Robyn Hood Black - children's author, poet, artist

Well, my post last week all wrapped up in love seems appropriate for this week, too... I'm helping my best friend from college with her daughter's wedding this weekend!  Happy for the special couple, and not together enough to have done a post beforehand to share.  Hope you have a LOVEly weekend yourself - please go enjoy a fun poem and wonderful roundup hosted by Tabatha at The Opposite of Indifference.  :0)

Greetings, Poetry Lovers!

 

Confesstion:  On Thursday morning, I blew off work to finish a book while rocking on the front porch.  We had a slow, steady rain all day and temps just in the upper 60s and low 70s, so can you blame me?  Everything is still lush and green. We'll be back to pushing 90 this weekend. 

 

I finally finished THE HOUSE IN THE CERULEAN SEA by TJ Klune (website here.)  The book was published in 2020 by TOR, and my family members have been raving about it as it got passed from person to person. If you haven't read it, no spoilers - but one does learn early on that snuggled up into the main storyline is a quiet love story between main character Linus and oh-so-compelling Arthur. So count me in its large fan club! (I know the author has published two more books since then - and others before.  I didn't say I was particularly timely.)

 

With love in mind, I went searching for an old August-y poem for this week, noting in some of my dusty tomes in my studio that for our British friends, "traditional" harvest thoughts begin in August, and did for us Americans until we came up with Thanksgiving.  At any rate, I stumbled upon a poem by American author James Whitcomb Riley (1849-1916 - learn about this popular poet and children's writer here) that jived with my love poem/harvesty/blue moon-super-moon-month sensibilities at the moment.  It's from RILEY LOVE-LYRICS, with "life pictures" by William B. Dyer, published by Grosset & Dunlap. The copyright goes back to 1883, but this edition is 1905.  The dreamy photograph above accompanies the poem.

 

      WHEN MY DREAMS COME TRUE

 

                    I

 

When my dreams come true - when my dreams 

        come true - 

Shall I lean from out my casement, in the starlight and 

        the dew,

To listen - smile and listen to the tinkle of the strings

Of the sweetest guitar my lover's fingers fondle, as he sings?

And as the nude moon slowly, slowly shoulders into view,

Shall I vanish from his vision - when my dreams come

        true?

 

When my dreams come true - shall the simple gown I 

        wear

Be changed to softest satin, and my maiden-braided hair

Be raveled into flossy mists of rarest, fairest gold,

To be minted into kisses, more than any heart can hold? -

Or "the summer of my tresses" shall my lover liken to

"The fervor of his passion" - when my dreams come true?

 

 

                   II

 

When my dreams come true - I shall lie among the

        sheaves

Of happy harvest meadows; and the grasses and the 

        leaves

Shall lift and lean between me and the splendor of the

        sun,

Till the moon swoons into twilight, and the gleaners'

        work is done - 

Save that yet an arm shall bind me, even as the reapers do

The meanest sheaf of harvest - when my dreams come

        true.

 

When my dreams come true ! when my dreams come true!

True love in all simplicity is fresh and pure as dew; -

The blossom in the blackest mold is kindlier to the eye

Than any lily born of pride that looms against the sky;

And so it is I know my heart will gladly welcome you,

My lowliest of lovers, when my dreams come true.

 

 

And, finally, a feel-good love story gem in case you missed it.  I found in the Weather Channel app videos, but you can Google and find other references, like this one on Good Morning America's Instagram.  Seems a farmer in Kansas, Lee Wilson, wanted to surprise his wife with something special on their 50th wedding anniversary this month. With help from his son, he planted 80 acres of sunflowers - 1.2 million of them! - timing them to bloom right about now.  Sigh and swoon. :0)

 

For lots of swoon-worthy poetry this first Poetry Friday of August, and blessings from the natural world, visit the multi-talented Mary Lee at A(nother) Year of Reading. 

Quick wave from the Road... I have the good fortune to go hang out with more writer/illustrator friends this weekend, so I don't have a real post.  But please paddle on over to see the lovely Margaret at Reflections on the Teche for this week's Roundup!

 

Greetings, Poetry Lovers! 

 

Perhaps you had the good fortune as I did this week to attend a virtual treat:  the online book launch of WELCOME TO THE WONDER HOUSE, a gorgeous picture book with poems by Rebecca Kai Dotlich and Georgia Heard and illustrations by Deborah Freedman.  It's hot off the press from WordSong, which is now an imprint of Astra Books for Young Readers.

 

[*UPDATE*:  Deborah Freedman kindly sent a link to the recorded launch on YouTube - you can watch it HERE!]

 

The online launch included an inspiring discussion moderated by the amazing Betsy Bird with Rebecca, Georgia, Deborah, and WordSong Editorial Director Rebecca M. Davis.  Attendees got peeks inside writer journals and illustrator sketchbooks, and it was fun to hear how verbal and visual ideas grew and flourished into final works. 

 

If you didn't catch the discussion, by all means catch the book!  It's one of those rare combinations of exquisite and accessible.  The reader is welcomed into different rooms, beginning with the "ROOM of CURIOSITY" and ending with the "ROOM of WISHES."  There are rooms for ordinary things, creatures, time, quiet, and mystery, to name a few more. 

 

One of Rebecca's poems, in the ROOM of NATURE, begins this way:

 

Beneath a trillion leaves,

cloud-braided with sky,

 

my feet balance on a tangle

of puzzled roots in a wilderness of secrets, ...

 

and Georgia begins one of the poems in the ROOM of PLACE like this:

 

Puzzle-shaped continents and islands

circled by swirls of blue ocean,

turn on this globe I cradle in my hand. ...

 

Their poems take us from the tragic end of the dinosaurs to exhilarating considerations of planets and moons, and to the deep wonders of our hearts and minds.

 

Deborah Freedman's mixed media art is simply glorious.  In the talk, she mentioned her training as an architect, and crisp lines and amazing details confirm this skill set. Plus, you might find yourself gazing at blueprints and architectural seals (those official-looking round stamp impressions)!  This is a book you'll want to enjoy with or without its dustjacket and definitely with its endpapers. The precision in places in no way makes the pictures cold or too technical, though - flowing, graduated colors, surprise elements and compositions, and a winsome little animal here or there beckon us to enjoy it all. 

 

I can imagine this book as a special gift for about a zillion occasions.  If you order one for this purpose, just make sure to order an extra copy to keep - it's one that children and adults will want to return to, revealing new secrets with each read. 

 

Learn more about Georgia Heard here, Rebecca Kai Dotlich here, Deborah Freedman here, and Rebecca M. Davis and WordSong here. Many thanks to Betsy Bird for another exceptional visit with children's book creators!

 

And in case you don't know, Rebecca and Georgia put on some mighty fine poetry workshops... well worth attending if you're so inclined.

 

The multi-talented Linda Mitchell, a student of wonder herself, has our Roundup this week at A Word Edgewise.  Thank you, Linda!

 

Greetings, Poetry Lovers! It's so much fun to meet in person someone whom you've only seen in a little Zoom square. Especially when they bring their adorable dog along. 

 

Most of you know Pomelo Books and the power team of Sylvia Vardell and Janet Wong.  (If you don't, please visit all the poetry magic here.) And many of you know about the online anthology workshops they've offered the last couple of years.  (Info here.)  Participants in these workshops have had the opportunity to submit poems for a book associated with each one, and now there's a nice collection of these user-friendly ekphrastic anthologies being shared in living rooms and classrooms, gathering a trail of awards as they go.  I've had the privilege of participating in a couple of these and meeting new folks through the Zoom gatherings.  When Janet and Sylvia recently offered a new "Think Poetry" workshop geared toward sharing poetry in schools as well as writing, I jumped on that, too, since I love sharing as much poetry as I can during author visits. 

 

Janet also graciously offered to host a bonus in-person Think Poetry workshop/gathering for anyone who could get themselves out here to the beautiful coast of Washington state this week.  My hubby graciously offered to give me all his frequent flyer miles. So here I am! Another participant and contributor to these recent anthologies, Matthew Winter, likewise boarded a plane from the East Coast and flew across the country to join in the fun. And, he brought along his adorable flying companion & canine connoisseur of poetry, Bailey.

 

Matt and I have been staying at the same friendly inn in town and did a little exploring at the small harbor Wednesday before working on some poetry adventures with Janet and Sylvia. It's been a blast!  As an elementary school teacher for 21 years, Matt brings not only his talent as a writer to the table but years of professional experience and expertise with young learners, particularly in the area of reading.  Originally from Maryland, he lives in New York.  

 

"I love to read and write stories and poems for children," Matt says.  Lucky for us, he's sharing them with the world!  Matt's poems are featured in these Pomelo books:  Things We Feel, Things We Wear, What is a Friend?, and What is Family?  While Matt can rollick and roll with playful poetry, as in his "Apron" poem in Things We Wear, he can also capture emotions more difficult to talk about.  

 

Here are two wonderful expamples. 

 

 

MAD

 

I want to roar and rattle

and get ready for battle.

I'm MAD!

 

No!  I don't want to talk.

I want to screech and squawk.

I'm MAD!

 

Breathe in

and

out.

 

Count 1, 2, 3 -

just like magic

I'm back to me. 

 

 

©Matthew Winter

Things We Feel by Sylvia Vardell & Janet Wong, Pomelo Books, 2022.

 

 

HOPE

 

 

In lieu of flowers, please

 

send:

 

love

 

peace

 

comfort

 

joy

 

or 

 

harmony  

 

 

And - 

 

if you can spare - 

 

maybe a little bit of

 

hope

 

 

for our family

 

 

 

 ©Matthew Winter

What is a Family? by Sylvia Vardell & Janet Wong, Pomelo Books, 2023.

 

 

Look for more of Matt's work soon in the next Pomelo Books anthology! And for another great reason to purchase from Pomelo Books, all profits from this recent anthology series are donated to the IBBY Children in Crisis Fund (IBBY.org).  Sylvia is the current president of IBBY (The International Board on Books for Young People), having served this organization for many years.  Founded in 1953 in Zurich, IBBY reaches across the globe to get books in the hands of young people.  The Children in Crisis Fund was set up in 2005 "to help children affected by natural disasters, civil disorder or war. The Fund seeks donations for projects that replace or create libraries/collections of appropriate children's books and provide bibliography, the therapeutic use of books and storytelling."

 

Many thanks to Matt, and to Sylvia and Janet, for their generosity.

 

For more terrific poetry, visit the oh-so-talented Marcie Flinchum Atkins for the Roundup!

 

Greetings, Poetry Lovers!  I'm chiming in at the end of a family beach vacay to join Irene Latham's "Moon in June" poem party as part of this week's Poetry Friday Roundup.

 

Irene is celebrating the upcoming launch of The Museum on the Moon: The Curious Objects on the Lunar Surface, illustrated by Myriam Wares, and published by Bushel & Peck's Moonshower imprint. Click here to learn more about it and land a copy for yourself! 

 

Congratulations, Irene, and all the creators of what looks like an out-of-this-world collection. 

 

We've been back in the Beaufort area, in the same rental house on Harbor Island where we've gathered for years.  I do miss this charming coastal town! I still sell some artsyletters wares in a couple of shops here, and yesterday I took a few items downtown.  On my drive over the bridge from the sea islands, I realized that this bridge will always remind me of the early evening a few years ago I was crossing it from the same direction and saw a shimmery crescent moon suspended over the river and the rooftops, inspiring a little poem that ended up in Highlights Hello in the fall of 2021. (The beautiful illustration is by Denise Hughes.) I thought, Hey, I could share it again for Irene's poetic lunar soiree. 

 

So, please excuse the repetition for those who have seen it before!  But it's fun sharing a lullaby poem during a trip with our oh-so-active one-year-old baby grand here, where our daily schedules have revolved not around moonrises and moonsets but around mealtimes and naptimes.  Our Sawyer's been a trouper with all things sand and sea and pool.  In fact, he's probably swallowed a wee bit of sand and sea, as those toddler hands move fast.

 

Another fun poetic note, we've all read him Two by Two by Lisa Lowe Stauffer countless times.  (It's a rollicking Noah's Ark tale illustrated by Angelika Scudamore and published by Zonderkids - click here for more info.) Quick backstory: I coordinated a children's poetry weekend workshop for our Southern Breeze region a dozen years ago, and Rebecca Kai Dotlich was our fearless leader.  Lisa was there, and this manuscript, her first published children's book, grew out of that weekend.  Irene was there, too - an accomplished novelist and poet, but she hadn't published her impressive bevy of children's poetry collections yet! 

 

Grateful for all these connections, for adventurous human spirits, and for the moon. 

 

Good Night

by Robyn Hood Black

 

Crescent cradle

In the sky

Sings a silver

Lullaby.

 

Twinklestars

with golden light

Wink and kiss

The world good night. 

 

 

 ©2021 Highlights for Children.

 

Happy SUMMER!  Taking a wee break with some traveling thrown in these next couple of weeks.  Please go visit Linda at A Word Edgewise this week, and Irene at Live Your Poem on the 30th.  (And bring your favorite moon poem to Irene's!) See you soon and Happy Reading, Writing, Creating, and Sun-Basking.... xo

Greetings, Poetry Lovers!  Summer officially starts next week. Here in upstate SC, we've had a record cool June.

 

We've also had some haze from those Canada fires last weekend, believe it or not, though nothing like you poor folks in the Northeast have had to deal with (and Midwest now?).  Last weekend, after a front passed through and the wind changed direction, the air was clear and beautiful.  One great thing about living near Greenville is that we are only about 8 miles north of our alma mater, Furman University.  It has a gorgeous campus and a lake that we walked/ran around 40 years ago and enjoy walking around now.  On Sunday, I snapped the above photo after that front moved through.

 

On South Carolina Public Radio, we have a feature I've always loved - "Nature Notes" with Rudy Mancke.  It's a minute-long segment sprinkled throughout each  weekday's programming, often featuring a question from a listener about some kind of creature discovered in a back yard or under a rock or such.  But often Mr. Mancke will share a classic poem about the natural world, as he did this week, and I thought the verses went well with the fulsome green glory of summer.

 

From his June 13 post:

 

this excerpt from a poem by James Russell Lowell (1819-1891)

 

And what is so rare as a day in June?
Then, if ever, come perfect days;
Then Heaven tries the earth if it be in tune,
And over it softly her warm ear lays:

 

[You can see more here.]

 

and these words by English author Mary Russell Mitford (1787-55)

 

What a glowing, glorious day -

Summer in its richest prime,

Noon is in its most sparkling brightness,

Little white clouds dappling the deep blue sky.

And the sun, now partially veiled and bursting through with an intensity of light.

 

[I am not sure if this was originally written as prose or poetry; apologies if my formatting is all wrong!]

 

Finally, on a walk around Furman's lake again Thursday afternoon before storms came through, I came upon a plaque I'd never investigated before.  It bears a poem by Frank Burt Morgan Jr., and I can't really tell you who he was.  I did look online and found information on findagrave.com about a Frank Burt Morgan (1887-47) who lived in these parts, graduated from Wofford, and was in banking and business for many years.  

 

Nature's Shrine

 

Have you not wandered in the wood

To some secluded spot and stood

Surrounded by sublime beauty,

And all forgetful of your duty,

Contented thus for hours to stand

And admire works of God's great hand

In a veritable flower garden where

You drank the perfume of the air,

Sweet music's temples were resound

Strains, melodious and profound

Harmonious about you heard

The gurgling brook and singing bird?

 

Ah yes, there is a brighter shrine,

A place where all is bright sunshine,

A grander calmer of our hours,

A world with birds and scented flowers,

A place of music where each day

Soothes us in our angrier way;

Here lies a royal painted throne

Where each is monarch of his own,

And under his supreme survey

The rounded world pursues its way.

 

Frank Burt Morgan, Jr. 

 

***

 

Here's to a summer full of hours surrounded by sublime beauty!  I will mention that though I hadn't planned to stop on my walk (it's almost a two-mile jaunt around the lake), I was drawn like a magnet to a bench in front of a wee pond just off the path.  I was glad I sat there for a short bit, because I got an unexpected chuckle.  Late yesterday, daughter Morgan had sent me a video of one-year-old Sawyer carrying on from his playpen because she had dared to leave his sight to fix his dinner. While sitting on the bench, I was drawn to a dramatic little raucus on a patch of grass across the pond.  A young crow was harrassing a parent with incessant cawing and hopping about, my guess is for a snack?  The parent continued pecking around on the ground and "ignoring" the youngster.  The smaller bird hopped off into the cool undergrowth for a moment.  Then it came back out and pulled the same routine with (I'm guessing) the other parent - or at least another grown-up crow. With no satisfaction there either, it finally quieted down and then hopped into the edge of the pond for a quick splash.

 

Hop yourself on over to Michelle Kogan's colorful corner of the web, a place most welcoming to birds and flowers, and enjoy this week's Roundup!

Wellll.... been in and out of town and didn't scare up a post this week for Poetry Friday, but lots of other folks did.  Be sure to visit the oh-so-talented and super smart Buffy Silverman for this week's Roundup!  Thanks, Buffy. 

 

Greetings, Poetry Lovers!  How did it get to be June so fast?

 

We had a delightful visit from our baby grand, Sawyer, last weekend.  (The picture was one of my favorites from the weekend - that's my hubby, Jeff , aka "Baba.") In a few days, we'll be celebrating Sawyer's first birthday! 

 

He's grown from a beautiful wee bairn into a snuggly, music-loving, baby-engineering, dog-bowl splashing, truck-admiring, mischief-making singer of mysterious songs.  He is a voracious lover of books, and has recently started "reading" them himself, with the pictures turned the right way, even. Also, he's a dumper of laundry baskets, little trash cans, and toilet paper from the roll. He's on the move most of the time, except for the occasional "Ms. Rachel" break in his special chair. He's stolen all of our hearts and we can't wait to see where he'll go next!  (Babyproof, people!)

 

Here's a little ditty to celebrate.

 

                  You're the ONE!

                   (for Sawyer)

 

              Look at you, Baby - 

              Look what you've done.

 

              You made your first trip 

              around the sun!

 

              Here's to another

              year of fun.

 

              Here's to you - 

              Hooray!  You're one!

 

             ©Robyn Hood Black.

 

We're so proud of his parents - our Morgan and hubby Matt, and their oh-so-patient lab, Maggie.  Uncle Seth (& Aunt Ginnie) keep Sawyer entertained & full of joy, too.

 

Wishing you much to revel in this summer.  Speaking of which, Happy Pride Month to all who celebrate!

 

For bushels of poetry, visit the ever-talented Tricia at The Miss Rumphius Effect for this week's Roundup.