It’s Poetry Friday! Margaret has the roundup today at Reflections on the Teche where she treats us to three beautiful poems. Chickadees have been on her mind as well.
I’ve always been curious about the staying birds in winter. Cardinals, sparrows, chickadees, and others continue to gather at the feeder when the weather turns cold, but how do they stay warm? In my research for a picture book idea, I discovered that many of the birds’ strategies are similar to what we humans do when we want to stay warm. Birds huddle close, fluff their feathers to trap air like we do inside our winter coats, eat more, and hunker down. So, when the prompt this week from my poetry group, the Nevermores, was to write a poem of advice, I chose the chickadee to offer some insight on how to stay warm. Did you know chickadees have very good memories? In the fall they cache thousands of seeds and insects, then remember where each one is!
Stay Warm! Advice from Chickadee
When chilly winter winds blow through,
here’s what you can do:
Don a coat with fluffy down,
zip it to the top!
Trap air inside,
warm it up,
keep it close to you.
Find a friend (or two or three)
and build a blanket fort, or
cuddle on a chair or couch
and share some silly jokes.
Pilfer from your stash of snacks,
hunker down and then…
remember spring will bring the warm
you might be dreaming of.
I also wanted to give a shoutout to those who sent me New Year’s greetings that arrived after I posted a few weeks ago. Thanks Margaret, Diane, Tricia, Buffy, Jone, and Marcie for your lovely cards, poems, and wishes.
Imagine the Possibilities 
Rose, love all the fluffy imagery here, and your chickadee has great advice, especially love “Don a coat with fluffy down” and the rhythm of the poem! I never knew that chickadees had great memories!!! Is this the seed for a picture book?
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Thanks, Mona. Yes, I’m experimenting with it as a possible picture book.
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Thank you for a wonderful poem! I wrote a poem on the same topic just a few weeks ago, and as I type this I’m watching chickadees just outside my window at the feeder. Your advice is spot on, but now you’ve got me wondering what a chickadee joke is like!
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Yes! I’ll have to think more about that.
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Ha! This is a delight!! A cozy fluffy feathery delight — thank you!
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Thank you, Liz!
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Rose, this is a delightful poem in which chicakdees, fluffy as they are, send wise advice about winter, to humans. The ending lines bring a beautiful reminder that spring is coming. Best of luck with your picture book idea.
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Thanks, Carol! It’s so bright and sunny today I’m definitely thinking of Spring!
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Love your poem (and chickadees in general). So charming! When I first read it, I thought “picture book.” Hope you continue to develop this idea. :)
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Yay to picture book writing. Have you read The Blue Jays that grew a Forest by Lynn Street? I met her at a writing workshop and fell in love with her book. It may make a great comp title for your WIP. In our area, chickadees are a sign of a healthy yard habitat. I love watching them at my feeders.
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Thanks, Margaret. Yes, I do know that book. It’s a delight! Thanks for suggesting it.
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Chickadees are a perennial favorite of mine! They have all kinds of good advice for surviving cold and for offering cheer!
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Ooh, I love both the language and the fun rollicking feel to this cozy poem, Rose!
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What perfect advice! Such fun and whimsy but also true! Well done.
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Thanks, Linda. For some reason I’m having trouble commenting on your post, but I wanted you to know I enjoyed it, especially “the growl of my power.”
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Rose, this is such a fun, whimsical take on Chickadees. We have them in our woods here. I love when researching a subject comes up with fun facts. I wish you the best in your quest to use this idea for a picture book. (Didn’t you have another Chickadee poem? I seem to remember you writing another one that I liked as well).
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Thanks, Carol. Yes, I recently wrote a more general bird poem about staying warm. That’s the one that started me thinking about expanding my ideas.
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Nice! Well, I can certainly understand the inspiration from nature. Good luck with your new project.
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Thank you for the much needed escape of re-reading your poem, Rose.
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The title “Advice from a Chickadee” makes me want to dive in, Rose! That’s so cute. :D
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Woohoo, Rose, magical poem about the chickadee. I’m just loving that photo, which goes so well with your poem. (It first looked like a stem full of cotton bolls.) The poem is so light and airy and just lovely!
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Thanks, Denise.
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You had me at the title! I wanted to know what those sweet little birds had to say to me. Well done!
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Thanks, Cathy.
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Look at those fluffy chickadees. Your poem captures them perfectly!
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