Poetry Friday: New Discovery on the New Books Table

Although I miss my King County Library in Washington (no Lucky Day books on the shelves or Choice Reads to browse in North Carolina), the children's section of my local library has a feature that I love, a new books table. Last week I found this book by Joseph Coelho, the UK Children's Laureate for 2022-2024.

Poetry Prompts: All sorts of ways to start a poem is filled with 42 poetry prompts that are sure to delight your inner poet and any child in your life who wants poetry adventures. Each prompt has an example poem from the poet, followed by an invitation to create, and a Poetry Power-Up for an additional challenge. The book's captivating illustrations and large size make this a must-have for any teacher who loves poetry. If your local or school library doesn't have a copy, nudge them to buy one. It's a treasure trove!

  

Denise at Dare to Care is hosting this week's Poetry Friday Roundup. Come join the fun!

Poetry Friday: Four Things Friday!

1.  I open my phone to see a new podcast link from NPR"S Book of the Day featuring US Poet Laureate Ada Limon. Come back to listen for a weekend treat!

2. I click on poets.org and find this serendipitous quote by Ada Limon on the home page:

"Poetry offers us that silence—that quiet space."

—Ada Limón, United States Poet Laureate

3. I locate poems by Limon on poets.org. Check out one of my favorites, "The Raincoat."

4. I invite you to my Friday Festivities in honor of post 1,400! Cue the confetti!

  

Tracey has this week’s Poetry Friday roundup at Tangles & Tales.

Spiritual Journey Thursday: Comforted by Scripture

My father died forty-four years ago today on my parent's 39th wedding anniversary  I had just completed my second year of teaching and we were visiting my sister in Tennessee when my father became ill and had to be hospitalized. After emergency surgery and more than a week in the hospital with no progress toward recovery, we gradually came to understand that he wasn't going to get better. We had spent hours in the hospital's tiny chapel pleading for the Savior's healing power. This time our prayers weren't answered in the way we wished.

 

As a young child, I remember my mother's prayers often included the words: "Not my will, but thine be done." This was a difficult time for us because my father had seemed in good health when we embarked on our trip and was only sixty-seven years old. During this time of grief and sorrow, I turned to the words of scripture for solace. I turned to them when my mother died eleven years later at the age of sixty-nine and I was just thirty-six years old. My birthday is sandwiched between the deaths of my parents and it has taken years for me to feel something other than sadness at this time of the year. When I celebrate my next birthday, I will have outlived both of my parents. 

The words of scripture continue to bring solace and peace to my heart during difficult times. I jotted down the scriptures that I shared with my children in 2001 when we had our own candlelit ceremony after 9/11 on our deck. As we faced a worldwide pandemic that brought  sorrow and grief to so many, I turned to the promises and comfort found in scripture. When two siblings died in 2020, I turned once again to the words of scripture for comfort. As I consider those affected by war in our world, I pray for them to feel the Lord's peace. And now I seem to be surrounded by friends, young and old, battling difficult health situations and cancer. When I send cards, I often include the words of scripture, hoping that my friends will feel comforted as I am by the words.

Here are just a few of my favorites:

 

"...when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I."  (Psalm 61:2)

"My soul melteth for heaviness: strengthen thou me according to thy word. (Psalm 118:28

"I called upon the Lord in distress: the Lord answered me..." (Psalm 118:5)

"The Lord is my strength and song, and is become my salvation." (Psalm 118:14)

"Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. (Psalm119:105)

"Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." (John 14:27)

 

"Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need." (Hebrews 4:16) 

"Fear thou not, for I am with thee: be not dismayed: for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee, yea, I will help thee: yea I will uphold thee with with the right hand of my righteousness.(Isaiah 41:10)

I look forward to reading your post and learning of the things that have shaped or inspired your spiritual practice.

 

It's Spiritual Journey Thursday, an open gathering for bloggers 

who write monthly about our spiritual journeys. Karen Eastlund is our June host and invited us to look into the past for something that has shaped or inspired our current spiritual practice or outlook. You can read her post and find links from fellow travelers at Karen's Got a Blog.

Slice of Life: This Moment

I've been struggling with writing each week ever since the end of March's Slice of Life. Sometime during this past week, I remembered a padlet where I have saved mentor slices. So I visited it and chose Elisabeth's This Moment slice as today's mentor text. Go read hers, it's exceptional!

Son-in-law ladles leftover Chicken Tikka Masala into turquoise freezer cubes, scraping every last bit of delicious sauce from the red pot on the stove. Drawers open and close with a gentle swish as he pads about the kitchen in sock feet. Final dinner pots are washed and set on the drainer cloth to air dry.

Daughter's voice reading aloud to Jack and Robby floats down the hallway from the boys' bedroom followed by her voice singing one of four songs the boys request at bedtime.

The Book That Kibo Wrote sits on the kitchen table, evidence of Ollie's earlier read aloud with Grandma and Grandpa.

Daughter and son-in-law escape for a quick game of pickle ball. I finish my slice and reach for my phone to continue listening to next week's book club selection, currently at 29% finished with 9 hours, 59 minutes, and 03 seconds remaining.

Poetry Friday: Being With Trees

 

Poetry Friday was hosted on Friday by Michelle Kogan. Be sure to pop by and read the poems she shared on her Birthday Bash post which includes poems by several of my favorite poets.

When I visited a new-to-me branch library about a month ago, I picked up Hannah Fries small book, Being with Trees: Awaken Your Senses to the Wonders of Nature. It has sat in my book basket for several weeks until Friday when I picked it up in search of a poem to share. The cover of the book has the words Poetry, Reflections, and Inspiration. The book is divided into four sections: Breathe, Connect, Heal, and Give Thanks, It's filled with beautiful illustrations.

A favorite poem was opposite a page that explained how Edna St Vincent Milly spent the last half of her life from 1925 to 1950, at Steepletop, her estate in Austerlitz, New York. Isn't Steepletop a wonderful name for an estate?

Here's are lines from Edna St. Vincent Millay's poem that is featured in Being with Trees (p. 161):

And as I looked a quickening gust 

Of wind blew up to me and thrust

Into my face a miracle

Of orchard-breath, and with the smell, - 

I know not how such things can be! -

I breathed my soul back into me.

                                 - Edna St. Vincent Millay

And then I fell down a poetry rabbit hole. It turns out the lines come from her poem, "Renascence" which I must have studied  and have long since forgotten in American Literature in college. I not only located the poem, but read an extensive  Poem Guide provided on Poetry Foundation. And that my friends, is just one of my excuses for posting two days late.

Slice of Life: Tuesday Adventures with Grandma and Grandpa

 Once I finish the March Slice of Life Writing Challenge, I find it hard to find something to say once a week. I wrote one slice in April and now I'm aiming for two in May. 

We had a lovely play date today. We started at one playground, ambled around the Arboretum (my first time there), stopped to enjoy a snack, started a book we found at The Little Free Library, explored the sun dial, scootered on the smooth and spacious and shady sidewalks, collected specimens, and spent the last half hour swinging at a second playground. Everyone knows that I love to document my walks and adventures, so here is the illustrated version of our morning with two of our four grand boys. Next fall we'll be down to one grandson because big brother starts kindergarten. Oh how fast the years fly by!

First playground

 

 

 Brothers on butterfly bridge

 

 

 

View from the stone wall where we had morning snack

Not enough wind to ring the chimes
 

 

 

 Reading the sundial

 

 

 Riding scooters

 

 

 

Gorgeous blossoms

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Collecting specimens

 

 

Last swing of the morning 

 

Spiritual Journey Thursday & Poetry Friday: Growth

 Jone Rush MacCulloch, our May host for Spiritual Journey Thursday, invited us to write about growth. Buffy Silverman is hosting Poetry Friday with a Snakey Edition. I composed this haiku to do double duty for SJT and PF.

 

Spring celebrates green

new growth erupts from brown limbs

fresh hope fills our hearts

 

I also wanted to share the poem "How It Might Continue" which I discovered in How to Love the World: Poems of Gratitude and Hope edited by James Crews.

 

How It Might Continue by Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer

Wherever we go, the chance for joy,

whole orchards of amazement—

 

one more reason to always travel

with our pockets full of exclamation marks,

 

so we might scatter them for others

like apple seeds.

You can read the rest of the poem here. 

 

I adore the varied shades of green that fill our spring days with gladness and cheer and hope. Join me in a stroll trhough these pics of green glory snapped over the years on my springtime walks.

 

 

The last two photos were taken in grandson Jack's first grade classroom

where I shared poems from my many pockets during poetry month.