Sneak Peek of March's Slice of Life Series

March is here once again and I hope the groundhog's prediction is correct. It wasn't just one groundhog but many in the Eastern section of the USA that announced spring will be early? 

Each March, I participate in the Annual Slice of Life Story Challenge by Two Writing Teachers. This marks the 17th year that the writing challenge has been in existence. The challenge provides slicers from around the globe the space to reflect, write, and meet up with colleagues. Find out more about this fun-filled daily challenge during March here.

Time to Write

take a peek

at what will be

during March's

slice of life spree

each writer will

pen a post

stretching words

that can evoke

emotions,

happenings,

successes, or

gatherings

I am ready

to share my theme -

come back next week

you'll see more memes

©CVarsalona, 2024

As Baby Lila is almost ready to embark on her first crawl, I crawled into a writing moment with this sneak preview poem for the February 27, 2029, 17th Annual Slice of Life Story Challenge.

Happy Slicing to my Slicer friends and thank you to my readers for your support and comments.

Loveuary's Emotional Ties

As one of the #PoetryPals, I'm joining the Poetry Sisters, Tanita, Laura, Mary Lee, Liz, Sara, Tricia, and Kelly, for their February challenge.

This month the Poetry Sisters invited all writers to create epistolary poetry in the form of a love poem. Epistolary poems are, quite literally, poems that read as letters. As poems of direct address, they can be intimate and colloquial or formal and measured (Academy of American Poets). I decided to create a small bank of heartnotes (aka valentines) that tugged at my heartstrings and led me in different directions. 

I see love through my family as they share precious life moments, smiles, laughter, and joy. Ordinary moments bring us together to discover what love is. 

💘❤💘

Love's Emotional Ties

This poem is dedicated to my 2nd grandgirl who has a bright smile. 

Childlove is the beginning of lasting friendships!

small poem

It is my hope that this little 4-year-old miss will grow in love to bring

continuous sunshine to those around her.

💘❤💘

The poem below shares the love of little sisters who happen to be my grandgirls.

childlove 

priceless treasure

like glistening shells

swishing in ocean waves

keepsakes 

©CVarsalona, January 2024

Elfchen poem

💘❤💘

Dear Me,

There have been six and a half years of being

a Grandma like my mother and Nonnie.

What have you learned?

There is a special love 

seated deep inside a heart.

It is a thumping, wondrous love

that offers more 

sweetness than chocolate and

warmth on cold winter days.

It is an intangible love

that melts hearts,

mends broken wings,

and floats in imaginative minds.

It is the purring of a gentle kitten,

the whoosh of baby's sleeptoy,

and the softness of a furry blanket.

It is the God-given gift

to Grandmothers who

cherish family life.

Love, Me

©CVarsalona, January 2024

epistolary poem, #PoetryPals

💘❤💘

💖

⇣

Grandma Love Is...

gracefilled

a gift

of enduring love

fountain of perpetual devotion

forever 

©CVarsalona, January 2024

Elfchen poem

💘❤💘

Look, at me!

I love this french fry,

Mommy gave me.

Yummy in my tummy!

Do you love food

As much as I do!

Meme Poem, Created by Grandma,

©CVarsalona, January 2024

💘❤💘

May love surround you and your family.

💘❤💘

Is at

Tabatha Yeatts blog,

"The Opposite of Indifference" where she is

 "Open for Poetry Business".

Tabatha has a wonderful story poem about Scheherazade. Check it out.

💘❤💘

Welcome to the Pre-Valentine Poetry Friday Roundup

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Welcome to the Poetry Friday Roundup

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As your host today, I invite you to pause and share the poetic goodness of the Poetry Friday community whose poets are always in harmony with one another. During these pre-Valentine days, let's remind ourselves to follow our hearts. 

"It (the heart) knows the way. Run in that direction." -Rumi 

This winter, many beautiful New Year Poetry Postcards have been sent by poet friends thanks to the endeavors of Jone Rush MacCulloch. Each time a postcard was delivered, my day was brightened. 

Patricia Franz, Linda Baie, Tabatha Yeatts, Gail Aldous 

Mary Lee Hahn, Joyce Uglow, Carol Labuzzetta, Linda Mitchell

Michelle Kogan, Molly Hogan, Marcie Flinchum Atkins, Margaret Simon (sticker)

Denise Krebs

💗 Exhale only love. - Rumi 💗

💗💗💗💗💗💗💗💗💗💗💗💗💗💗💗

pause and observe

breathe in nature's fragrance

breathe out love

©CVarsalona, 2024

💗💗💗💗💗💗💗💗💗💗💗💗💗💗💗

For those interested in sharing a Valentine, add your heartnote to your blog post.

Poetry Friday poets, writers, and bloggers, please add the link to your blog post below. May your Valentine's Day be filled with sweet thoughts and treats.

💗💗💗

Be My Valentine!

💌

Valentine's Day has always been a family day to pause and be grateful for love displayed and love given from the heart. For a couple of weeks, I've been under the weather with a lingering cold so this Valentine's Day was a different type of day. Only part of the house featured Valentine's decor with mementos from the past. The meal of choice, heart ravioli was postponed. Valentine heartnotes were on hold. Yet, the family was able to video chat with the grandgirls, watch them open Valentine cards from schoolmates, and eat a delicious-looking chocolate cake with raspberries. Sitting on my table were a beautiful bouquet of flowers and a stunning-looking card. The spirit of love endured.

My gift back to the family is different handmade heartnotes and a new date to celebrate family love. 

Lao Tzu's wisdom withstands time. 

Poetry postcards open the heart to lasting memories. Below are two more postcards that brightened my winter days. 

from Jone Rush MacCullock

from Robyn Hood Black

May the joy of heartnotes bring you winter cheer. If you missed last week when I hosted Poetry Friday, you can find more poetry heartnotes here. This week Margaret Simon hosts Poetry Friday. She offers two poems with contrasting thoughts. Love and grief stand side by side. 

Logo designed by Margaret Simon

Game On

February is a special month for author/poet, Laura Shovan. She celebrates her birthday with a community of poets by offering an annual February Poetry Project. This year marks her 12th poetry project with games as the theme. The goal is to draft a poem daily based on a prompt generated by one of the community members. Each day a new game-inspired prompt is posted. Today is Day 6. Heather Meloche is the prompt provider. Her lead in thought is humans aren't the only ones who play. Many animals play for a variety of reasons.

I mulled over a series of ideas until one commercial sparked my thoughts. Hallmark Channel shared a promotional commercial for an upcoming event, The Great American Rescue Bowl. The cuddly players are none other than rescue animals, a few of which are from the Hawaii fires last year. Each animal has a story and wishes for a forever home. After viewing several videos and articles, an image poem evolved. 

On Super Bowl Sunday The Great American Family hosts a fur-flying, paw-running game that will endear you to the players. Dogs, cats, puppies, and kittens will "take to the field" in the second annual Great American Rescue Bowl that celebrates 80 years of the North Shore Animal League America saving animals. The game's on! Which team, the Cuddlers or Adorables, will take the lead? Maybe your fur-friendly pets would be interested in watching the "cutest game on TV" and an exciting halftime.  

✎

It's time for me to post at Two Writing Teachers, a meeting place for worldwide reflective writers. Click here to read various slices of life written by educators. 

Grandma Love Is...

I am blessed to follow in the line of grandmothers whose devotion to their grandchildren was essential to each grandma's well-being. My grandmother, Nonnie, was my guide, opening my eyes to the beauty of gardens, the love of baking, the secret to making pasta sauce, and a desire to be a lifelong reader. My mother, Grandma Kay, was not only the grandma to my children but to the neighborhood children. She was generous, hardworking, and devoted to her grandchildren from birth to their college years. My family moved to Virginia because we wanted to be closer to our grandgirls. It has been a whirlwind, a few years trying to settle in and be filled with the spirit of familial love. I pause today after a long day of Grandmasitting for a sick baby yesterday. There were cuddles, hugs, drying of tears, playtime, eating with fingers, and lots of love to make yesterday a last memory.

Baby #3 feels better at the end of the day.

Today, I return to the grandchildren's house. It is a special day of pride and thanksgiving. My oldest grandgirl invited me to her class' Poetry Cafe. We have talked and written toddler poems throughout her six years but today she will be recognized as a 1st-grade young poet. She announced yesterday that one of her topics is video games. I eagerly await the recitation.

Holiday Happiness, 2023

• "It is as grandmothers that our mothers come into the fullness of their grace." – Christopher Morley

Grandma Love Is...

gracefilled

a gift

of enduring love

fountain of perpetual devotion

forever 

©CVarsalona, January 2024

Elfchen poem

This blog post is a follow-up post on Love Is...
You can read my first post with poem written for Spiritual Journey Thursday here.

I also wrote a humorous piece for Baby #2 here.

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Mary Lee Hahn is our Poetry Friday Roundup host today and she and her Inklings group are ready to whisper secrets to us. Shhh! It is going to be a poetic goodness treat today so check in here.

Loveuary Special Note

I follow Mary Lee as Host of the Poetry Friday Roundup next week.

Since I have been thrilled with the Poetry Postcards I have received, I'd like to continue with a Pre-Valentine Roundup. If you choose to do so, please add your Valentine wish/poem/card to your post next week. 

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