Imagine the Possibilities

First of all, a special congratulations to Mary Lee Hahn on her retirement. In addition to being a poet, teacher, and all around special person, Mary Lee is a fellow Stenhouse author. Her blog with Franki Sibberson, A Year of Reading, was one of the first blogs I followed many years ago. Best wishes, Mary Lee!

This week I was introduced to a new poetry form thanks to Margaret Simon – the skinny. You can read more about it and see Margaret’s example here. So, this morning I took my coffee outside to the patio. I listened to the birds, the passing traffic, and the gently blowing wind. I thought about trees and the forces of nature and how they communicate, and that led me to this skinny:

Secrets

Trees whisper in the wind
secret
wishes
wants
wonders
secret
stories
spread
as
secrets
wind-whisper in the trees.

I was excited to learn this week that the Highlights Foundation is opening up for some in-person workshops in the fall, one of which is The Craft and Heart of Writing Poetry for Children with Georgia Heard, Rebecca Kai Dotlich, Rebecca Davis, and Janet Wong. With a lineup like that, I know it will be fabulous! Definitely something to look forward to in September. Want to join me?

Christie Wyman has the Poetry Friday round-up this week, so head over to Wondering and Wandering for more poems and celebrations. Happy Birthday, Christie!

I challenged myself to write a poem every day in April for poetry month, and even though I am writing this post with one day left, I’m confident that I’ll make it. During the month I wrote rhyming and non-rhyming poems, free verse, haiku, cinquain, a Magic 9, a nonet, poems with lots of questions, and poems inspired by other works. Hopefully, poetry writing has become a habit that I will continue.

I picked two poems for today. The first was inspired by a dream I had where I was in an art gallery pondering a painting of a solitary house in a hilly landscape. The second came to me as I was pulling weeds.

Dream House

The single window beckons.
I gaze at the red façade,
the light clouded in the sky
and wonder –
Who lives here?
Does she gather rocks,
tend a garden,
care for another?
Does she lead a solitary life?
Lonely, yet fulfilling?
What lies beyond that single window?
Still wondering, I move on.

Weeds

On a warm spring afternoon
even the weeds are welcoming.
Patches of creamy buttercups
like walking on sunshine,
delicate Stars of Bethlehem.
Others with poetic names –
Wild Violet,
Clover,
Hairy Bittercress.
A peek of color after the snow,
harbingers of summer’s show.

Matt at Radio, Rhythm, and Rhyme has the roundup for today, so be sure to visit for lots of poetry fun.

And check out the conclusion of the 2021 Progressive Poem posted by Michele Kogan at More Art 4 All.

Today I’m participating in Poetry Friday.

I challenged myself to write a poem every day in April and so far I’ve been successful. Most of my poems are free verse, so I also wanted to challenge myself to try some new structures this month. In my research I came across a form called Magic 9. It appears to have been created when a poet mistakenly misspelled the word “abracadabra” leaving out the r’s. So the rhyme scheme for Magic 9 is: abacadaba

Here’s my attempt (which was harder than I thought it would be):

Wind

Wind can be a gentle breeze –
a kiss for Flower and Leaf.
Gusts soar kites above the trees
and whisper Dandy’s wishes.
A squall can anger waves in seas
or change Cloud’s fleecy form.
Wind will waltz through snow with ease
Then settle with relief –
Nature’s constant reprise.

Jama at Alphabet Soup has the roundup for today. Head over there for a poem from former UK Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy as well as links to other wonderful poems.