I’m looking forward to taking part again in Laura Shovan’s 6th Annual February Poetry Project. You can read about it’s past and present incarnation here. This year’s theme is Ekphrastic At Home. Different poets will share a photo of art (any and all kinds of art count) for a daily prompt. I’ve enjoyed reading such poetry, but have not tried writing much myself. I’m looking forward to the challenge. The best part (besides the daily habit of writing in the midst of a supportive community) is seeing all the different poems that come from one piece of art.
We have a week of warmups before February officially starts, so here is my very first ekphrastic poem, inspired by a portrait create by Joy Dickson.
MOTHER EARTH
Mother Earth
reflects back
the care
you bestow
upon her.
Hold her tenderly
so she will
nurture
and nourish
you for
generations
to come.
I also receive more lovely postcards from the postcard exchange organized by Jone Rush MacCullough. Aren’t they lovely?
Christie Wyman shared a lovely haiku and painting to bless the new year:
matsu leaves of green
longevity, virtue, youth
blessing your new year
~Christie Wyman
Sally Murphy sent these greetings from Down Under:
A new year
Is an unopened gift
A letter in the mail
A crisp new notebook
A story yet to be written
~Sally Murphy
Michelle Kogan sent a whole envelop of goodies:
Soar far and high
with open heart
and ready hands
~Michelle Kogan
Each Friday, I am excited to take part in Poetry Friday, where writers share their love of all things poetry. Carol hosts the Poetry Friday Roundup today at Beyond Literacy Link! Don’t miss out on her invitation to share in the Winter Wonderland Gallery! Drop by and see what poetry morsels are offered this week.
January has been a delightful month. Yes, we’ve had snow (yea!), it’s been bitterly cold (not so yea), and the days are short on sunlight (boo!). But I’ve found the most wonderful surprises in my mailbox all month long. Thank you, to Jone Rush MacCulloch for organizing a postcard poetry swap to start off the new year right! And I get to host the roundup to round off the month. Be sure to leave your link with the link below.
First, these maps arrived (from Linda Mitchell) to invite me to explore through the new year. While Wikipedia gives a most useful definition, I think I’ll take the poet’s view!
A Map According to a Poet – Linda Mitchell
A map is a hand held journey–
beatific links between
star points of some galaxy
of thought, word or action.
Many poems are printed on
paper or, tapped
across screens
while others are heart held
by kiss, glance or
carrier pigeon,
the shortest distance
between hearts.
A Map According to Wikipedia – Linda Mitchell
A map is a symbolic depiction
emphasizing relationships
between elements of some space,
such as objects, regions, or themes.
Many maps are static,
fixed to paper or
some other durable medium,
while others are dynamic or
interactive.
Then Mary Lee Hahn invites me to sit and reflect through this cold season:
bleak and cold
the pond is not frozen over–
not just yet.
Mary Lee Hahn
Then Linda Baie sent this beauty to remind me that sunsets eventually become sunrises:
sunset’s smile
circles on to antoher’s
sunrise hello
Linda Baie
And Diane Mayr invites me into the New Year with a traditional haiku (you can read about it here):
first walk…
following the dog into
the new year
dmayr
And never fear, I finally sent my postcards on their way this week:
First light streaks beyond
the world’s edge where trees stand guard.
A new day beckons.
On the back I also wrote my version of an Irish blessing — for writers.
A Writer’s Blessing
May the muse rise up to greet you,
May your pen be always in your hand,
My ideas rise up from your heart,
And words flow across your pages.
And until we read again
May we hold each other close in our writer band.
Each Friday, I am excited to take part in Poetry Friday, where writers share their love of all things poetry. I have the Poetry Friday Roundup today right here! Be sure to add your link below. Drop by and see what poetry morsels are offered this week.
This week my attention has been captivated by Ice Music. A Norwegian musician, Terje Isungset. He creates instruments–horns keyboards, drums–out of ice and then records the music in a studio carved from the ice. The music is breathtaking and otherworldly. Click on the link to his website above or to this NPR story that includes a couple of recordings.
I have had the opportunity to listen to the musical dripping of melting ice as our temperatures seesaw back and forth. The different sounds combined in this poem.
Ice Music
The icicles dangling
from the eaves
creak and plink
as meltwater drips
through cracks.
Its rhythm
hints at the music
that could be
born of ice
if only one
could sculpt
an orchestra–
icehorns and icefons
that wail and burble,
pound and ring
an otherworldly melody
within a frozen studio.
Each Friday, I am excited to take part in Poetry Friday, where writers share their love of all things poetry. Jan has the Poetry Friday Roundup today at Bookseedstudio. She celebrates the life and memory of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. with a glimpse into a picture book that explores the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Drop by and see what poetry morsels are offered this week.
Well, I did it. On Wednesday, I dropped my daughter off at the airport to get on a plane to head to England for the next four months. I am beyond excited for this opportunity before her, but I have to confess that I wondered more than a few times if I would really do it. She made it across the pond and landed at the incredible manor where she will live and study. (You can check out a tour here.) She called the afternoon of her arrival, and I even got a tour of her dorm room that is in the carriage house. I’ve even joined SnapChat in order to get more pictures.
Last semester, the college gave parents the opportunity to write our students a letter that the Harlaxton staff would deliver to them during orientation. I think I wrote the letter and returned it to the study abroad office, but I wasn’t quite sure I actually made it to the mailbox. So I wrote her another letter–and this time I got to include some poetry.
The first poem is the first poem I ever read by Mary Oliver. I found it in a magazine I was reading while waiting for my first appointment with a counselor. It blew my socks off then, and still does today. You can read the entire poem here, but it’s the ending I wish for my girl:
But little by little,
As you left their voices behind,
The stars began to burn
Through the sheets of clouds,
And there was a new voice,
Which you slowly
Recognized as your own,
That kept you company
As you strode deeper and deeper
Into the world,
Determined to do
The only thing you could do,
Determined to save
The only life you could save.
The second poem is also by Mary Oliver, one of my favorites. I hope she savors every moment as Oliver does in “The Summer Day.” You can read the whole poem here, but again, it is the ending the really gets me:
Tell me, what is it you plan to do
with your one wild and precious life?
Since I started the invitation offered by Mary Lee Hahn’s #haikuforhealing last month, I’m continuing with writing a poem a day. It’s not always a haiku, but most days I can manage at least a few lines. I love that this practice nudges me to pay more attention, to look for moments to remember. For some reason this week, those moments focused on spending time with my daughter. Here are a few.
A quiet day
spent at home–preparing
for change.
The bags are packed,
tickets bought, plans finalized.
She launches tomorrow.
Pictures flash across
a tiny screen. Stay in touch
while letting go.
Now the countdown is on until March, when we get to visit her and England!
Each Friday, I am excited to take part in Poetry Friday, where writers share their love of all things poetry. Catherine has the Poetry Friday Roundup today at Reading to the Core. She shares a touching review of a heartfelt and important book by two poetry friends–Can I Touch Your Hair by Irene Latham and Charles Walters. Drop by and see what poetry morsels are offered this week.