Focus On Gratitude

This year, Thanksgiving was a day to look beyond the challenges, interruptions, and distractions of our pandemic lives and focus on what mattered. It was a day filled with gratitude for faith, family, and friends but celebrated in an unfamiliar, new normal way. If you were like me, you had a delicious dinner with immediate members of your family, zoomed with grandchildren, and/or relatives, and spoke with others. 

As an added touch, I resurrected a childhood tradition of walking after dinner cleanup time. We stepped outside; I was amazed by the deep jet black sky with a brilliant moon illuminating the street. Gratitude flowed. It was the start of a peaceful family walk. The weather was cooperative for an awe walk., being the most temperate of Thanksgiving nights in a decade. While walking, I recollected the following recent scene at the state park on the outskirts of my neighborhood. The photo taken shares the simple beauty of autumn in late November. With gratitude for nature's beauty I composed the following digital inspiration, image poem.

Even a short walk in the woods can produce a sense of awe when you learn to let go of stress and pay attention to small details. -How to Find Awe in Everyday Things by Sidney Stevens

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The Poetry Sisters offered an interesting challenging, #PoetryPals, for the end of November. 

"The theme is hindsight — pick one of your old poems to revise and/or write a new poem in conversation with it."  

With this in mind, I traveled back in time to last November and 

found the following zeno poem I created.

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Give thanks for fall's seasonal gifts

coloring world

with love,

glee.

November comes

in peace.

See,

wonder, explore.

Find rest.

Be!

©CV, 2019

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For the challenge, I created a zeno poem that connects thoughts from 2019 to 2020 for my Abundant Autumn Gallery. 

Give thanks for fall's abundancy

dispelling fears.

Seek

earthen beauty,

joyful

hope.

Thanksgiving comes

in peace.

Feel

inspired awe.

Center!

Be!

©CV, 2020

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I am grateful for autumn and an unusual Thanksgiving filled with nature inspired awe

to move us beyond the confinements of pandemic living.

Join me for Poetry Friday, hosted by Carol at  Carol's Corner. 

Note:

I will be slowing going through Poetry Friday blogs this weekend since there are multiple scheduled viewings of my Long Island house. I am grateful for this and also very pleased that my Virginia home is completely built and ready for a December closing.

Elevating Voice

Over the course of years, I have learned the merits of noticing and wondering. From seeds of wonder, curiosity grows and inquiry paths shape thoughts. 

After a three day retreat for the Wonderopolis Wonder Lead Ambassadors in Louisville, Kentucky, I have gained a new awareness on the topic of wonder with its multilayered dimensions. I reflect on the power of voice to spread a universal message: wonder is the underpinning of inquiry. With this message comes a call to action-ignite the flame of learning for every child and adolescent.

(Note: The above digital composition started as an original photo taken from airplane as I wondered about the clouds floating by. Digitalizing the photo gave it a new perspective on the impact of noticing and wondering on the creative process.)

Today, Poetry Friday is being celebrated at Carol's Corner, hosted by my writing colleague, Carol Wilcox.

Full Moon Rising

During the Thanksgiving holiday, November's full moon struck a striking pose as it nestled in a darkened sky. Intrigued by the beauty of its glowing light, I researched its history and found that it was referred to as the mourning moon. You can read the article, Why You Should Care About Tomorrow's Full Moon, to find out why. With information from the text and the image I captured on my iPhone, I created a quick digital composition. From an old tale, wise thoughts about life evolve.

Advice from November's Mourning Moon

Speaking of the full moon, I was excited to meet the award-winning author and poet Marilyn Singer at two NCTE 15 author signings. Attending her session with a few Poetry Friday friends was a marvelous way to end the conference experience. 

Marilyn is small in stature but her voice rings loudly with the love of poetry and the game-like nature of poetry. During the sessions she shared several poems from various books; read aloud to the group and carried her theme, Game of Poems, from her award ceremony to her session where she shared several

poems from her various books; read aloud to the group; had others in the audience read the best picks of the various books she showcased. I especially enjoyed hearing about her book, A Full Moon Is Rising, that is filled with poems about the full moon in various lands around the globe.  

While my poetry about the full moon is a little echo in a big sky, Marilyn's poems on the same subject are a big ripple in the world of children's poetry. There are many reasons why Marilyn was honored and applauded at the conference last weekend. Her love of research, the craft of writing, and the art of the read-aloud were exemplified during her NCTE 15 session. No wonder that she was announced as the winner of the NCTE Excellence in Poetry for Children Award. I cannot wait for my copies of Marilyn's books to arrive at my house. In the meantime, we can search through Marilyn' website here.

Now please turn your attention to Poetry Friday hosted by Carol at Carol's Corner. 

Inspired

"Inspiration does exist, but it has to find you working."
Pablo Picasso

Being open to a new idea and a new path to explore is at the heart of my writing but trying a new format comes only through research and practice. Inspiration is everywhere but harvesting it into a ripened fruit of merit is something that requires time and effort. Now that school is officially over in my locale, summer mode is starting. 

Today, to push me out in the open spaces of summer, my husband decided that a short jaunt to the beach was in order. I have to say that the sunshine and different environment proved to be very inspirational. As I am in the midst of designing the Spring's Symphony Gallery, new ideas keep popping up. To say that I am between spring and summer in my passion projects is an understatement. To honor the betwixt and between feeling, I was inspired to create the following pieces that combine the gardens of spring with the rippling waves of the beach.

To further connect my thoughts, I found the following poem at Poetry Foundation. 

This week, I have been working on Spring's Symphony Gallery while being inspired by the "splashings" of summer. As the sea called to me, my husband, son, and I mulled over the names for the next gallery and new ideas. After I unveil Spring's Symphony I will offer an invitation to the newest gallery challenge and look forward to your comments. Staying inspired...

Now, please visit Poetry Friday at Carol's Corner where Carol welcomes us to Denver where the rain just doesn't seem to stop. 

As the School Year Draws to an End Reflection Matters

School is nearing an end and summer is around the bend. So I decided to take a stroll down memory lane to highlight my first year of teaching when long hair and mini-skirts were in vogue. My first experience started in Albany at the Albany High School Annex with senior high, disenfranchised readers. The work was challenging but so rewarding. I started immediately after my Master's Degree was completed and that meant I only had six months to engage students whose lives were filled with social, emotional, and academic difficulties in the art of reading. I hope that this poem helps you reflect upon your early days of teaching and how you have grown as a learner and practitioner. 

Readers Take Flight

Faces of youth,

"Kotter-like" students beyond their years,

Move through the hallways of my mind.

I number each of them in my etch book of time

As I recall first words,

Backstories of solitary lives

Without maps to guide their journeys,

Tribulations, and small triumphs.

In the corners of yesterday, I see their faces

Peering behind books. I savor the memories-

Makeshift first classroom,

Third floor annex-adjacent to cafeteria,

Sweaty smells, crowded seating,

Children in adolescent frames,

Disheveled, tuned out.

Sitting before me, waiting for guidance.

Traveling together on a rocky but steady path

We grew a learner’s haven.

As trust evolved,

Content explored.

Their minds expanded,

Swaddled in words from books

That lined the walls

And cradled the learning.

Then, as quickly as I came into their lives,

I left. June brought the year to an end. 

The string that bound our learning lives unraveled.

I watched each of them take flight.

Into the summer winds, they soared

As floating balloons dancing in the sky.

I sighed, hoping that one day they would become

The readers I groomed them to be.

This poem has been submitted to the Poetry Friday Round-up found at Carols' Corner this week. In the comment section, there will be messages from a variety of writers linking you to their poems. At the top of the blog page, is a quote by Kate DiCamillo that speaks to the issue of reading as a gift. 

"Reading should not be presented to children as a chore or a duty. It should be offered to them as a precious gift."

May your Friday be filled with the pleasure of reading.