Into the Fog

The sun peeked out from behind grayish clouds and for that moment, I felt giddy and adventurous. "Let's go to the boardwalk!" With that quick morning greeting, I was outside in a flash, aching for a chance to feel free with hair blowing in the air. I pulled out my sunglasses at the same time my husband rolled down the windows and off we went. The sun continued to brighten until we neared Long Beach - a hazy light was visible amidst the gray sky. 

By the time we arrived on the boardwalk, an intense fog hovered, reminding me of Carl Sandburg's poem, Fog. As we made our way to a railing overlooking the beach, the ocean was not visible at all. In the many years that I have lived here, I have not seen such haziness encapsulate the sea.  A man on a bicycle came rolling by laughing and calling out to bewildered beachgoers, "If we could see, we might be able to find the ocean."  Determined, I proceeded to capture what I could or could not see through my lens, even though there were stretches of nothingness beyond the beach. 

The word, nothingness, was circling back to me.  Before leaving the house, I engaged in the #SpiritChat Sunday morning Twitter convo.  Was Kumud Ajmani's opening question meant for this boardwalk encounter?  "On Celebrating Nothing(ness)" - what does the phrase evoke/inspire within you today?"  My response seemed fitting for a coming-into-the-fog scene.  "Nothingness is a state of calm, resting in the joy of living." 

No one at the beach seemed to be concerned about the fog and they were certainly enjoying the day. Surfers were fully dressed hoisting their surfboards above their heads. Youngsters were rollerblading, others bicycling. There were even children barefoot in the sand.  A few large trucks were making their way horizontally in the sand, trying to level it out. 

into the fog

they came on

silent footsteps-

waiting for sun

This joyous spring happening on Palm Sunday gave me the inspiration to finish my one line for the annual Kidlithosphere Progressive Poem. Today, was my day to add a found line from a song.  You can see the poem in progress at my site under the title 2019 Kidlithosphere Progress Poem Continues.  

It is Slice of Life Tuesday at Two Writing Teachers so I am ready to add this slice. 

2019 Kidlitosphere Progressive Poem Continues

Today, it is my honor to continue the journey of the 2019 Kidlitosphere Progressive Poem, an annual tradition of our poetry community. At the beginning of National Poetry Month, 30 bloggers, poets, and children's writers joined Irene Latham's challenge to write an original poem. Matt Forrest Esenwine began the process with a creative move. Using found lines from song lyrics, he created line 1 of the Progressive Poem. Other poets followed in suit, adding their found lines from songs that resonated with them, making each line unique.

Each day the Progressive Poem grew, I felt a little bit more nervous. After all, growing up I always enjoyed listening to music but did not know lyrics for sing-alongs. I questioned if I could find lyrics that would fit so I began searching for possible songs, like Chad and Jeremy's A Summer Song and Ella Fitzgerald's Summertime. Song titles from my summer galleries and accompanying lines started filling my digital journal. Then, on Palm Sunday, when the sun peeked out behind the clouds, I decided to take a spontaneous ride to the boardwalk. Christie Wyman just posted her line, "I wanna fly like an eagle, to the sea," so off I went with my husband! The Long Beach Boardwalk was surrounded by a dense fog making the ocean not visible but I could hear the sounds of the sea and sky and smell the fresh salt air. The quick trip energized and inspired me to write.

I woke on Monday morning, looking for day 15's blog by the amazing poet and creative artist, Robyn Hood Black. Her line made reference to the Masters Tournament and a song from a 1985 movie revolving around America's favorite pastime. My immediate thought was "Really Robyn, a tiger!" While I loved the line, I thought of it as an interesting curveball so, with expectation, I took a swing at how I would like the poem to progress. I wanted to keep the summer vibe from a child's eyes. I thought about little ones I saw playing in the sand on Sunday and my grandbaby who loves music and lullabies. It was then that I found Song of the Sea, a lullaby that featured a recurring question and descriptive action. By Monday evening, I decided that the question from "Song of the Sea would be the beginning of line 16 but flipflopped between two Mary Poppin songs and another specific action line from the lullaby. When I reread the stanza orally for one more time, I realized just what I felt I needed. 

Are you ready for line 16?  While it is long, I wanted the end of the stanza to be a visual invitation with action. I offer the line to you now. Please feel free to comment. 

Endless summer; I can see for miles...
Fun, fun, fun - and the whole world smiles.
No time for school - just time to play,
we swim the laughin' sea each and every day.

You had only to rise, lean from your window,
the curtain opens on a portrait of today.
Kodachrome greens, dazzling blue,
It's the chance of a lifetime,

make it last forever-ready? Set? Let's Go!
Come, we'll take a walk, the sun is shining down,
Not a cloud in the sky got the sun in my eyes.
Tomorrow's here. It's called today.

Gonna get me a piece o' the sky.
I wanna fly like an eagle, to the sea
and there's a tiger in my veins.
Oh, won't you come with me waltzing the waves,
                                                                                          diving the deep?

Found Lines:
L. 1   The Who, 'I Can See for Miles' / The Beach Boys, 'Endless Summer'
L. 2  The Beach Boys, 'Fun, Fun, Fun'/Dean Martin, "When You're Smiling"
L. 3  The Jamies, "Summertime, Summertime'

L. 4 The Doors, 'Summer's Almost Gone' / Led Zeppelin, 'Good Times, Bad Times'

L.5   Ray Bradbury, 'Dandelion Wine

L6    Joni Mitchell, "Chelsea Morning"

L7    Paul Simon, "Kodachrome," "Dazzling  Blue"

L8    Dan Fogelberg, "Run for the Roses" 

L9    Spice Girls, "Wannabe"/Will Smith, "Gettin' Jiggy Wit It"

L10  The Beatles, "Good Day Sunshine"

L11   The Carpenter, "Top of the World"

L12   Lin-Manuel Miranda, "Underneath the Lovely London Sky" from Mary Poppins

L13   Carole King, "Hi-de-ho (That Sweet Roll)"

L14  Steve Miller, "Fly Like An Eagle"

L15   Don Felder, "Wild Life"

L16   Nolwenn Leroy, "Song of the Sea" (lullaby)

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April Schedule  -  If you are interested in the backstories of each Progressive Poem writer, please visit the sites linked below. 

1 Matt @Radio, Rhythm and Rhyme

2 Kat @Kathryn Apel
3 Kimberly @KimberlyHutmacherWrites
4 Jone @DeoWriter
5 Linda @TeacherDance
6 Tara @Going to Walden
7 Ruth @thereisnosuchthingasagodforsakentown
8 Mary Lee @A Year of Reading
9 Rebecca @Rebecca Herzog
10 Janet F. @Live Your Poem
11 Dani @Doing the Work that Matters
12 Margaret @Reflections on the Teche
13 Doraine @Dori Reads
14 Christie @Wondering and Wandering
15 Robyn @Life on the Deckle Edge
16 Carol @Beyond LiteracyLink
17 Amy @The Poem Farm
18 Linda @A Word Edgewise
19 Heidi @my juicy little universe
20 Buffy @Buffy’s Blog
21 Michelle @Michelle Kogan
22 Catherine @Reading to the Core

23 Penny @a penny and her jots

24 Tabatha @The Opposite of Indifference
25 Jan @Bookseestudio
26 Linda @Write Time
27 Sheila @Sheila Renfro
28 Liz @Elizabeth Steinglass
29 Irene @Live Your Poem
30 Donna @Mainely Write