Sunday, April 19, 2015

Listening for Spring's Symphony


Since the launching of the Winter Whisperings Gallery, I have delightfully turned my attention to the season of spring with its magical awakenings. Last year, during National Poetry Month I unveiled April Awakenings, taking a cue from nature itself.

That gallery collection opened with this quote:


I realized that I relied on my 2014 one little word, openness, to find inspiration for the title of the April Awakenings' poetic collection, so I decided to do the same with this year's OLW. I listened, reflected, and turned all ideas over as they danced in the corners of my mind. A few #digipoetry colleagues and I discussed some possible names for the gallery, but they did not have the right "feel" for this new spring gallery, so I sought inspiration from nature itself. 

While the weather has fluctuated from warmth to coolness, to rain, to wind, a constant has remained-the landscape has been renewed. Interest in being immersed in spring's offerings, has been a strong emotion, but no name for the spring gallery surfaced until my son-in-law, Michael, suggested the word symphony. I paused to listen how the word sounded when I paired it with spring. As the words rolled off my tongue, the birth of a new collection evolved: Spring’s Symphony. When I heard Andre Rieu's Spring Symphony, I confirmed that this was a title worth inviting colleagues to use as their prompt. 

Take a moment to listen to the opening of Rieu's musical interlude. The sounds are what I hear in the morning when I open the window to daybreak. 
Windows flung open.
One look:
renewal offered.
Be present in a lifeforce of rebirth.
Nature offers a harmonious interplay of elements:
colors, sights, sounds
blending together 
in the concert of life.
Interested?

Join my Poetry Parade that will continue throughout the season of spring. Spring's Symphony will be launched at the close of the season. This gives you ample time to engage in reflective writing for the spring gallery. 

Below are guidelines to follow to create your special springtime offering:
  • pause, observe, reflect
  • find an element of springtime (a color that pops, a sighting that inspires, a sound that awakens your senses, or anything that provides your personal perspective of springtime) to photograph
  • write a poem or poetic expression to accompany the photo or image
  • refer to Winter Whisperings Gallery for ideas on how to pair a photo and poem
  • combine the photo and poem, using a photo-editing tool, such as PicMonkey, Canva, or even Word 
  • submit the combined poem/photo via Twitter DM or email to me for the new gallery, Spring's Symphony 
  • *one or two student/class poems are welcomed per teacher, as long as the teacher submits one, using his/hers as a mentor text for the class

    May you hear spring's songs throughout the season!

    It's DigiLit Sunday created by Margaret Simon so please visit that site and the following other ones where I am offering today's poem:
    • A Year of Reading where Mary Lee Hahn is hosting PO-EMotions (today's word is interest)
    • #digipoetry created by Margaret Simon and logo designed by Leigh Anne Eck where many writers are creating poems for National Poetry Month

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