God Got a Dog - A Gem

Cynthia Rylant and Marla Frazee.  Another perfect combination.  Using sixteen poems from God Went to Beauty School, they've created a beautiful collection in God Got a Dog.  Who doesn't love these two talented women?
     What I imagine most is Marla chatting with Cynthia about this book, these poems, during their collaboration.  And, me only wishing I could have been a fly on the wall... okay, actually a fellow reader/writer sitting with the both of them at the table as they chatted.  Can you imagine?  Cynthia Rylant, a writer's writer/illustrator.  Marla Frazee, a writer's writer/illustrator.  Two talents that God has put together to create this book... two talents that we all admire.  Imagine.
     Now there might be a few biblical scholars who would disagree with Rylant's interpretation of God.  But, they can't argue with the fact that she's a brilliant writer who writes from her heart, a wordsmith beyond compare.  And her words, coupled with Frazee's illustrations make a reader's heart happy.  And who doesn't need a heart that's happy?  God himself said so in Proverbs 15:13 and Proverbs 4:23.  A happy heart is good medicine! 
     My favorite poem in the entire collection is "God Went to India."  Perhaps it's because it reminded me of my mom and her love for elephants (I have two from her collection).  Perhaps it reminded me of my daughter and her recent life-changing trip to visit the orphanages in India.  But, perhaps it's because of this beautiful section:

 God understands mourning

better than any other emotion,

better even than love.

Because He has lost

everything He has

ever made.

You make life.

You make death.

The things God makes

always turn into

something else and

He does find this good. 

But He can't help missing all the originals.

      
     So, Rylant fans.  So, Frazee fans.  We have a new gem for our collections.  Two of our friends have come together to create this special book.  God does do good work.  And, we can only hope that these new-found friends collaborate and come together on the pages of another book... sooner than later. 

     In the meantime, I'll be sitting at my table with the two of them, reading God Got a Dog. Imagining that they, too, were wishing that were HERE!  Imagine.  

... and our hearts are happy!

To Look at Any Thing...

Change

The summer

still hangs

heavy and sweet

with sunlight

as it did last year.

The autumn

still comes 

showering gold and crimson 

as it did last year.

The winter 

still stings

clean and cold and white

as it did last year.

The spring

still comes 

like a whisper in the dark night.

It is only I 

who have changed.

Charlotte Zolotow

 (c) 1978 To Look at Anything 

Lee Bennett Hopkins

This is my favorite poem from Lee Bennett Hopkins's book To Look at Any Thing.  Have you seen the book?  It's a collection of poetry centered around nature photographs by John Earl taken in Georgia.  Circa 1978.

There's something endearing when you find yourself thumbing through the pages of a book that was published 35 years ago.  The black and white photographs, coupled with poetry from some of our most extraordinary poets was a treat to reread.  To read Charlotte Zolotow's words in "Change," or Patricia Hubbell's words in "Beginning of Thoughts," or Lilian Moore's words in "Encounter," or Langston Hughes's words in "Hope."  This is a special book. 

I think it behooves us to look through our classroom and personal libraries and find "gems" we can share with our students.  

More importantly, it's important for us to reread great writing for ourselves.  To nudge our own writing.  To conjure up memories of the poets we love.  To think of ways to inspire others.  To remember that "new" is not always better.  To take a look at "any thing" and know that perhaps there's a poem hidden in even the simplest objects. 

Bananas in My Ears

Michael Rosen.  We all know him from We're Going on A Bear Hunt, This is Our House, and Michael Rosen's Sad Book.  Or any of his other 140+ books!

One of my new favorites is Bananas in My Ears.  It's illustrated by Sir Quentin Blake, the very first British Children's Laureate.  They've collaborated on many titles over the years.  Bananas in My Ears is published by Candlewick Press.  

This books is a collection of silly rhymes, stories, and poems.  And what a grand collaboration it is between two brilliant artists.  One supplies the words.  One supplies the illustrations to support the words. 

Sometimes it's fun to run across a text that's just, well, silly!  And, of course, it's fun to read aloud, use for inferring, use for writing nudges.  But above all else, it's just a fun book.  

My favorite bits in the book are the "Nat and Anna" stories.  Mainly because they remind me of my own children.  

• Nat, trying to get Anna's attention.  Anna pretending Nate is invisible.  Hilarious.
• Nat following on the beach, afraid of jellyfish. 
• Nat and Anna having breakfast!  Enter mom!

I think that if you gave this book to two fourth graders (or first, or second, or tenth) and had them read... they'd laugh, they'd want to write, they'd talk.  It's a simple book full of silly stuff!  And, sometimes, we gotta have a little silly in our lives.

Thank you to my friends at Candlewick Press !

Summer Readin' - Had Me A Blast!

Last week, I email this to my fourth grade students from last year.  I thought I'd post it on All-en-a-Day's Work as well.  My friend, Dana, and I were chatting on the phone and she asked me what I ordered... here's the list!  Enjoy.

- - - - - - - 

Good Morning, 

I hope your summer is off to a good start... full of fun, family, and reading (and some math and some writing and perhaps some investigating of creatures living in your backyard)!

My summer is off to a grand start. I spent a week in Minnesota working with teachers there (I also got some cheese curds in Wisconsin and visited the town near where Laura Ingalls was born).  I came home with a few books (surprise) and some artwork from local artists in the places we visited.  I spent three days with Lauryn's first grade teacher, Mrs. Franklin, and her husband (my wife and Lauryn went with me) who now live in Minnesota in a quaint little town.  I had dinner with Mr. Muma's old boss and went to his house to visit.  My wife and I joked about perhaps moving to Minnesota when I retire in five or ten years or so!  

This week I've spent time reading and writing and reading and writing some more.  I'm on about page three of a new book, but I've also been doing some other writing as well.  I am babysitting Tonka, my son's dog.  She and Timber are keeping me on my toes (right now they are sleeping on my toes).   

I wanted to update you on my book purchases (for those of you who gave me gift cards especially) over the past week.  It's been so much fun reading other teacher's blogs and making a list of "must haves" for the classroom.  So much fun, in fact, that I decided to send you the titles so you'd know what I purchased (and perhaps nudge you to do a bit of book investigating on your own).  

I thought maybe a trip to the library with a few titles in hand would add to your summer reading.  You know, it's just as important to read 20 (make that 30) minutes a day in the summer as it is during the school year.  Lauryn's favorite summer reading includes the free pamphlets that we find when we go to the zoo, museums, etc.  We're all rereading some of our favorite "picture" books this summer (that's a silly term - they are more than picture books) and talking about them.  We're also trying to spend time without the noise box (television) on... especially now that "The Voice" is over.  I'm also trying to write about my reading every day.  

Most of these titles aren't novels, but rather the kinds of books that we, as writers, use as mentors to nudge our writing.  Just in case you're interested, here's what I ordered:

• Just in Time for Christmas by Louise Borden (a dog story by a friend of mine--she's a fabulous writer; so kind and funny in real life)
• His Name was Raoul Wallenberg by Louise Borden (if you loved Hana's Suitcase, you'll love this one)
• The Matchbox Diary by Paul Fleischman (yes, that Fleischman family)
• The Journey That Saved Curious George: The True Wartime Escape of Margret and H.A. Rey by Louise Borden (also a good cousin text to Hana's Suitcase)
• The Old Ways: A Journey on Foot by Robert Macfarlane (this is an adult book that I thought looked intriguing)
• Forest Has a Song: Poems by Amy Ludwig VanDerwater (this would have been good to have during our ecosystem study, plus her name is fun to say)
• The Truth of Me by Patricia MacLachlan (this is brand new and hasn't been released yet, but I preordered it)
• Gone Fishing: A novel by Tamera Will Wissinger (a short novel in verse, a good read aloud... and great poetry, lots of ideas to nudge writing in our "Write at Home" notebooks.  And again, isn't Will Wissinger just fun to say outloud!)
• My First Day by Steve Jenkins (great nonfiction mixed with narrative, a great repeating line book)
• Lullaby by Jane Chelsea Aragon (simply because I love Salt Hands and Ms. Aragon lived fulfilling, writing life... by the way, Salt Hands is NOT easy to find)
• Winter Harvest by Jane Chelsea Aragon (again... she's a great writer)
• Georgia's Bones by Jen Bryant (she wrote A River of Words and this is about a famous artist named Georgia O'Keefe)
• A Splash of Red: The Life and Art of Horace Pippin by Jen Bryant (a cousin text to A River of Words, perhaps)
• Ice Bear: In the Steps of the Polar Bear by Nicola Davies (my daughter won't let me have her copy and I love this book)
• The Train Jumper by Don Brown (he wrote Bright Path)
• Abe's Fish: A Boyhood Tale of Abraham Lincoln by Jen Bryant (surprise, another book by her)
• Mack Made Moves by Don Brown (another great Don Brown book... I think I have-or will have-most of them now)
• White Owl, Barn Owl by Nicole Davies (I love her mix of nonfiction and narrative... she wrote Bat Loves the Night)
• Rare Treasure: Mary Anning and Her Remarkable Discoveries by Don Brown (he's one of my favorite writers, as you know)

I also ordered these books used:

• Together by George Ella Lyon (my paperback copy is kind of falling apart - illustrated by Vera Rosenberry)
• Mail Myself to You by Woody Guthrie (illustrated by Vera Rosenberry)
• Let it Begin Here!: April 19, 1775: The Day the American Revolution Began (Don Brown - about an important time in our history)
• Dolly Madison Saves George Washington (Don Brown - haven't read this one yet and can't wait!)
• The Notorious Izzy Fink (Don Brown - this looks really good)
• Ruth Law Thrills a Nation (Don Brown - an aviation heroine)
• All Stations! Distress!: April 15, 1912: The Day the Titanic Sank (Don Brown - to add to my growing Titanic collection)
• The Good Lion (Don Brown - Beryl Markhams' story)
• Uncommon Traveler: Mary Kingsley in Africa (Don Brown - another adventurous woman)
• Across a Dark and Wild Sea (Don Brown--which I think I may already have... but it's amazing)
• Moonpie and Ivy by Barbara O'Connor (I wonder why?)
• Barefoot Dancer: The Story of Isadora Duncan by Barbara O'Connor (Hmm....)
• Fame and Glory in Freedom, Georgia by Barbara O'Connor (one of her early books)
• Greetings from Nowhere by Barbara O'Connor (a copy for the room)
• Read to Me by Judi Moreillon (my friend Paul, from Indiana recommended this one, and he teaches high school and uses it with his kids - I always trust his recommendations)
• Sing Down the Rain by Judi Moreillon (just a beautifully illustrated story and I've been thinking a lot about rain lately)

Again, enjoy your summer!  I hope that you'll find some quiet time to reflect and reenergize before school starts in August.  I'll think of you fondly as I prepare for a new adventure with a new group of learners. 

All the best, 

Mr. Allen

Do Good!

Make Magic!  Do Good!  Admire Dallas Clayton!

I could end this blog post right now!  His collection of poetry in Make Magic!  Do Good! is simply stunning.

I wept when I read his poem "Genius" (emotions running high?).  There was something about it that reminded me of our work as teachers... the power of sharing dreams with others.  When I read the line, "...and they'd wake up in the dark of the night with one small idea that would change the world forever..." memories came over me like a steam roller.  

Childhood.  It's so fleeting and I worry about the lives of youngsters.  I had a great conversation with my friend, Katie Keier, this week about play.  And, I think when I got home and sat down to read this book, our conversation was still tumbling through my mind.  The personal connection I had with this poem and others ("Colors," "Try!" "Love Song") makes me excited to get these little poetic gems into the hands of students.

I was joking with a friend about the fact that "blogging" has created a "shopping frenzy" at local independent bookstores around the country.  And, yes, this book is a must have (especially in a certain classroom at Little Elementary, wink!).  And, yes, I'm adding Dallas Clayton's other books to my own shopping list!

Listen to part of the book flap, "I write books and draw pictures, and I travel the world and read stories to children of all ages and talk to them about their lives and jump into water and climb up trees and paint walls and have adventures."  Now who couldn't love a book by an author who says that?  Who does that?  Who lives that?

I'll end this little post with Mr. Clayton's poem, "Travel Stories"

Her quiet stories were best of all

'cause she never wrote 'em down

she lived 'em out by traveling' 

and roamin' in town to town

meetin' folks

and sharin' jokes

as the world went round and round...

Now travel to your local Indy and buy this one!  Make Magic!  Do Good!

• • • • • • • • • • • 

Read this interview of Dallas, it's "awesome" and so captures the spirit of his work... here's a snippet, "Basically, I wake up each morning to a new letter or a new email or a new article or a new photo of someone telling me that what I have made has helped inspire them in some small way. That’s my reality. Every day! Isn’t that crazy!? It’s like waking up each morning to a kiss on the cheek or a gold medal or a really big warm hug."

Thanks to my friends at Candlewick Press for your brilliant work.

Lee Bennett Hopkins - Awe!

Imagine the awe, receiving a box of books from Lee Bennett Hopkins on your doorstep.  The man who is responsible for putting millions of words in the hearts and minds of young poets, young thinkers, young writers via his tremendous body of work.  The man who has spent his life exploring the beauty of language, of life, of children.  Imagine the awe!

      I remember seeing Lee receive the 2009 National Council of Teachers of English Award for Excellence in Poetry for Children.  I remember hearing some of my favorite poets share their words and talk about the impact Lee's influence has had on their lives.  Most of the speakers had slight timbers of reverence in their voices... warm, crisp, respectful, loving, happy.  Each seemed honored to talk about their friend in humble terms.  But, mind you, raucous laughter filled the room that November day in Philadelphia.

     I blogged about it at the time (click here).  It was quite a party!

     I remember my friends Troy, Randi, and I leaving the session amazed by the talent in the room.  It was one of the best sessions we attended (I'm sure many of you were there) and we, in fact, still talk about it.  Lee was the rock star of the afternoon (we even snuck a handshake after the session)!  Here I am, a few years later, writing about the box of titles he recently sent my way...  

Opening Days:  Sports Poems.  A wonderful collection of poems about a variety of sports.  Two of my favorite poems are "Final Score" by Lee and "The Spearthrower" by Lillian Morrison.  A wonderful nudge to encourage children to write about passion topics in a different genre... or just to sit back and let the power of the words float through their sports-oriented minds. 

Give Me WIngs.  A delightful anthology that makes you soar.  I adore "I, Icarus" by Alden Nowlan and "If I Had the Power of Wings" by Lillian M. Fisher.  This book makes me want to open the "wing box" and fly.  Who hasn't want to fly?  Who hasn't dreamed of the possibility?  Who hasn't been jolted awake by the feeling of a nighttime outing among the birds?

Full Moon and Star.  A wonderful picture book in which Kyle and Katie combine their two plays to create one play.  It's about collaboration and friendship.  Two minds are better than one.  "We should always do things together."  Precious.

Incredible Inventions.  We often take common objects for granted.  The poetry in this book reminds me of the joy that simple things can bring.  I love "Take the Escalator" by Kristine O'Connell George and "The Ferris Wheel" by Elizabeth Upton.  Both make me reminisce about my childhood and my own children... they just make me smile!

Dear One:  A Tribute to Lee Bennett Hopkins.  Published as a tribute for his 2009 NCTE award, this book is the whole ball-of-wax, a collection of amazing poems by all our favorite poets.  I close my eyes and remember the voices behind many of the poems as they were read at the "Poetry Party."  Georgia Heard's "Archeologist of Poetry," Mary Ann Hoberman's "Hopkins Hopkins Hop Hop Hop!"  Ralph Fletcher's, "The Rooster." and of course, Walter Dean Myers's "For Lee, my friend." 

I am on a mission to collect as many of Lee's books as I can gather.  And, just when I think I'm ahead of the game, I'm surprised by a new title... one I haven't seen, one that's been hidden in my stacks, one that a friend sends me.  A friend like, well, Lee!  

• • • • • 

There have many MANY wonderful interviews with Lee and articles written about him over the years... here are a few of my favorites, check them out!

This interview with Lee on Poetry at Play  

This interview at The Miss Rumphius Effect

This article:  Mining with a Jeweler's Eye

October Mourning

One of the highlights of NCTE 2012 for me was sitting next to Leslea Newman at a dinner party.  The dinner was lovely, we shared great conversation, and lots of laughter was floating around the table.  Strangers who shared a bit of time together.  After dessert, we circulated to the other three tables and had books signed by the other authors (those posts are coming).  Delightful.
     In the airport and on the flight home, I read her book October Mourning:  A Song for Matthew Shepard* and I only wish I had read it before dinner.  I know that it's made its way onto several award lists (including the Nerdies) since that time.  Ms. Newman's book is a lasting tribute to Matthew Shepard, whose life ended far too early and whose senseless death is unimaginable.  Fortunately, Ms. Newman found the courage and respect to tell Matthew's story.  As I was sitting the airport reading, tears were welling in my eyes (read the poem "Every Mother's Plea" and you'll understand).  Ms. Newman's honest, poignant, and compassionate story is heart-wrenching.  Her sixty-eight poems capture the horrific events of that October night from the points-of-view of everyone and everything that surrounded his death, including the moon, the fencepost, the sheriff, his mother, the rope... it's not an easy read, but an important one.  
     As a writer, you'll notice many tools Leslea used to weave her incredible piece.  You'll notice that she shares an explanation of the poetic forms she used when writing the text.  You'll notice that she included an explanation of epigraphs used throughout the text.  You'll notice that the "Afterward" is just as important as the poems contained in her story.  You'll notice that writers who take on tough subjects can do so with grace and honor, even when writing about tough subjects.  You'll notice that writers who have passion produce amazing results.  You'll notice that when a writer writes with purpose, the reader is changed forever.
     If we were having dinner tonight it would still be lovely, we'd still share great conversation, and lots of laughter would float around the table.  Strangers who shared a bit of time together would still leave all the better.  After dessert, I would have leaned to my left and said, "Thank you!"  Thank you, Leslea.

• • •

*(the only reason I put it down in the airport was because some of my Ohio friends were at the next gate and we had to visit a bit before we both took off... but that's another story).  

Home? Where's Yours"

Home.  Where’s yours?  Today I was reading from a wonderful collection by Lee Bennett Hopkins called, Home to Me: Poems Across America.  It’s a grand collection of poetry about “home” and it is striking!

I’ve been thinking about home a lot of late.  Today, I was sitting in my classroom after school, with a pile of books on my table, planning our next study as writers.  In Lee’s book, Pass the Poetry, Please!, I read the words Lucille Clifton offered, “… lives become generations made out of pictures and words just kept.”  Generations.   

And, as I was reading Home to Me I was awestruck when I read Rebecca Kai Dotlich’s poem “A Place Called Prairie.”  I was breathless with her words, “I breathe in stories told to me; when winds came calling, a fine dust falling on these same prairie plains…”  And then, I read “Needed” by Sandra Gilbert Brug.  That was it.  I was brought to tears, remembering…

I started remembering my childhood.  Remembering times spent with my brother-in-law and sister on the “Turkey Track” near Colorado Springs.  Remembering playing with my nieces in the hayloft, in the corrals, in the chicken houses.  Remembering grand dinners and lunches whipped up my sister, Doris.  Remembering feeding cattle, learning to drive the pickup, riding horses, branding cattle.  Remembering laughter and country songs playing on the phonograph.  Remembering the warmth of eggs as I gathered them in the morning.  Remembering tomatoes canned at summer's end.  Remembering gatherings of neighbors and friends.  Remembering falling asleep to the night sounds of coyotes on the lawn and then the raucous roosters waking us in the morning.  Remembering… The simplicity.  The joy.  The hard work.  The life.  Home.

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about where our educational road is leading young learners.  I think about assessments and standards and backwards planning and publishers out to make a buck.  And the plethora of “stuff” whipped up by the those whose home is farthest away from children... in the name of accountability and ‘being number one.”  Instead of slowing down, we keep speeding up… and learners who need to think deeply, ponder regularly, and question often still have a place in the 21^st Century.  It's my hope that we can all slow down a bit, after all, isn't that want the core content standards propose?  Depth, not breadth.  Synthesis, not regurgitation.  Thinking, not filling in blanks. 

But, back to home.  What I’m really thinking about is story.  Ruth Ayres always inspires me to remember story (she reminds us not to forget story and its importance in our lives).  Ruth’s voice has been echoing in my brain since I heard her keynote at the AllWrite Conference last summer.  And, so I’m befuddled.  In all the madness and rush to move readers and writers through continuums, programs, rubrics, and such, I worry about the simplicity, the organic nature of learning, the heart of the learner.  Moving slowly and deeply must lead children safely into the complexity of this thing called learning.

As I pondered Lee’s work today, I began to lay out our next “unit of study.”  I decided that we, as learners, are going to have to take the slow path, the scenic path, enough to do some remembering.  We’re going to have to dig deep into the satchels of memory we carry (don’t worry, I’ll make sure we’re learning something viable).  We’re going to have create the same kinds joy that has inspired Lee, Lucille, Rebecca, and Ruth. 

Home. The power of “home.”

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

Here’s what I jotted in my journal in response to the reading I did this afternoon.  A little poem, just to ground my thinking.  Enjoy.

Prairie

I drove to the prairie today,

For what?  I don’t quite know.

Perhaps to listen for the sound of cattle hooves

tramping across their well-worn pasture path.

Perhaps to see the windmill blades

churning beside a lone horse tank.

Perhaps to smell the dampness of the blue grama
drifting amidst a prairie wind.

Perhaps to touch the dusty earth
warming slowly after morning rain.

Perhaps to taste the evening breeze
blowing its breath into the world.

I drove to the prairie today,
For what?  Perhaps just to remember.

Perhaps to return... home. 

p.s.  As I reread this post, I felt this kinetic jump from topic to topic... a slight disconnect.  But, it's what was on my mind.  Let's just call it... random post for the month!

Books that naturally create a sense of song...

My dear friend, Randi Allison (click on her name to see her poetry website) just bought a house in the desert.  Palm Desert.  When I read this book by Tony Johnston, I thought of her.  Day is Done.  Twilight Comes.  The perfect first words for a lyrical, poetic piece.
     It's a beautifully illustrated book by Ed Young in beautiful colors, simple lines.  And his illustrations match Tony Johnston's words perfectly.  There's a stillness and quietness that created for me the perfect sensory image for desert life.  I'm sure as Randi looks out at the surroundings near her new home (away from home), she gets the same feeling I get, sitting here on my front porch reading.
     I love a book like Desert Songs that creates a crescendo then a lull, a crescendo then a lull... it's reminiscent of The Whales by Cynthia Rylant.  Hmm... perhaps they could be tied together within a study of picture books that create that sense of peace for the reader.  I may have to consider a unit of study using books like these as the anchor...
     If it brings such an incredible sense of peace to the reader, perhaps as a writer it will create that same gift.  I may have to do some experimenting in my own notebook!  See where it leads...
     What other books create this same sense?  Ideas?

She Did Do it!

Patricia MacLachlan's and Emily MacLachlan Charest's second book of poetry I Didn't Do It dedicated to our canine friends is a real treat.  It's the perfect sibling text to Once I Ate a Pie.  They've teamed up with Katy Schneider to create an adorable collection of poetry paired with irresistible illustrations.
     "Every Night" almost made me dash out an get that puppy my family so desperately wants!  Every night you sing the song about the stars and moon.  Every night you pat my head... who can resist these words?
     "Rules" is hilarious.  First the human rules, No tick! No Bite!... then the dog's rules... Eat all you want.  Sleep when you want... Drooling is good.  I laughed out loud when I read this one!  I read it the same day my friend told me his new basset hound puppy ate a muffin off the coffee table... on the run!  
     This is the kind of book that can get young writers writing... about their pets, their lives, their experiences.  Quickwrites, memory writes... the notebook possibilities are endless.  So rich in schema and inferring.  I think this book will find its way into a few crafting lessons when I go back to school next week.
     I adore Patricia MacLachlan.  From my first read of Sarah Plain and Tall to Arthur for the Very First Time to Baby.  From All the Places to Love to What You Know First to Painting the Wind.  There hasn't been a Patricia MacLachlan book that I haven't found compelling, beautifully written, and heart-warming.  Perhaps there's a kindred spirit we meet within the context of words... I think Patrician MacLachlan could be mine.  Maybe it's being from the west!
    I Didn't Do It is no exception.  In fact, she has done it... written another book that should be in every classroom!  When you see the cover sitting on the bookstore shelf... those puppy dog eyes say, "Buy me, buy me!"  And you should...

Soccer and Poetry

Opening Days:  Sports Poems by Lee Bennett Hopkins is another of my favorite books.  Something about the poetry, the artwork, the thrill of reading, the sport... draws me in!  I love reading these poems with students and listening to them read aloud with prosody... the tone, the emphasis on certain vowels, the pitch, the syllable length!  And we worry about fluency... all we have to do is practice with a poem or two! 

     One of my favorite poems is "Soccer" and that's where I will be today, watching my daughter play.  She loves the game and she plays with such grace with her gazelle-like legs.  Watching her play is like reading a poem by Lee Bennett Hopkins... she punctuates with her toes, kicks each side kick with execution, stops on a dime, such precision in the scores!  She plays with athletic prosody (I made that up).  Watching your children on the field is a wonderful treat!

     But as I type this (on Friday night), I look over and see a reader lying on the couch.  The television's off.  The house is quiet.  And we are both at work... reader and writer... enjoying the pleasure of the sport! 

 

Soccer

Twenty-two

prayers

on

reverent grass.

kick

and

dribble

trap

and

pass--

sprint

and

run

tackle 

and 

fall--

all

for

the

love

of

the

sacred

ball.

This is a picture of her in action, by the way!

A Sensagoria

I was cleaning the library upstairs a bit and found my copy of Voices from the Wild by David Bouchard in one of my bags.  Whenever I travel, I always toss it in my bag.  It's the perfect book of poetry to use with any thinking strategy... it's provocative, thought-provoking, and unusual.

     I got this book in 1999 from a student who had just begun to develop Stargardt's Disease.  Since that time, he's gone on to college to pursue a degree in engineering, he's hiked in the Andes, and runs in races.  He doesn't let his disability deter him.  When he was in my classroom, there was little technology for students with visual impairments, but I remember him as a gifted writer.  I think it's ironic that the book he gave me that year was a "sensagoria" about relying on senses to survive.

     Each section of the book deals with a specific sense in mind.  Written in first person, the poetry is rich in detail.  Each poem tells how animals use their senses to hunt and avoid being hunted.  The illustrations are beautiful.  We learn how animals rely on their keen senses to survive.

     I use several poems in the book for inferring, determining what's important in text, and creating sensory images.  It's beautiful and simple... and not easy!  I love this poetry book.  And, whenever I open it, I remember that one of my students, who himself relied on other senses to succeed gave it to me.  I wonder if he remembers?

Blu? Bleu? Blue?

This week a colleague sent us a picture of her new Great Dane puppy named Bleu.  So, one of the poems I jotted in my writer's notebook this week is about our Australian Shephard, Blu.  She was a great dog ( my wife and I inherited her from my brother and sister-in-law when they moved to Alaska).  Piercing blue eyes.  Long blue merle coat.  An affinity for chasing ducks.  A quiet presence.  A gentile and graceful friend.  A happy wag and a love for snow.  She and Nicholas, our black spaniel mix, were always the best of pals.
     We eventually had her put to sleep.  It was a sad day.  She was old, blind, and weak.  Her coat had lost most of its luster.  We tried to replace her with Annie, another Aussie, but she wasn't the same (although she, too, was a good dog).  There was only one Blu (and Nicholas too).
     Haven't had a dog since (although a Newfoundland tops the list)... but we have memories.  Blu falling off a two-story balcony and surviving, wandering blindly down below (no injuries).  Blu running across fallen trees over mountain river streams.  Blu breathing with the WORST dog breath ever.  Blu eating her way through any fence that tried to contain her.  She was a long-haired Aussie, beautiful.  A great dog.  So, thanks to my colleague for sharing Bleu and thanks to Mary Lee for nudging me to write a poem each day.  This is the first one I'm sharing:

Blu

I saw your puppy, Bleu today.
My heart was reminded of our Blu.
 
I often dream of her dancing in the snow,
throwing white winter wisps high into the air,
watching snowflakes land on her blue merle coat,
melting softly into silky fur.
Seeing her smile.

I often dream of her waiting,
sitting beside me patiently, longing for a pet,
wagging her tail with hope,
asking with piercing blue eyes for a treat,
knowing she is loved.
Seeing her smile.

I often dream of her sleeping soundly,
laying on my tired feet, snoring,
her heartbeat gently warming cold toes,
knowing she'll soon want a walk,
one eye opens, hoping it comes soon.
Seeing her smile.

I often dream of her barking softly,

sharing her quiet voice, demure,

a happy bark rumbling from deep inside,

never obnoxious, always sincere,

a bark of happiness and joy.

Seeing her smile.

I saw your puppy, Bleu today.

And was reminded.
I miss our Blu...