
At Ethical ELA, Luke Bensing prompted us to use alliteration in our first and last lines. The photo today is from my visit to the butterfly exhibit in New Orleans at the Audubon Aquarium and Insectarium. I wrote a septercet, which is a small three lined poem of 7 syllables each.
Purple pops of salvia
nectar-seeking flutter by
season for saving scents
If you wish to write a poem today, please leave it in the comments and respond to other writers with encouragement.
Posted in being mamére, Photography, Slice of Life, Writing, tagged #beingmamére, #poemsofpresence, #smallpoems, This Photo Wants to be a Poem on March 25, 2026| 3 Comments »
There’s a lot going on in the photo today. It’s not a great shot, but I love it for the action it conveys. I’m the shadow taking the photo. Stella, age 5, is showing me a heart through the glass. In the background, in typical fashion, Leo, age 7, is leaping. He was outside with his father helping with yard work (note the too big garden gloves.)
On Wednesday mornings I often have no real idea of what photo I will use as a poem prompt. I had forgotten about this one. What’s in my heart may not be in yours, but I hope you can find a way into writing. Please leave a poem in the comments and support other writers with your responses. All are welcome.
Your heart
Is in mine
nesting, nurturing,
urging me to capture
every moment
of your love,
through the window,
over my shadow
into my joy-glow.
Margaret Simon, draft
Posted in Photography, Poetry, Slice of Life, This Photo Wants to be a Poem, Writing, tagged #poemsofpresence, #smallpoems, Lory Landry, This Photo Wants to be a Poem on March 18, 2026| 12 Comments »
Each Wednesday I post a photo that appeals to my poetic senses. I invite you to join me in writing a small poem, poem of presence, in the comments and support other writers with encouragement.
Today’s photo is by a local retired teacher photographer Lory Landry. We do not live in the Bluebonnet state of Texas; however, we have a neighbor who has successfully planted bluebonnets in a ditch near the road. I’m tempted every year to stop and romp through the flowers. It appears that Lory did just that and took her camera along. It takes a steady hand and skills to capture a busy bee.
Starburst blooms bluest
blue, gathers spring energy
buzz-bee sips sweet dewMargaret Simon, draft
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| 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
