Finding and Keeping Delight - Free Verse in Nature

Spotted Charm

Photo by Amy LV

Students - Lately, I have been recording more of my everyday delights and moments-to-be-grateful-for in my notebook.  And this week, finding a woodpecker feather was a highlight.  I had brought my recycling out to the roadside, and when I looked down...there it was.  Delight!  There is something magical in finding a surprise, and magic is always worth writing about.  You might wish to make a list of things that you have found in your notebook.  There will likely be some fine writing ideas hidden (or jumping out at you) there.

Today's poem is a free verse poem following no particular pattern or rhyme scheme.  You may have noticed, though, that there is one rhyme at the end. Sometimes I like writing without rhyme but for a bit of a twist at the end.

This month's posts have all celebrated the small goodnesses in nature.  From June 5th's Apology to a wood thrush to June 12's celebration of weeds to June 19th's Bottles to today's poem, I have been once more falling in love with the world outside.  I wonder what July will bring.  May it bring you many charms and delights, spotted and otherwise!

Carol is hosting today's Poetry Friday roundup over at Carol's Corner.  Join her for a post full of rain, Billy Collins goodness, and so many fabulous links of poetry loving friends.

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Bottles - Writing from Words People Say

Memory Bottles

by Amy LV

Students - There are many reasons to keep a notebook, and one of them is to find out what will surface in your mind when you are free to roam the pages like a dog in a huge field.  No limits, no assignments, just you and the page.  What will happen?  What idea, thought, memory, or opinion will rise to the top of your writing heart?

Yesterday, I was doing just this, roaming the blank pages like a joyful beagle, and I found myself writing words that my mother used to and still does say -

Notebook Blip

by Amy LV

Why did I write this?  Who knows!  But there it was...and off I went.  Lately, I've been struck by the number of red-winged blackbirds out on these country roads, and so that beautiful animal made its way into today's poem as well.

For me, poems are a way to celebrate the people and things I love.  And often, sitting to write, I do not know what I will write about at all.  This happens to all writers, I think, and it is always fun to be surprised by our own selves.

What are some words that people have said to you in your life, words that come back to revisit you when you are alone?  Any one of these phrases might be a great place to begin a poem or story or piece of your own.

Sometimes people ask about where to break stanzas.  With this poem, I thought about breaking it into quatrains, as the rhymes fall.  But then I thought again and decided to break it into two parts: the first part about the bottles and today's collecting and the second part reflecting on the importance of these bottles.  There is no right way to break stanzas, but it is important to understand and be able to talk about the decisions we make.

Teachers and Adult Readers - Something I found inspiring yesterday is  Dani Shapiro's most recent blog post which you can find here.  It is always good to find others who find themselves by first allowing themselves to get lost.  A relief, indeed, not to be alone.

Mary Lee, who so wisely and graciously rounds all of us up all year long here on Poetry Fridays, is hosting today's roundup with a fun sounding book (baa!) over at A Year of Reading.  Gallop on over to her place to learn about the poetry happenings all 'round the Kidlitosphere this week.

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writing about humble things

Bookmark

by Amy LV

Students - A couple of weeks ago, our family went once again on the Allegany Nature Pilgrimage, a beautiful weekend of learning at Allegany State Park in Salamanca, NY.  During this weekend, I took a class about drawing from nature, a class that built on the art strategies taught in Zentangles.  It was entrancing and wonderful to get lost in drawing the same few flowers over and over again, a reminder of how any object we study closely can become fascinating and even beautiful.

You may have noticed that I did not capitalize any letters in this poem, and you may be wondering why.  The reason is because this poem is about humble flowers, small unfancy flowers.  I wanted my alphabet to match that feel.

You can learn more about buttercups here at Eat the Weeds and more about veronica here at Turf Files.

Look around today for small, maybe unnoticed, humble beauties and surprises. See if you can find one to write about.  Elevate the little!

Today I couldn't be more tickled to be visiting Sylvia Vardell's blog, Poetry for Children, as part of her "Poet to Poet" series.  I had the opportunity to ask Lee Wardlaw about her fun new book, WON TON AND CHOPSTICK, and she was so generous in her teachings about process.  I learned a lot from Lee in this interview, and I look forward to sharing her words with young writers.  Thank you, Lee, and Sylvia, for the chance to take part in this great series.  Meow!

Sylvia Vardell of Poetry for Children 

Photo by Russell Vardell

Lee Vardell, Two of Lee's Books, & Amy LV
Lee's Photo from her Website

Please know that all are welcome to participate in the Summer Edition of Sharing Our Notebooks.  If you visit my other blog, you'll find 70 generous posts full of ideas for notebook-writing, and I welcome yours too! 

Jama is hosting today's Poetry Friday roundup over at her delicious blog, Jama's Alphabet Soup.  Today she offers a beautiful book and poem, congratulations to two new wondrous Poet Laureates, and blueberries!

Please share a comment below if you wish.

Apology - A Poem of Address

Wood Thrush - After Hitting a Window

Photo by Amy LV

Doing OK

Photo by Amy LV

Flown Away!

Photo by Amy LV

Students - Today's poem tells the story I share with a little wood thrush, a story this bird and I lived together just yesterday morning.  It is a story with a happy ending, but I at first I could not know how it would end.  I was worried about this pretty bird who hit my living room window, worried about this small body so beautiful in its feathers.

My poem above is a poem of address, a poem which speaks directly to someone or something, in this case - a small soft wood thrush.  Have you ever found yourself talking to something that cannot talk back to you?  Sometimes I talk to keys and socks that I cannot find, asking them to come out and make themselves seen.  Sometimes I talk to my kitten.  Sometimes I talk to my car.  In a poem of address, you can come right out and talk to whatever, whomever you wish.

So many congratulations to the wise and wonderful Jacqueline Woodson, who this week was named by The Poetry Foundation as our new Young People's Poet Laureate.  Author of BROWN GIRL DREAMING, THE OTHER SIDE, SHOW WAY, LOCOMOTION, and many more books for young readers, Jackie is a gift to us all.  I can't wait to see what she does for poetry...for children...for humanity...in her new position.

It is summertime now, and I wish everyone many beautiful adventures outside. Don't forget, though, to take your notebook with you!  You may lalready know that I am collecting ideas for summer notebooking ideas over at my other blog, Sharing Our Notebooks, and I invite you to visit and share your own idea too.  It is great fun to learn about all of the ways people find writing and drawing ideas - 66 and counting!

Today I'd like to especially thank third grade teacher Kim Doele and her students from Wealthy Elementary in East Grand Rapids Michigan.  These students have shared so many great posts and ideas at Sharing Our Notebooks. Many readers have already told me through Twitter how excited they are to try these students' notebooking ideas.

Below you can find links to these students' specific posts at Sharing Our Notebooks. Big hugs to all of you!

Inspire Yourself with Walks and Books - by Finn

Write About People You Love to Be With - by Eoghan

Begin With the Day's Weather - by Greta

Write as Something or Someone Else - by Hayden

Compare Two Ways to Do Something - by Julia

Write About a Subject You're Interested In - by Mo

Look at One Object in Many Different Ways - by Teagan

Write Two Poems about Alike/Different Things - by Alyssa

Get Writing Ideas at Wonderopolis - by Henry

Buffy Silverman is hosting today's Poetry Friday extravaganza over at Buffy's Blog. Head right on over there to join in the poetry fun!

Please share a comment below if you wish.