Poetry Friday Naomi Shihab Nye’s “Truth Serum”

January 27, 2017January 27, 2017 Catherine Flynn18 Comments

Naomi Shihab Nye’s poetry is filled with love, sensitivity, and compassion. Her work has been a source of solace and inspiration to me for years. So I was thrilled when she was announced as the 2018 May Hill Arbuthnot Honor Lecture on Monday during the ALA’s Youth Media Awards Announcements. The Arbuthnot Award recognizes “an author, critic, librarian, historian or teacher of children’s literature, who then presents a lecture at a winning host site.” I can’t think of a more appropriate choice to share her insights and wisdom in our troubled times.

“Truth Serum”
by Naomi Shihab Nye

We made it from the ground-up corn in the old back pasture.
Pinched a scent of night jasmine billowing off the fence,
popped it right in.
That frog song wanting nothing but echo?
We used that.
Stirred it widely. Noticed the clouds while stirring.
Called upon our ancient great aunts and their long slow eyes
of summer. Dropped in their names.
Added a mint leaf now and then
to hearten the broth. Added a note of cheer and worry.

Read the rest of the poem here.

Please be sure to visit Carol Varsalona at Beyond Literacy Link for the Poetry Friday Roundup.

Poetry Friday: “To You”

January 19, 2017January 19, 2017 Catherine Flynn16 Comments

In her “Note from the Author” at the beginning of This Place I Know: Poems of Comfort (Candlewick, 2002), Georgia Heard writes:

“During any difficult time, we all need a place where, as Faiz Ahmed Faiz writes in his poem “Song,” ‘the heart [can] rest.'”

No matter where one falls on the political spectrum, no one can deny this is a “difficult time.” This poem, by Karla Kuskin, gives my heart a place to rest.

“To You”

I think I could walk
through the simmering sand
if I held your hand.
I think I could swim
the skin shivering sea
if you would accompany me.
And run on ragged, windy heights,
climb rugged rocks
and walk on air:

I think I could do anything at all,
if you were there.

Please be sure to visit Violet Nesdoly at Violet Nesdoly/Poems for the Poetry Friday Roundup.

Poetry Friday: “Words are Birds”

January 5, 2017January 5, 2017 Catherine Flynn14 Comments

January 5th was National Bird Day. I have been a bit obsessed with these feathered flyers for several years now, so I hope you don’t mind if I extend the celebration and share a bird poem or two today.

“Words are Birds”
by Francisco X. Alarcón

words
are birds
that arrive
with books
and spring

they
love
clouds
the wind
and trees

some words
are messengers
that come
from far away
from distant lands

for them
there are
no borders
only stars
moon and sun

Read the rest of the poem here.

by Srivatsa Sreenivasarao via unsplash — by Srivatsa Sreenivasarao via Unsplash

Alarcón’s poem and these little birds inspired this #haikuforhealing:

white-rumped munia:
poem perched on a puddle’s rim
birds are words

Please be sure to visit Linda Baie at Teacher Dance for the first Poetry Friday Roundup of 2017!

Slice of Life: Things We Prize

January 3, 2017 Catherine Flynn6 Comments

My husband and I are gearing up for a big renovation project: new kitchen, new living room, new patio. It’s all very exciting, but a little daunting as well. I don’t think I’ve crossed the line to hoarder yet, but I am not good at throwing stuff away. But with the upcoming construction, I’ve been trying to get organized and get rid of some clutter. While I was going through a box over the weekend, I found some pictures from sixth grade. They stirred up quite a few memories and inspired this poem.

“Things We Prize”

Prizes weren’t meant for me.
Other kids won prizes.
Kids who could run fast
or spell “mountain”
or knew that 7 x 8 was 56.
No, prizes weren’t meant for me.

Until one day I decided
I was tired
of not winning a prize.

At the edge of the playground,
that sea of asphalt,
scene of so many embarrassments,
Mr. Fletcher raked the dirt smooth,
ready for us to jump,
fling ourselves as far as we could,
and make our mark.

When it was my turn,
No one expected much.

I stood tall,
feet planted,
courage growing.
Bent my knees,
Pushed off.

WOOOSH!

Propelled myself
farther than any kid
in sixth grade,
farther than any kid
in the whole school.

The prize was mine.

Thank you to Stacey, Dana, Betsy, Beth, Kathleen, Deb, Melanie, and Lisa for creating this community and providing this space for teachers and others to share their stories each Tuesday. Be sure to visit Two Writing Teachers to read more Slice of Life posts.

Gratitude

January 1, 2017January 1, 2017 Catherine Flynn4 Comments

Over a month ago, my friend, Margaret Simon, asked her #DigiLit Sunday compatriots to write about gratitude. This is my response.

“You’ll never know everything about anything, especially something you love.”
~ Julia Child ~

Baking is one of my passions. I have a repertoire of favorite desserts that family and friends have come to expect at holidays and get-togethers. Cooking shows are just about the only TV programs I will actually sit and watch. So Tejal Rao’s review of The Great American Baking Show in the paper last week caught my eye. The review was mixed, but these words struck a chord with me:

Maybe it’s because, with any ambition, there is often a gap between what
you want to do and what you actually achieve. A miserable, insurmountable
abyss in some cases. I admire the way the American bakers will dust off their
apron and walk up to the judging table where [the judges] are waiting, even on
a bad day, with a wonky, toppling, broken, undercooked thing. And they stand
by their work and invite criticism.

Yes, there is a gap. With any ambition. Including, or maybe especially, writing. Writing stories or essays or poems is hard. I cringe to think of how many years I didn’t write because of my fear of falling into that “insurmountable abyss.”

Yet, thanks to the Internet, I found Two Writing Teachers and Poetry Friday. These communities of amazing, smart, talented educators and writers welcomed me, no questions asked. No one laughed at my “wonky, toppling, broken, undercooked thing.” In fact, the opposite occurred. Everyone offered support, encouragement, and praise. Kind words made me brave. They gave me the courage to try anything, even if I had no idea what I was doing.

Over the years, like ripples in a pond, my circle of online writing friends has grown. I’ve been lucky to meet many of you in person. Through all of this, I have learned so much. Thanks to all of you, I am a better writer and a better teacher. For that I am forever grateful.

I’m looking forward to another year of writing and learning with you all. Happy New Year.

Poetry Friday: Comet Seekers

December 30, 2016December 30, 2016 Catherine Flynn8 Comments

This week I read The Comet Seekers, by Helen Sedgwick, a beautiful, lyrical novel about two seekers whose paths crisscross throughout the book. Amazingly (coincidentally?), there is a comet in our neck of the galaxy this month. Comet 45P/Honda-Mrkos-Pajdušáková may be visible with a telescope or binoculars tomorrow evening. How could I not write a haiku about a comet today?

comet seekers scan
every corner of the sky
searching for marvels

Comet detail of Bayeux Tapestry [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Please be sure to visit Donna Smith at Mainely Write for the Poetry Friday Roundup.

Poetry Friday: Hurrying Home

December 23, 2016December 23, 2016 Catherine Flynn9 Comments

Mary Lee Hahn’s #haikuforhealing project has grown on me, and I find myself composing haiku in my head as I’m driving, doing the dishes, or folding laundry. Yesterday as I headed out for one last round of Christmas shopping, flocks of geese flew overhead, inspiring today’s haiku.

patchwork clouds
stitched with vees of honking geese
hurrying homeward

Wishing you all the happiest of holidays and a new year filled with love and joy!

Please be sure to visit Buffy Silverman at Buffy’s Blog for the Poetry Friday Roundup.

Slice of Life: Snow Day Haiku

December 20, 2016December 20, 2016 Catherine Flynn13 Comments

Mary Lee Hahn‘s #haikuforhealing has become addictive, and Saturday’s snow scattered commonplace marvels everywhere.

tattered cobweb
now a crystal tapestry
transformed by winter’s kiss

a snowy thicket
strewn with breathing boulders:
deer hunker down

a mighty hunter,
sidelined by an icy gale,
dreams of chasing mice

Poetry Friday: Cloudshadows

December 15, 2016December 15, 2016 Catherine Flynn10 Comments

“Heaven is under our feet as well as over our heads.”
~ Henry David Thoreau ~

Deep in the woods behind our house is a pond where our boys fished in the spring, searched for turtles and snakes in the summer and fall, and ice skated in the winter. As they grew older, they spent less time in the woods and at the pond, and the path that led to it became overgrown and impassable.

Earlier this fall, my husband cleared the path and the pond was accessible to us again. I spent some time there a few weeks ago, soaking up the peacefulness of the woods. It was a perfect spot to find “commonplace marvels” and to be inspired for Mary Lee’s #haikuforhealing.

cloudshadows float across
the pond’s unruffled surface:
sky mirror

Please be sure to visit Tabatha Yeatts at The Opposite of Indifference for the Poetry Friday Roundup.

A Bite-Sized Slice: Haiku

December 13, 2016 Catherine Flynn10 Comments

I had such good intentions for writing a slice today. I started writing a post last night that had promise. I was sure I’d have time to work on it during lunch today. No such luck. Now I’m heading out to see George Takei’s Broadway show, ALLEGIANCE, at our local movie theater. I have been trying to keep up with Mary Lee Hahn‘s #haikuforhealing this month, so here are a few of my favorites from the past week.

blue jays perch in trees
ready to launch an attack
on sunflower seeds

bite-sized chocolate orbs
hide a surprise inside:
memories of you

loops of spun softness
slip off quicksilver needles
cozy hat blossoms

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