I Love Them Both - Writing from Thinking

Loving Both
by Amy LV

Students - Sometimes I think about things and do not write about them for a long time.  Then, one day, for a reason I cannot explain, I will write about one of those things.  My parents have been divorced for a few years, and I love both of them very much.  It is different having them divorced, but my love is the same.  

Writing can help us think about funny things and serious things, and writing can help us figure out what we think too.  One reason I keep a notebook (see my notebooks blog here) is because it helps me figure out what is going on in my mind. Our busy days can keep us from hearing our own minds sometimes, but a notebook always listens.

It is so good to be back here at The Poem Farm. It was wonderful to teach classes and go camping and learn all kinds of things.  But I missed this place, and I missed you.  It is good to be back.

I have exciting news!  This week was the book birthday of JUMPING OFF LIBRARY SHELVES, the newest anthology by Lee Bennett Hopkins.  I am honored to have a poem in this beautiful collection illustrated by Jane Manning, and you can read a fabulous interview with Lee and read a few poems from the book (including mine) over at last week's post at Today's Little Ditty.

Available at Your Local Bookstore

Robyn is hosting today's Poetry Friday gathering over at Life on the Deckle Edge with a poem remembering 9/11.  Visit her place to find a roundup full of poems, poets, and many ways to fall in love with words.

Happy happy new school year to you, my dear friends!

Please share a comment below if you wish.

Big Dipper - Paying Attention & Reading Aloud

Finding a Friend

by Amy LV

Students - Two nights ago, my husband and I went for a walk in the dark.  It's very dark on our road as there are no streetlights and only four homes on the road.  This means that we can see many many stars.  As we walked, we looked up at the stars, pointing to the ones we recognized, calmed by just knowing they were there.

Today's poem is about someting that is always above me at night.  The Big Dipper is always here. But sometimes I don't pay attention.  Life is full of so many things that we don't pay attention to.  But today, or tomorrow, or next week...I challenge you to pay attention to something you usually just ignore.  Look at that long toenail.  Watch the spider spin her web.  Feel rain fall and run off of your own eyebrows.  Then...write.  See what you get.

For those of you who are new here, one thing I like to do sometimes is to share my drafts, just to show how messy writing can be.  When I am seriously writing, my hand might fly across the page of my notebook, crossing out and changing words left and right.  

"Big Dipper" Drafts

(Click to Enlarge)

Photo by Amy LV

The one thing I always do when I write a poem is that I read it aloud.  I read today's verse over and over out loud to myself.  Each time I wanted to write a new line, I read what I had so far out loud. Then I listened inside of myself for a possible next line.  Then I read the poem with the new line, asking myself, "Does this work?"  If it did, I left it.  If not, I crossed it out.  Then I went back to the top to read again with the new line, listening for what the NEXT line might be.

Your ears are your poem writing buddies.  Use them.

I often find comfort in the sky.  If you like the nighttime sky and today's poem, you might also enjoy reading "Orion" or "Everynight Everywhere" - two poems also here at The Poem Farm.

On a scientific note, the Big Dipper is actually not a whole constellation.  It is an asterism, or a smaller group of stars that has a name but is not as big as a constellation.  The Big Dipper is part of the constellation of Ursa Major.  One of the great things about the Big Dipper is that if you live in the Northern Hemisphere, you can always see it.  It is a steady pal up there.  And if you can find the Big Dipper, you can find The Little Dipper.  And the North Star too.

Visit Wonderopolis if you would like to learn more about the Big Dipper.

This week, I feel so lucky to host four (4!) student notebook keepers over at my other blog.  Please visit Sharing Our Notebooks to peek into the pages of the notebooks of: Sydney, Julia, Peter, and Erin, all writers who are part of the WNY Young Writer's Studio community.  There is a wonderful giveaway of a book and notebook too.  Please stop by and leave a comment for these thoughtful young writers.

Laura is hosting this week's Poetry Friday roundup over at Writing the World for Kids.  All are welcome to visit Laura's web home, taste this week's yummy poem treats, and enjoy Laura's new series of poems and new book announcement.

Please share a comment below if you wish.