Happy Poetry Friday! Margaret is hosting today's Poetry Friday round-up. Be sure to check out her site below for more writing inspiration and poetry celebrations! Today's poem is from an observation that I wrote down in my notebook one summer evening. I can remember this moment just like it was yesterday even though it is dated as an entry from August 2014. I love that about notebooks! It can feel like time traveling as you go back and reread those words. I remember sitting in our family golf cart right next to our quiet country road. A car had recently driven by, and there were tiny dust particles all in the air from the gravel road. I watched as they settled in the sun beams. I am so glad that I took the time that summer day to observe a little piece of my world, and that I was able to find those words from that moment safely tucked into my notebook. So today, I am happy to share this tiny poem with you! Invitation to Write: So much of what turns up in my notebook revolves around my observations of the natural world. There are so many wonderful things to observe in our world! Some are super big and others are so incredibly tiny that they are almost invisible to us; like the dust in my poem. Sometimes if we really stop to observe our world each day, all kinds of writing ideas will find their way into our notebook.
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Happy Poetry Friday! I am new to the Poetry Friday round-up, so I am super excited to join in the fun! Today I am sharing a poem from my collection of poems about summer. All month long, I have been thinking about how fast the summer flies by. Since I am a teacher, I try to take advantage of my time off during the summer to really seize the moments with family and friends. For me, summer really inspires me to think about time and how much I want to make the most of it. This poem came to me as I was thinking about this idea of wanting to squeeze every ounce of every moment in my life. Carpe Diem seemed like a perfect title for this poem since in Latin it means "seize the day!" Somehow that phrase just really summed up everything I was wanting to say in this poem. So with that, I leave you with a wish that you might seize the day and that all your possibilities throughout the moments of today turn golden. For more inspiring thoughts and poetry in today's Poetry Friday round-up, check out our host Chelanne's site below. Invitation to Write: This poem really comes from my thoughts about two topics. I had already been thinking a lot about summer and all the possibilities and moments that seem to bubble up throughout this season. It got me thinking about another big topic which is time. Summer is generally thought of as a season of fun times and relaxation. It flies by way to fast for me! So I took my thoughts about summer and paired it with the big idea of time. I asked myself questions like, "What do I think about the relationship between time and the season of summer? How do I feel about time as we measure it?
Thinking about big ideas and asking yourself questions about what you feel can be a great way to explore in your writing. Lately, I have been going back and rereading some of the poems and notebook entries that I have written about summer. Boy do I have a lot to say about summer! Just the other day, I was thinking about how hot it has been. It made me think about the summer rain that is much needed. I hope the poem I am sharing today might bring a summer shower to the fields around our river ridge. Even just a sprinkle would be welcome and refreshing to the land. Invitation to Write:
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Meet Phoebe! These marvelous little birds get their name from the call they make that resembles the sound of "Phoebe!" being shouted to the wind. You can often hear them calling early in the morning. Another adorable trait they have is to wag their tail back and forth as they sit on a branch or on a line. It's so fun to watch them. Yesterday, I was sitting at my little writing nook near the forest when I heard one nearby. She almost sounded as if she were shouting at me to acknowledge her and to hear her song. | Before I knew it, I found myself listening to her sweet notes and even conversing now and then with the delightful Phoebe bird. I had already written about her in my notebook many times, so I thought it was about time to share her song in a poem. |
Invitation to write:
Invitation to Write: |
You can find the complete article from the blog site here
I have been thinking a lot lately about all the life that exists inside the notebook. As I thumb back through my notebooks, I notice a crinkled page where I spilled some water during one of our Sunday drives in the golf cart. On another page, I found a smear of dried up clay from down in the gully where I sat one day, writing one of the scenes of my novel. These remnants are a great accomplishment to me. They represent time and pieces of my life that I have documented in my notebook forever.
So, I had to share this entry written by my four year old, Zane. It was just another day here on the ridge. We were back at the climbing tree and the boys were climbing and playing as usual. I had been taking my notebook each time we went to the climbing tree so that I could write while they played. I was just getting the title on my entry when Zane came over and asked if he could write in my notebook. I gave him my pen, and he began to compose. I couldn't help but smile as I listened to him gather his ideas out loud, including all the things he could write about. When he was finished, he told me all about his stories on the page. From this one experience with Zane, I realize just how much he already knows about the art of writing. He knows that writing means something and that a writer can find topics by simply living wide awake with childlike wonder. My notebook is truly brimming with life!
Here's a peek at my entry.
I took this entry and immediately envisioned it as a poem. It is written in first person, and it's not really about me. With this poem, I found it really enjoyable to step inside this memory and share it with my friend.
Here's a peek at one of my drafts.
Having a quick draft also gives you the opportunity to play around with the design, language, order, and so much more. In this draft, you can see me reworking the title, rephrasing some lines, making decisions about word choice, and envisioning line breaks. Once I type it up, I revise again until I am happy with my final changes.
My poem
The history of this land that we now call our home, is strong and rich. I have always been fascinated by the past and the lives of those who came before us. My mind travels back to days gone by and to the people who belonged to this land before me. When I heard that just down the road there was a cemetery where some of the Hearne family (pioneer settlers arriving in this area around 1852 and for who the town is named after) were laid to rest, I immediately started researching. I learned that all the land around the ridge and down to the Little Brazos river bottom, were once plantation lands owned by the Hearnes. They are recognized for bringing the cotton business and the railroad to Robertson County. Knowing the forgotten past of the landscape makes me think of the secret laughter and the sadness that are still attached to this land. | Invitation To Write: Sometimes thinking about the history of an important place or studying the landscape around you can lead you to writing. Try researching the history of your home or a special place by asking family members to tell you about their memories of that place. Explore your thinking about this place by writing about it from different perspectives or from the sensory images it creates. |
Author
Welcome! I'm Kiesha Shepard, and I have a love for writing and the teaching of writing. Whispers From the Ridge is a place where I can share my words and ideas for teaching writing. It's also a place for you to find inspiration for writing the words inside of you. I invite you into my world of writing as I capture the whispers from the ridge.
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Schedule of Round Up:
2 Laura at Laura Shovan
9 Margaret at Reflections on the Teche
16 Molly at Nix the Comfort Zone
23 Kat at Kathryn Apel
30 Becky at Sloth Reads
August
6 Mary Lee at A(nother) Year of Reading
13 Christie at Wondering and Wandering
20 Carol at The Apples in My Orchard
27 Elisabeth at Unexpected Intersections
September
3 Heidi at my juicy little universe
10 Tricia at The Miss Rumphius Effect
17 Denise at Dare to Care
24 Laura at Laura Purdie Salas
October
1 Catherine at Reading to the Core
8 Irene at Live Your Poem
15 Bridget at wee words for wee ones
22 Jama at Jama's Alphabet Soup
29 Linda at TeacherDance
November
5 Tabatha at The Opposite of Indifference
12 Matt at Radio, Rhythm & Rhyme
19 Carol at Beyond LiteracyLink
26 Ruth at there is no such thing as a God-forsaken town
December
3 Michelle at Michelle Kogan
10 Cathy at Merely Day by Day
17 Jone at Jone Rush MacCulloch
24 Buffy at Buffy Silverman
31 Carol at Carol's Corner