A Color for My Teacher

Please note that on Poetry Friday August 23 we will celebrate the life of Lee Bennett Hopkins here at The Poem Farm. At Jone MacCulloch's great suggestion, I invite everyone who wishes to write and share a poem inspired by or including a line from a LBH poem. Tag with #DearOneLBH. Thank you. xo, Amy

Cotton on Linen

Photo by Amy LV

Sky Over Barn Over Thistles

Photo by Amy LV

Students - Poetry Great Lee Bennett Hopkins died yesterday after living a rich, beautiful, word-filled, generous life.  I am thankful to call him my teacher as he was teacher to so many.  And while I grieve and mourn today, my work is to continue to write the best I can...the way Lee taught me to do.

As I told my children last night, when you wish to learn something deeply, seek a mentor. And my wish for you is that you will be as fortunate as I was in finding one so giving, so funny, so wise.

One day when you are filled with tears, remember that you can turn tears into words. It helps a little.  I liked stitching these stitches today, finding the thistles, looking for words and remembering.

Please read about and celebrate Lee's life here at his website and here in yesterday's news.  Read one of his books!  And suddenly, you may find yourself reading 120 of his books!  (Did you know he is in the GUINNESS BOOK OF WORLD RECORDS for having edited the most poetry anthologies for children?) 

Lee Bennett Hopkins

1938 - 2019

Photo by Charles Egita

May he rest in peace and poetry.

xx

Molly is hosting today's Poetry Friday roundup over at Nix the comfort zone with a post about writing from titles and two lovely poems with the same title - Lost in the Milky Way. Please know that we gather each Friday, sharing poems and poemlove, and all are always welcome.

Please share a comment below if you wish.

If you are under 13 years old, please comment only with a parent 

or as part of a group with your teacher and class.

Honoring a Life: Mary Oliver

Letterpress Cards, Printed December 2019

Photo by Amy LV

Students - Our earth lost a great poet in Mary Oliver yesterday.  Mary Oliver was an award-winning poet who wrote books and books poems about the natural world and her relationship to it. She believed that poetry "mustn't be fancy" and many of us have loved her poems for a long time. She drew her last breath at 83, and many of us are thinking about her with gratitude today.

Today's poem is a poem about Mary Oliver's death, and the deer, wild geese, grasshoppers, sea, sunrises, and nuthatches all joined me.  These, of course, feature in her poetry, and I imagined that yesterday, at the moment of her death...they all stopped in place.  I enjoyed rereading some of her work as I chose these images.

In Oliver's poem, "Sometimes" we read these words, beautiful advice for all poets and humans.

Instructions for living a life:

Pay attention.

Be astonished.

Tell about it.

Last month, our friend Dave came to visit us. We are housing his letterpress in our barn, and he taught us how to use it. He asked us to select a quote to print.  We chose Mary Oliver's words as you can see on the above cards.  Below, you can see the type set into the chase of the press.

The Form in the Chase

Photo by Amy LV

And here is the chase snapped into place, ready to print.

Quote in Place for Printing

Photo by Amy LV

Our family has been talking about how this was a perfect quote to choose, and how strange it is that now the author of these words is no longer with us.  We are happy we chose to pay tribute to her wise voice with our little print project. So much gratitude to Dave for teaching us.  

Writing about people who are gone is healing and helpful. If you have ever loved and lost a person or a pet, you might consider writing about this person.  If you choose to write about a person, you, too, might wish to use some of his or her own words in your poem as I did by naming the creatures Mary Oliver wrote about.  Through writing, we can honor a life.

Tricia is hosting today's Poetry Friday roundup at The Miss Rumphius Effect, honoring the life of poet Mary Oliver with Oliver's "In Blackwater Woods". Please know that the Poetry Friday community shares poems and poemlove each Friday, and everyone is invited to visit, comment, and post.  And if you have a blog, we welcome you to link right in with us.

Please share a comment below if you wish.

If you are under 13 years old, please comment only with a parent 

or as part of a group with your teacher and class.