Welcome to Day 2 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.
My April Poems Thus Far
April 1 - So Suddenly - a poem inspired by Wonder #1659
And now for Day 2!
Daily Thankfuls
by Amy LV
Students - I know many people who keep thankful journals. Some call them gratitude journals. These are books for listing of the good things in our lives. Research has proven when we write down what we are thankful for each day, we live with greater joy.
I have known teachers who have invited students to keep thankful journals, friends who keep gratitude notebooks, and often I write my own lists of things I am thankful for in my writers notebook. After writing today's poem, I may even begin a special section in my notebook for just this.
When I read yesterday's wonder, I first had an idea to write a poem in two voices about two people who each wanted what the other had (I still may do this) but then somehow I began reflecting on ways to not feel jealous and dissatisfied and remembered the thankful journal. At our house we each say something we are grateful for before dinner each night, and it helps us remember the goodnesses in our lives.
As for the structure and meter of this poem, I am not sure why it came out as it did, but it may be related to the fact that I read my old poem Closet Elevator aloud several times this week...and that meter may have stayed in my head!
The rhyme and meter in this poem are mostly quite regular, but there are a couple of places where they change. Why do you think I did that?
If you would like to learn about keeping a gratitude journal of your own, visit Berkeley's Greater Good website HERE. And for another beautiful site about gratitude, visit Gratitude.org HERE.
You can read another grass-is-always-greener poem if you visit Wonder Lead Ambassador, literacy advocate, teacher, and writer Paul Hankins at his Wonder Ground blog where he, too, is writing daily poems from Wonderopolis wonders.
Happy Day 2 of National Poetry Month 2016!
Please share a comment below if you wish.
Hi Amy,
ReplyDeleteYes, counting blessings will certainly cure the "grass is greener elsewhere" syndrome!
I took up your challenge and for the first day of April consulted the Wonderopolis site for my poem idea as well. "Greener Grass" is here: https://vnesdolypoems.wordpress.com/2016/04/02/and-were-off-with-greener-grass
Hi Amy,
ReplyDeleteI thank you for the daily inspiration. Here is the link to my blog post poetry inspired by green-ness! Appreciating all things around me.
http://theamyrudder.blogspot.com/2016/04/inspired-by-green-ness.html
Amy, Love the "kitty snuggling" and that reading branch, me, too! Thanks for reminding me!
ReplyDeleteLast year was an extremely hard year, but it was the perfect year to start a little notebook that I keep on my desk at school and in which I make sure I write one good thing that happened each day at school.
ReplyDeletePositive is powerful indeed!
I really like your take on the greener grass. What a wonderful thing to do, to keep a thankful journal. I did for a while and will have to start it up again.
ReplyDelete