Time To Be with March SOLSC #SOL25

March opens with a flicker of light, a smack of cold weather, and  thoughts of renewal. It is a timely month where writers gather to reflect, renew friendships, and offer mindful moments of thought. 

So without further ado, I start the month-long challenge that Two Writing Teachers offer in March each year. My SOLSC #SOL25 will consist of daily dialogues in poetic formats with digital art. I will open my Sanctuary of Thought with hopes that you will join me on my journey. We all need time to dream, time to remember, time to reach for the infinite, and just time to be.

Thank you fellow slicer, Ramona Behnke, for sharing the above inspirational quote with me. It inspired me to use a digital tool, Fotojet, to pen my opening haiku.

Day 1 of the March SOLSC #SOL25

11 Years of Writing Slices of Life

Six Ways of Looking at Autumn

It is officially the start of Autumn and I agree with author Elizabeth Lawrence. "Everyone must take time to sit and watch the leaves turn". I love decorating the inside and outside of my house in autumnal hues. Then sitting back to admire nature's blessing the earth in Crayola tones.

This month, the Poetry Sisters invited writers to join their September writing challenge by "wandering through" Wallace Stevens' Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird. Using the mentor text, writers were to look deeply at something differently and compose a poem maybe not in 13 ways - maybe in 6  ways with the tab #PoetryPals.  

Autumn pushes me to notice small objects that create a picture for an artist's touch. The leaves are changing; I feel poetry in the air. (Laura Jaworski) What did I see the past two week? Brown leaves make crunching noises, raindrops soak the earth, and birds fly across the sky heading for feeders in yards. I now feel ready to write.

September Leaves photo

Six Ways of Looking at Autumn

Beyond the stretch of grass and trees,

Autumn arrives with crunching leaves

Strutting through woods and crowded weeds.

Over garden beds, bees buzz and whirl.

Sunshine peeks between the clouds. Birds twirl

Poking and picking seeds that unfurl.

Ornamental grass circles gardens,

Adorning beds with purple garlands.

Fall offers beautiful bargains.

Bunnies and deers pause, taste, and munch.

My delicate plants become lunch. 

Autumn sends its breeze and such.

My eyes travel with quiet control,

Watching nature's glamorous stroll. 

Autumn touches each heartfelt soul.

The season of splendor is ablaze

With leafed hues that truly amaze.

Autumn embraces life in many ways.

CVarsalona, 2024, draft

There are lessons I learned while quietly observing Autumn.

• Embrace change
• Let go to heal
• Allow nature's colors, sounds, and elements to bring joy

“There is a subtle magic in the falling of old leaves.” - Avijeet Das

 

The fabulous children's poet and author, Irene Latham, hosts the Poetry Friday Roundup. She has wonderful news about her new anthology also written by Charles Waters. You will also enjoy Irene's latest ArtSpeak poem.

#PoetryPals November Challenge-Happy Thanksgiving

"A poem is a way of capturing a moment in time and making it eternal." -Valerie Worth

Each month, the Poetry Sisters, Tanita, Laura, Mary Lee, Liz. Sara, Tricia, and Kelly, offer a new poetic challenge. This month they are writing in the style of poet, Valerie Worth, whose poems are known for their simplicity and attention to detail. She was inspired by nature and ordinary objects, as exemplified by her poem, Porches. Valerie Worth's poem (see below) is one of her "small, portable pieces of magic" that draws attention to simple items.

You can learn more about Valerie Worth and read some of her poems at Spotlight on NCTE Poets: Valerie Worth, with Lee Bennett Hopkins, a post at Renee M. LaTulippe at No Water River.

Welcome

On my gathering porch,

Ornamental decor sparkles.

A festive wreath clangs

Against the front door.

Garlands wrap around

A single silent chair.

On the patio, flowers

Explode in fashionable colors.

Fragrant herbs spill over

Vases onto clay-filled soil.

My doors open

Welcoming sunkissed gatherings.

©CVarsalona, 2023

🍂🍃🍂🍃

In Thanksgiving

After the fixings

Are prepared and

The table set,

The kitchen hums

With delight.

The turkey sizzles.

Vegetables pop

In sparkling hues.

The soft-lit house readies

To welcomes guests

Into the thankful gathering.

©CVarsalona, 2023

🍂🍃🍂🍃

On this day after Thanksgiving, I send wishes of gratitude for family, friends, and the Poetry Friday community. May our host, Ruth Hersey, be blessed as she opens her doors (here) to bring poetic goodness into the world this Thanksgiving weekend.

A November Conversation

This week, November's weather swung back and forth like a playground swing. Conversations arose: Chill in the air. 36 degrees to 70 degrees." Beyond human talk, there was a huge stir in the sky when my son and I were in the parking lot of Tyson's Corner Mall in Virginia. A mass of blackbirds swarmed the sky above the building. Dipping, diving, screeching they flew up and down. Loud conversations were heard as in the chasing scene in the movie, The Birds by Alfred Hitchcock. Immediately, my son shot the photo. We stood in awe of what we witnessed.

This week I thought about that stunning but eerie scene. When Anastasia Suen posted her #smallpoem challenge with the theme "Conversations", my mind started sparking ideas.

Photo by Derek Varsalona edited in FotoJet

Poem and digital artwork by CVarsalona

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November is the month to reflect on what we have learned over the past months. The holiday season begins and conversations are full of opportunities to listen and pause with hope, gladness, and appreciation. It is time to reset our journey with gratitude. 

🍁🍂🍃🍁🍂🍃

Thank you to Irene Latham, poet extraordinaire for hosting Poetry Friday and filling my thoughts with wonder. Today, she brings the gift of reflecting, pondering, and poetic goodness. 

Hold Summer In Your Hand

As the summer heat continues, air-conditioned living is a must. Yesterday, I entered a large store and was surprised that the air conditioning system was not working properly. It is difficult for staff to work all day in these conditions. Air conditioning is a mood booster that most people are used to but it was not always this way. With a positive look at summer life, I offer a quote shared by Linda Baie. "Hold summer in your hand, pour summer in a glass, a tiny glass of course, the smallest tingling sip for children; change the season in your veins by raising a glass to lip and tilting summer in." -Dandelion Wine by Ray Bradbury 

I am tilting summer in with The Poetry Sisters whose challenge this month is to write a poem in the form of monotetra and tag it with the label, #PoetryPals. You can learn more about it at Writer's Digest. 

I never tried writing a monotetra before so this challenge has been more challenging than I thought. The heat has been on my mind, the bounty of the flowers, and the urgency of watering. Besides that, I am participating in the summer poem swaps. These ideas found a way into my poem along with some inspiration I need.

hydrangea's summer blush smiles

underneath heated, cloudy piles 

waiting for rainy-day lifestyles

let go of trials, let go of trials

find beauty in the crystal drops

that flip-flop across, settle, and plop

breathe in summer's sweetened swaps

share peaceful ops, share peaceful ops

©CVarsalona, 2023, draft

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Image Poem

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Jan Godown Annino is the host of Poetry Friday this week. Click here to find a wonderful assortment of summer information on books, poetry, and poetic goodness. Enjoy all that she offers from Florida. (Stay cool, Jan!)

March Slices Create a Found Poem

Writing is a practice of the heart on a journey of self-discovery.

As William Wordsworth noted,

“Fill your paper with the breathings of your heart.” 

During this month of March, I have written alongside the Two Writing Teachers community of reflective writers, read a variety of slices of life, and responded to many slicers. I visited with friends from the past and chatted with new slicers during the 16th  Annual March SOLSC! #SOL23 Writing Challenge. 

✍

Indexing the SOLSC23! Journey

I have a quirky habit:

Very late night writing

While enjoying springtime

But I do ❤ slicing an idea like

Grandpa's birthday,

• Shangri-La: a state of mind, and
• March winds
• Going rogue
• Into the spring fog.
• You may ask, What's in vogue?
• A museum of happiness,
• Hetk, a moment in time  or
• Perhaps, a springtime pile of good things
• Where everybody counts.

Pack your bags and go

• To a slicer meet-up or
• Slicer party #SOL23.

Packing dilemma? Maybe, but

• Here are good thoughts for a wonderful Saturday.
• March slices create a found poem, and
• Pennsylvania welcomes tourists.

There are words to fall back on, such as

Internet bloops are annoying and

What Slicers Know!

While reading, enjoy a sweet treat

At It's Another Cookie Day slice.

Stay tuned=>

Beautiful change is coming

with springtime weather

and another National Poetry Month project.

©CVarsalona, 2023

• 
  
  The above index poem catalogs my past month of almost daily slices for the Two Writing Teachers 2023 Annual March Slice of Life Story Challenge. You can read any of the above titles in italics March slices found at my website, Beyond LiteracyLink.
• What's Up Next?
• Since writing is a journey of the mind and heart, I will continue to write poetry throughout April, National Poetry Month. Each creation will focus on capturing the "humanity of the moment" as stated by photographer Robert Frank. My one word for 2023 is "BE" so join me in a poetic endeavor that combines poetry and photography.
• • Two Writing Teachers Day 31 
  • 16th Annual #SOLSC! #SOL23

  • 

What Slicers Know!

As a community of writers, slicers know the meaning of gratitude. They are grateful for those they have met along the Slice of Life journey. I decided as we move toward the end of the 16th Annual March SOLSC23! #SOL23 to mention a group of wonderful slicers who have commented on my different slices during this March challenge. Please note that there are many more slicers in the mix. Perhaps, another slice will capture more. 

I am thankful for all slicers and the gift of writing they bring to life. Please enjoy the poem I designed from the twelve writers below. 

This is a modified cento, "(collage poem) a poetic form composed entirely of  lines from poems by other poets." In this modified form, I read many slicers by the writers listed below and chose one line from each of their collection of slices to create a collage of thoughts.)

What Slicers Know!

Today...my heart is lifted up. -Diane Anderson

Mornings in our house are a tightly choreographed dance. -Amanda Potts

Granna is getting in on the action. We sing and read together. -Glenda Funk

I am thankful for a world full of contrasts. -Celia Fisher 

At the end of the day, it's a community of people coming together. -Schuyler Becker 

Conversations and connections continue. -Ramona

Poetry is a blessing, a treasured miracle, a gift I cherish. -Kim Haynes Johnson

I can't think of a better way to end the week and begin the weekend, -Debbie Lynn

Then readers seeing themselves in the pages of stories. -Brian Rozinsky

We are writers and we will see this ride through to the end.-arjeha

Remember these days! I say, Write now! -Fran Haley

What is yet to come I have to wait and see. -Terje Akke 

      An enjoyable quote by Terje Akke to close the poem.

I designed this collage poem to showcase slicers' skillful writing, their perseverance and dedication to their craft, and their love of words. Click on each name in the poem to link to each slicer's blog. 

Friederich Nietzsche said, "A good writer possesses not only his own spirit but also the spirit of his friends." Thank you, slicer friends and Two Writing Teachers, for opening the doors to continued inspiration.

My Slice of Life

Day 28 of Two Writing Teachers

16th Annual March SOLSC! #SOL23

Pack Our Bags and Go

Am I an organized packer of our bags when traveling? Frankly no. I have been working on this for years. I think I am getting better at this but my son is not and always needs assistance so nothing is left behind. A case in point is the year we were going to my mother's burial and my son left his dress shoes at home. Thank goodness that my husband had his hush puppies. Proof number 2 is that his toiletry bag is missing from our Disney trip in late January. So you can see why packing for a trip regardless of how long it is makes us all worried that something will be left behind. I checked and double-checked the trunk before taking off to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania for a framily wedding. 

Packing

P  acking 

A dd only what is needed

C hallenge myself to

K eep it simple

I  nclude toiletries and makeup

N o extra clothing

G et on the road with the hope all is in the bag

©CVarsalona, 2023, designed in FotoJet

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 It's time to join Poetry Friday Roundup. Thank you poet/Kidlit author and friend, Laura Purdie Salas for hosting Poetry Friday this week. Click here.

Logo by Linda Mitchell

AND

Two Writing Teachers Slice of Life Story Challenge Day 17.

NOTES: 

• This post/slice is an extension of my Day 16 Slice of Life that can be accessed here.
• We are almost at our destination so I will respond to comments throughout the weekend.
• Happy St.Patrick's Day-We will celebrate with the framily tonight at the Welcome Party for the wedding! It's at a Pittsburgh pub. 

Internet Bloops Are Annoying

I know that I wrote my March 8th Slice of Life called Grandparent Sitting - Splashing Good Time. I know that some slicers commented and I commented back. I have evidence that I wrote the blog (see below). What I don't know is how that blog vanished into the frustrating world of the internet.  

This is what frustration looks like!

Validation that I did write a slice about the grandgirls.

In 2014, I wrote a blog with a poem about frustration. I added the graphic from 2014 and rewrote a stanza using rhyme. You can see the other poem I wrote back then by clicking here.

Frustration comes in bundles,

Not so neatly tied

Down deep-long tunnels

That I don't want to hide.

©CV, 2023, quick write

Thank you Two Writing Teachers for constructing a meeting place for reflective writers.