Welcome to Day 18 of Wallow in Wonder! For my 2016 National Poetry Month project, I will celebrate learning and writing from learning, writing poems from each daily Wonder at Wonderopolis. As I did with my Dictionary Hike in 2012, I am looking to surprise myself with new inspiration daily. This year, such inspiration will show up in my inbox each morning. I will print it and carry each Wonderopolis Wonder around all day...and in the afternoon or evening, I will write and post the poem for the next day.
I invite anyone who wishes to take this challenge too. Just read today's wonder over at Wonderopolis, and write a poem inspired by it for tomorrow. Share it tomorrow at your own site, and if you wish to link in my comments for others to find (or share your poem there), please feel free to do so tomorrow, the day after the Wonder is published at Wonderopolis. If you would like to share any ways you have used Wallow in Wonder or your own site (safe for children only please), please link to the #WallowInWonder padlet.
My April Poems Thus Far
April 1 - So Suddenly - a poem inspired by Wonder #1659
April 2 - Thankful Journal - a poem inspired by Wonder #1660
April 3 - The Storm Chaser - a poem inspired by Wonder #779
April 4 - A Jar of Glitter - a poem inspired by Wonder #641
April 5 - To Make Compost - a poem inspired by Wonder #1661
April 6 - Deciding Now - a poem inspired by Wonder #1662
April 7 - Hummingbird's Secret - a poem inspired by Wonder #1663
April 8 - Limits - a poem inspired by Wonder #1664
April 9 - Sundogs - a poem inspired by Wonder #1665
April 10 - Perspective - a poem inspired by Wonder #128
April 11 - At the History Museum - a poem inspired by Wonder #115
April 12 - Seventy-Five Years Ago Today - a poem inspired by Wonder #1666
April 13 - Homer's Poem - a poem inspired by Wonder #1667
April 14 - The Right - a poem inspired by Wonder #1668
April 15 - 5:00 am - a poem inspired by Wonder #1669
April 16 - Writing - a poem inspired by Wonder #1670
April 17 - Sometimes - a poem inspired by Wonder #194
And now for Day 18!
Birthday Tree
by Amy LV
Students - Last week on a school visit, a young boy shared his poem with me. It was a poem about when his family had to sell the dog he loved very much because they were no longer able care for it. The poets' words made very clear how much he missed this dog, and I began thinking about the value of sharing our stories, the sad ones as well as the happy ones.
Sometimes stories are not all true, though. Sometimes we pieces stories together like quilt fabrics: a little from here, a little from there, and such is the case with today's poem.
This is not a true story for me, though I would say that the poem is true as it weaves true fabrics into one new quilt. Our yard does indeed have a cherry tree, and we have given our children trees for birthdays (though we do not picnic under them). My parents are divorced. And I know someone whose life was recently broken into a heartbreaking before and after. So parts of this poem are true...but the story is not exactly true.
Since yesterday's Wonder at Wonderopolis spoke to the Japanese 1912 gift of Sakura, or cherry trees to the US, I began thinking about trees as gifts. Too, it was a beautiful day outside, and I was right near our own cherry tree...right near our barn. And I was feeling sad for this person I know who is grieving a loss. This is the poem that wanted to be written.
Today's poem is free verse, as it has no regular rhyme or meter. I may come back to tinker with it later. But for now, it's staying.
You might look at this poem as a kind of before/after poem. The first stanza tells all about the before-time. Then there is a line, all by itself, indicating a big change. The third stanza describes all about the after-time. It reminds me a bit of the picture book WHEN I WAS FIVE by Arthur Howard, only the change line in this picture book is a happy one.
Feel free to write a before/after poem yourself. It can be true, fictional, or hold bits of each. And you don't have to tell which is which if you do not want to.
Sometimes people assume that my poems all happened to me. But many lines in my poems come from truths I have observed in others lives, from books I have read, and from scenes I have imagined.
This month I host teacher and librarian Stefanie Cole and her students from Ontario, Canada at Sharing Our Notebooks. This is a fantastic post full of notebook inspiration, a video clip, and a great book giveaway from Stefanie. Please check it out, and leave a comment over there to be entered into the giveaway.
Happy Day 18 of National Poetry Month 2016!
Please share a comment below if you wish.
"Sometimes we pieces stories together like quilt fabrics: a little from here, a little from there,"
ReplyDeleteSo true for me this year!
In my lesson plans, I wrote that we would write story poems on Tuesday. Now I want to show them the before/after form to inspire story poems. I also feel like my students need to be given permission to write true sad things in poems. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteSometimes I think it's the sad stories that we need to share more than the happy ones. I love the image of "one pink blossom in my notebook." So poignant.
ReplyDeleteI like the idea of before and after poems. Thanks for the reminder.
ReplyDeleteHi Amy,
ReplyDeleteOur class spent some time reading your poem and discussing our thoughts.
"I felt sad when I heard the part about parents splitting in two. It's like how I felt when my parents and grandparents getting divorced. And then my grandma passed. I liked your poem even though it made me feel sad." Trisha
"That was a sad poem, but I liked it. I have a connection since my parents are divorced too." Jeremy
We also liked the way you compare words to fabric and quilts. Thank you. We can't wait to meet you.
"This is not a true story for me, though I would say that the poem is true as it weaves true fabrics into one new quilt." -- well said.
ReplyDelete