Milkweed Pod
Photo by Amy LV
Hands of Wishes
Photo by Amy LV
On Tuesday, Hope, Henry, and I took a walk down our road, hoping to find just-opened milkweed pods. Many had already burst, sending their seeds on their way. But we did find a few, still curled like small fish in their skins, waiting...just waiting...for us to blow and wish. Those few waited for Henry to hold them in his palm, pedal his bike down the road, and release them into the wake of his bike, trailing like visible wind.
Students - the feel of milkweed has always enchanted me. I could stand in a field for hours, just opening milkweed pods and pulling their soft whiteness out of each shell. The sense of touch is an interesting place to begin a poem. Our daughter Hope, for example, hates the feel of plastic-y sleeping bags. I don't like the feel of water chestnuts (or jello) in my mouth. But I love the feel of heavy blankets and the feel of honey pouring from a honey bear onto toast. What does your sense of touch like best? Least? Be aware of your own sensitivity to touch today, this whole week, and see if there are any poems lurking in your fingertips.
Another thing about "Milkweed": I just loved finding so many short u words. Sometimes it feels like I'm simply throwing a fistful of jewels out on a table of paper.
Another thing about "Milkweed": I just loved finding so many short u words. Sometimes it feels like I'm simply throwing a fistful of jewels out on a table of paper.
(Please click on COMMENTS below to share a thought.)
This one made my heart soar. The words blowing up from ground-level into the sky--brilliant. Perfect.
ReplyDeleteI have to share our milkweed pictures with you!
Wow, Melissa. Those pictures are exquisite. So delicate and brand new. My friend Katrina "grows" Monarchs too...tags them and sets them free. For her, I wrote this one - http://bit.ly/aZTUWm (How on earth do you link to the words in a comment as you have?) A.
ReplyDeleteTo embed a link in a comment, use this little snippet of HTML code:
ReplyDelete[a href="LINK ADDRESS HERE"]TEXT YOU WANT THE LINK TO SAY[/a]
Except use pointy brackets <> instead of the straight ones [] that I used above. I couldn't use the correct ones because that would turn it into real HTML and activate the link!
Now I'm off to see your monarch poem!
Except whoops, that link goes to your new carousel poem--delightful, by the way! I'll just have to comb your archives for the monarch poem...a happy excuse to keep reading. :)
ReplyDeleteThank you, Melissa...once again!
ReplyDeleteMonarchs
Let's see if I did it! A.