This was written on April 1, 2016
Ode to Kwame Alexander (aka Lemme ShakeYour Hand, Sir)
Oh, Kwame—
With your wonder words—
Laying lines of rhyme,
Preying on prepositions in their prime:
Outside the cage,
‘Round with rage
With, or without, wage,
Down
the
page.
Within the winsome,
Surrounding the sweetness,
Hanging with the hope.
Throw me a challenge.
Amuse me with your musing.
Confuse me until I see.
Wind me up with wondering.
Word to your words.
This is Just to Say
I have read the book that parodies Wiliam Carlos Williams
and that should probably be returned to the library
Forgive me It is so hilarious and it is staying on my bookshelf.
When Reason Breaks by Cindy L. Rodriguez
A book of hope, within despair—
A suicide attempt—
Two girls — high school — the pain and angst
Neither one is exempt.
Their teacher — was a poet too—
A fan of Dickinson—
She knew a student was hurting
She thought she knew which one.
In English class they became friends.
It almost seemed like fate.
Can the girl who needs it, get some help
Before it is too late?
The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky (Acrostic)
Wallowing in the pain of
Awkward adolescence,
Learning to
Love others and to become
Free enough to
Love yourself,
Outcast, and casting out the
Wailing of an
Earlier you –
Redeemable with truth.
This one is a cinquain (5 lines, syllables 2-4-6-8-2).
Auggie,
With heart of gold,
Face-to-face with bullies –
Being himself for his own sake
And theirs.
This is a Kyrielle poem in response to Sharon Draper’s most recent book Panic (which I began and completed today).
DIAMOND
Though people tell of the danger,
Say “Never talk to a stranger”,
It was in public – light of day,
So She went with him anyway.
He was professionally dressed,
His intentions kept full at bay,
He portrayed a family-man (blessed)
So She went with him anyway.
She didn’t have nary a clue
Of the nasty things he would do,
Or the way the acts he’d display,
So She went with him anyway.
He claimed a daughter and a wife,
His evil plan not on display.
She wasn’t concerned for her life,
So She went with him anyway.
When I made the decision to post a poem each day of this month, it was with the intention of writing a different type of poem each day. I keep coming across the Blitz poem (invented by Robert Keim), and I felt the need to try it. It was challenging, but fun. Here’s what I came up with…
Man-All
Man o’ war
Man of steel
Steel boned corsets
Steel cut oats
Oats and whey
Oats and grains
Grains of sand
Grains of truth
Truth or dare
Truth be told
Told you twice
Told you so
So it goes
So you say
Say a prayer
Say my name
Name of names
Name that tune
Tune the piano
Tune in
In the closet
In the dark
Dark of night
Dark of day
Day of reckoning
Day-dream
Dream a dream
Dream and wish
Wish on a star
Wish me luck
Luck of the Irish
Luck be a lady
Lady and gent
Lady in waiting
Waiting on train
Waiting on a friend
Friend indeed
Friend in need
Need a break
Need a drink
Drink it up
Drink to that
That is all
That is enough
Enough to eat
Enough said
Said it all
Said it best
Best…
All…
Today’s poem is a Minute Poem, in which each stanza has four lines (8 syllables in the first line and four in the subsequent lines). This poem is in response to Paul Fleischman’s book Seedfolks.
Community, in brokenness-
Bad neighborhood,
Trashed vacant lot,
Hopeless and sad.
A Vietnamese girl, with seeds
Moves trash and digs.
Other neighbors
Hesitated.
Hispanic, Haitian, young and old,
Male and female,
Started to change-
Minds and gardens.
Silence and darkness split open
As trash is moved,
Hope is restored,
and beauty grows.
Bronx Masquerade by Nikki Grimes (Poetry Style: Joseph’s Star)
Ward,
Teacher-Man,
Changing our lives with
Open Mike Poetry Day.
Teenagers taking off masks
Real, recognizing-
New friendships.
Word.
Curveball: The Year I lost my Grip by Jordan Sonnenblick is Pete’s story. Pete is a freshman in high school, dealing with an injury to his arm that permanently impacts his ability to play his favorite sport – baseball. While Pete deals with teachers, girls, parents, and how to tell his best buddy AJ about his baseball issue, he is also hiding a secret. His grandfather is slowly losing his independence as Alzheimer’s takes over his memory and mind. Of course, all of these painful, awkward threads through the story are written Sonnenblick-style, meaning that you feel like you have a best friend with you, keeping you safe and laughing through the painful moments.
Pantoum Poem
Grandpa
Because memories matter,
Grandpa taught me to watch-
His love of photography,
His love of life.
Grandpa taught me to watch-
He gave me everything-
His love of life,
To see and to remember.
He gave me everything-
His love of photography-
To see and to remember,
Because memories matter.
The Read-e-ologist 