Happy Poetry Friday, and Happy Holidays!
I’ll be rounding up throughout the day, so come on in and have a cup of hot chocolate or tea and enjoy all the great poetry posted today. Please leave your link and a short description in the comments.
Today, I’m celebrating that one of my poems appears in the current issue of
LADYBUG . Several years ago, when we lived on a small farm, I encountered a beautiful fox where our yard met our woods. Weather-wise, it was probably much like today – chilly, with one season was making way for the next. I remember the fox and myself suspended in a moment of stillness just looking at each other – a fleeting moment that was gone as quickly as it came.
I wrote this poem from that experience and was delighted when it was accepted for publication at Carus. It was originally accepted by SPIDER, but they ended up not publishing it, and in the meantime the LADYBUG editor had expressed interest. Suffice it to say that after a few years of waiting, I’m thrilled it has found a home in the Nov./Dec. 2012 issue.
Even more thrilled that it is so beautifully illustrated by the talented
Hyewon Yum , who kindly shared the original art above with us today. It's a linoleum cut print - isn't it perfect? Yum is an acclaimed author/illustrator of many books including: MOM, IT’S MY FIRST DAY OF KINDERGARTEN (2012), THE TWINS’ BLANKET (2011), THERE ARE NO SCARY WOLVES (2010), and LAST NIGHT (2008) all from Farrar, Straus and Giroux. More books are soon to hit the shelves, which she either illustrated or wrote and illustrated.
Many thanks to Hyewon for sharing her artwork, and to The LADYBUG/Carus folks for granting permission to post my poem for you today. Here it is:
GRAY FOXby Robyn Hood Black
At the edge of winter,
at the edge of the wood,
at the edge of the brush,
a gray fox stood.
I took a small step,
I took a breath in –
then nothing was there
where the gray fox had been.© 2012 by Carus Publishing
Click
here for a link to the LADYBUG Teacher’s Guide. (It says October, but scroll halfway down and you’ll come to a couple of suggestions/questions re. “Gray Fox.”)
Thanks so much for coming by today, and here’s to appreciating moments and poems! (Remember to leave your link with your comments if you want to be rounded up.)
Oh – and if you’re a fiction writer, you might enjoy my column from yesterday over at Janice Hardy’s blog,
The Other Side of the Story, in which I talk about writing mask poems as a way to get inside your character’s head. (Thanks to the lovely
Amy Ludwig VanDerwater for loaning a poem for the post!) In 2013, my column at Janice's will move from the first Thursday of each month to the first Wednesday of each month (except Feb.).
Carry on!
HERE'S THE ROUND-UP:
Jeff at
NC Teacher Stuff has delightful feline fare today: JRR Tolkien's "Cat."
At
Gathering Books, this month's water tales theme continues with Mary Oliver's "Blackwater Pond," presented by the lovely Myra in a visual setting befitting the words.
Father Goose is here today with "The Christmas Box" (from his CHRISTMAS IS COMING!) with a homemade gift idea that would thrill any parent.
Violet has a fun and yummy original ABC poem called "Appetite Affair." If you haven't yet had breakfast, this will make your stomach rumble....
At
Poetry for Kids Joy, Joy brings us her original poem, "The Elf." I like that this elf is female! :0)
Jama at
Alphabet Soup serves up another stunning haibun by Penny Harter, the title work from ONE BOWL.
After reading Jeff's cat post above, you must head over to
Carol's Corner, where Carol is featuring Rose Fyleman's classic "Mice" with Lois Ehlert's magnificent collage illustration.
Tara at
A Teaching Life has Mark Strand's moving "Lines for Winter" (and a gorgeous photograph to go with it).
At
Teacher Dance, Linda shares an original poem about a weather phenomenon she noticed while at school - I won't spoil the fun, but I'm happy to say she was quick with her camera as well as her pen!
Matt Goodfellow at Poems and things! is in with a triple play of original poems today:
"Yew Tree",
"Different Eyes" and
"Ghost Bike."(Off to make coffee - back in a short bit....)
Wondering how to start writing your next poem or creating your next piece of art?
Susan Taylor Brown has a wonderful poem by David Whyte today, "Start Close In" - food for the creative soul!
At
The Poem Farm, Amy offers an original poem from her SPARK 18 project to accompany Amy Souza's gorgeous collage. (If you had a grandmother like mine, "Quilt Map" will fill your heart.)
Join
Tabatha for some touching low-tech communication celebrated in two delightful poems: "Father's Story" by Elizabeth Madox Roberts and "The Telephone" by Robert Frost.
Visit Heidi at
My Juicy Little Universe for a new take on "Squandering" - an original poem inspired by a kindergarten teacher's comment during a challenging day.
Speaking of the classroom, over at
A Year of Reading, Mary Lee has a simple and powerful original poem about teaching.
Take a moment to s-l-o-w down with a very clever original poem, "The Snail's Lament," penned by Liz at
Growing Wild. She also offers a discussion of how she revised this poem - great to share with students (or others!) expecting to write a perfect draft the first time.
Laura, our resident
Author Amok, shares the history of the haunting Coventry Carol, including a video of the Westminster Choir singing it. This thoughtful post literally gave me chills. (As Laura kindly points out, if you've recently suffered miscarriage or the loss of an infant, you might want to skip for now and come back at a later date.)
Our other
Laura is in with a poem from David Harrison's newest book, COWBOYS. She's sharing "Stampede." (Does anyone else think she might be partial to that title?) ;0)
Also, Laura's got quite the lively party going on at
15 Words or Less Poems. Check out today's larger-than-life picture prompt and join the fun.
Margaret at
Reflections on the Teche shares the most wonderful poems in a "Preposition Parade" today - her own poem and then several samples from students. (The kids came up with 50 prepositions as part of this exercise - can you??)
Another terrific teacher in our pack of poets, Betsy, takes a look back at warmer days with an original poem, "Summer Dandilion," over at
Teaching Young Writers.At
Charlotte's Library, Charlotte shares her son's first sestina. (Note: Link is working now.)
Steve is in today with a "thoughtful-wondering poem about chance events and parents getting older" at
Inside the Dog. This is one of the sharpest poems I've read today - exemplifying this repeating theme of observing a moment. (Beautifully wrought, it has great prepositions we've been discussing, too!)
At
Random Noodling, Diane offers up a few humorous poems from a 1937 anthology.
Kurious Kittyhas a gorgeous poem by Rumi accompanied by a perfect photo , and,
Kurious K's Kwotes' Poetry Friday quote is by Rumi, too.
At
There is No Such Thing as a Godforsaken Town, Ruth ponders the winners of the Academy of American Poets "best poems of the year" and shares a fun poetic look at love poems from Rafael Campo.
David's in with celebratory voyage of poetic nonsense (very cleverly crafted) at
fomagrams. Happy Birthday, David! (I would like to note that my birthday is coming up next month and I am younger than David, though not by much, but I'm younger.) ;0)
Speaking of birthdays,
Karen is celebrating Willa Cather's birthday today with the poem, "L'Envoi," which Cather wrote for Fr. Scott.
Lovely Sylvia has two offerings today: a list of more than a dozen books featuring poetry for Hanukkah (which begins this weekend) at
Poetry for Children, and Constance Levy's fun "penny" poem with accompanying activites at
The Poetry Friday Anthology blog.
At
Paper Tigers, Marjorie offers a look at anonymous seventeenth-century English nonsense/puzzle poem, "I Saw a Peacock With A Fiery Tail," and a lovely discussion about Gond artist Ramsingh Urveti's stunning illustrations of it in a recent version published by Tara Books. Warning: I read this post and immediately ordered the book online. Yes, I did.
JoAnn Early Macken is here! She's a guest today at
Teaching Authors with a student poem from WRITE A POEM STEP BY STEP, her new book which shares tips for teaching poetry gleaned from years of experience. AND, she's giving a copy away... so go sign up like I just did.
Little Willow at
Bildungsroman has a gorgeous poem by Siegfried Sassoon, "Butterflies."
At
The Small Nouns, Ben is also featuring Willa Cather's "L'Envoi" poem, and a discussion about careful planning versus shooting from the hip. Which way do you approach a task?
MotherReader has a glowing review of J. Patrick Lewis's new anthology, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC'S BOOK OF ANIMAL POETRY, with a taste of Robert Frost for you to sample. She dares you to click the "Look Inside" feature on Amazon and not end up buying this book. (I dare you, too.)
Lunch break! Afternoon posters, add your links in your comments and I'll circle back around.
Break out the footy pajamas! Bridget has an original poem paying homage to the ultimate winter comfort wear at
wee words for wee ones.
Remember all the madness this past March at Think, Kid, Think? Well, Ed has just unveiled
"The Thinkier", a celebration in bronze to commemorate each year's poetic champion.
Matt is getting us in the holiday spirit with a poem celebrating Christmas trees from his winter collection of poetry, AND he has a lovely give-away offer. Of what? You'll have to click over to find out.
Any bugs knocking on your door for winter housing? Check out Jone's look at two bug poetry books at
Check It Out for some fun with lots of legs, and some great classroom tie-ins to boot.
A hearty welcome to children's author
Dia Calhoun, who ventures into Poetry Friday for the first time with a lovely original poem, "A Room With No View."
And in the Fashionably-Late-to-the-Party-and-Always-Welcome-Dept., we have:
The Write Sisters with (one of my personal favorites!) a wild Carl Sandburg poem, and an equally cool photo.
Donna at
Mainely Write has been finding inspiration in lost gloves this week. Click the blog link for today's succinct and clever offering, and, if you want more, that poem's
pink predecessor was posted on Tuesday. ("They have jobs to do while they wait," says Donna.)
Here's some more humor to transition into the weekend: Janet at
All About the Books offers a taste of Douglas Florian's LAUGH-ETERIA. (You can't even get through this plug without smiling, can you?)
If, like Irene, you are searching for the perfect breakfast casserole recipe for this weekend, try this
poetic little treasure she found in the back of a cookbook. Wishing you heaping servings.
An evening surprise:
Carlie at
Twinkling Along shares a lovely cinquain about cherry blossoms in December. Yes, cherry blossoms!
Weekend Update:
At
On Point, Lorie Ann has an original haiku this week - and you must see the accompanying photograph!
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