Poetry Friday: The Cherry Tree

Posted on April 17, 2020 by rosecappelli

Just outside our back porch is a flowering cherry tree. During the forty-two years we have lived in this house it has served as the perfect climbing tree, housed a home-made fort, been home to countless birds, squirrels, and insects, and offered a branch for my grandson’s first swing. It has survived the fall of large limbs blown down in windstorms, and even refused to give up when a falling pine came crashing through our porch roof, shearing off about a fourth of it. And every spring, right on cue, it erupts into a mass of glorious pink blossoms, so beautiful that any thoughts of the need to cut it down vanish from our thoughts. So it is not surprising that it was the first thing to come to my mind when I read the three words Amy Ludwig VanDerwater picked for inspiration earlier in the week – start, glorious, glorified. It also happened to be the day her lesson was about writing acrostics.

The Cherry Tree

Gnarled branches

Lie in wait for rain and sun until

One small bud pokes through,

Ready to reveal

Its pink splendor

Over an emerald lawn,

Under a sapphire

Sky.

You can find today’s poetry roundup here. Thanks, Molly, for hosting.

Posted in Poetry Friday | 30 Comments

Poetry Friday: Trail Calls

Posted on April 10, 2020 by rosecappelli

Happy Poetry Friday!

During the month of April I’ve been following Amy Ludwig Vanderwater’s Poems Can project. Each Day Amy rolls three word dice and uses those words to inspire a poem. She also has a theme for each day. Each day Amy also posts a video from Betsy the Camper explaining how she created her poem. It’s geared to inspiring young poets, but anyone can learn and enjoy from Amy!

Most of my poems so far have been inspired by things I’ve experienced on my trail walks near my house. Day 5’s theme was “Poems can borrow a pattern from the world” and the words were “and,” “calls,” “my.” I concentrated on the word “calls” and used a pattern with sounds and seasons. Here’s what I came up with:

Trail Calls

Chiminy! Chiminy!

Spring awakens with warbles and chirps.

Finches and sparrows

call greetings to the sun.

Bzzzzzz!

Summer buzzes

with bees

calling the hive to follow.

Honk! Honk!

Autumn bids adieu

to flocks of geese

calling noisy goodbyes.

Hoooooo!

Winter welcomes owls

filling the air

with calls of mystery.

You can check out more of Amy’s project at The Poem Farm where you will also find this week’s Poetry Friday roundup. Thanks, Amy!

Posted in Poems, Poetry Friday | 14 Comments

Poetry Friday: Morning Fog

Posted on April 3, 2020 by rosecappelli

This week I offer another poem about hope. It’s been on my mind a lot lately. One morning last week I woke to a sea of fog swirling through the trees, the grass, the trail path. Later it lifted, leaving the world just a little different. I also read a bit about the tanka, that 5-7-5-7-7 structure that starts with an image, transitions in the third line, and ends with a personal response.

Morning Fog

drooping daffodils

a blanket of silver grass

mist slowly rising

the world looms large and brighter

spirits soar on silent hope

Thanks, Heidi, for this week’s poetry roundup. Looking forward to reading!

Posted in Poems, Poetry Friday | 11 Comments

Love, Sophia on the Moon: A Review

Posted on March 31, 2020 by rosecappelli

Title: Love, Sophia on the Moon

Author: Anica Mrose Rissi

Illustrator: Mika Song

Publisher: Disney Hyperion, 2020

Happy Book Birthday to Love, Sophia on the Moon!

Last November at NCTE, I was lucky enough to pick up an F&G of Love, Sophia on the Moon by Anica Mrose Rissi and Mika Song. It is one of my new favorites and would make a great mentor text for anyone using an exchange of letters as the structure of their story.

There are so many reasons to love this book. The story is told exclusively in letters Sophia writes to her mother and her mother’s responses. We learn quickly that Sophia is running away from home following a time-out she received as a consequence for breaking something. Totally relatable – what child hasn’t at least thought about running away? But Sophia isn’t running away to a friend’s house or Grandma’s house, she’s opted for the moon!

The letters exchanged between Sophia and her mom are humorous and full of heart:

“…If you see any cows on the moon, will you tell them they can sleep here? Love, Mom”

“Dear Mom, The cows say there are no bedtimes on the mooooooooon…We will stay up all night playing moonball and making messes…Love, Sophia

Throughout the course of the book we marvel not only at Sophia’s imaginative spirit but also the way in which the mother’s reactions help Sophia come around. The lovely illustrations complement the text and reveal even more about Sophia’s character.

The parallel structure accomplished through the letters brings us to the satisfying ending where Sophia and her mom reunite. Young readers will leave with a feeling of comfort, knowing that home will always be a safe place of love and forgiveness.

“Dear Sophia, Even when you’re mad, I love you to the moon. And I will love you all the way back…”

Love, Sophia on the Moon is fresh take on the ups and downs of learning about boundaries and unconditional love.

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Poetry Friday: Hope in the Time of Covid-19

Posted on March 27, 2020 by rosecappelli

These are terrible times. The other day I was thinking that it might have been harder had this pandemic occurred in winter. It’s harder in winter to remember that there is a season for everything. Spring reminds us that what we thought was dead and gone will return. It gives us hope. I was thinking of that this week on one of my walks.

Hope in the Time of Covid-19

Because the garden is peppered with purple crocuses,

Because there are buds on the flowering cherry,

Because the peonies are pushing through fall’s leftover leaves,

Because the bluebirds have returned,

Because I feel warmth from the sun and comfort from the moon,

hear the laughter of children and the wren’s sweet song,

Because there is kindness and caring and love all around…

I have hope.

You can find this week’s round up at The Opposite of Indifference. Thanks, Tabitha!

Posted in Poetry Friday | 12 Comments