An Unexpected Connection

After I choose my colors each week, I start by researching what that Crayola crayon looks like. I then think all around the name for ideas, pulling images from my photos or online for inspiration.

When I finally start to write, I believe I know the direction my writing will take me. Then, suddenly, my muse surprises me with a different idea, and I usually like it better.

Well, this week I chose the colors:

• Denim

• Blush

• Gold

They showed me they had something unexpected in common—my beautiful mother.

My mother, Nancy- a professional model at eighteen.

Blush

My mother had a keen sense of fashion and was always coordinated and polished. An outfit was never complete without the final accent—peach lipstick. She and my Dad often dressed up to go out on Friday nights for business or to play bridge. My favorite memories are of the days my mom dressed like a Barbie doll in her gowns, fancy makeup, and hair, of course.

When she passed away five years ago, two of the things I kept—meaningless to anyone else—were her peach lipsticks and a nearly empty bottle of Jontue perfume. I like picking them up these days, knowing her fingers touched them.

My mother's Jontue and two used lipsticks. Somehow it makes her feel close:)

After you read the "BLUSH" poem below, you'll understand why these overused lipsticks are kept on my bathroom cabinet shelf and evoke such a precious memory for me.

Denim

Denim immediately brought me back to Junior High School in Illinois. My mother liked having me dress up for school, which meant a dress or top and skirt. With my long legs, I was VERY self-conscious. I wanted to fit in so badly, but my height, along with the dresses, made me stand out in an uncomfortable way. I still remember the feeling when my mom gave me permission to wear jeans to school. Yes, they were a bit short, but I didn't care.

For DENIM, I decided to try a poetic form introduced to me on a recent Poetry Friday by Alan J. Wright—a CHOKA poem. As with other Japanese poetic forms, the CHOKA does not typically rhyme or have rules on length.

It follows these guidelines:

• Five syllables in the odd-numbered lines (line one, three, five, etc.)

• Seven syllables in the even-numbered lines (line two, four, six, etc.)

• Finishes with two consecutive seven-syllable lines

Gold

When I thought of the color GOLD, this memory popped up. Settling your parents' estate and going through a lifetime of memories and stuff is one of the most difficult things about losing a parent. As hard as it was to divvy up her jewelry with my siblings, I am happy I have a few precious pieces, as they make my mother feel near every time I wear them.

One of my favorite things to do on Poetry Friday to relax is to click through the Poetry Friday links and enjoy their beautiful, varied poems and stories. Highly recommend. Thanks to Karen Edmisten for hosting Poetry Friday Round-up this week. Be sure to visit her blog to enjoy a charcuterie platter of prose and rhyme. Delicious! Karen's poem "One Way to Live" brought me to tears and shines light on the emotions we're feeling these days. Poetry is amazing like that.

Snow Birds

There are. few things I really don't mind about winter in New England.

• Getting to wear my oversized snuggly sweaters,

• The amazing blue color of the sky

• How thick, rich, warm soups taste on a snowy day

• and if you just stop and listen, the silence you hear trudging through the snow.

  
  

But I have to admit.... on a few of these sub-zero days, I begin to understand why snowbirds fly south. Brrrrrr!

Outside my window this week during the blizzard.

Inspired by New England winters, here are the colors I chose for this week's poems:

• White

• Shadow

• Sun Glow

My first poem, "White," was written for one of Georgia Heard's wonderful webinars. She hosted Grant Snider, Author-Illustrator and poet extraordinaire, who generously illustrated a few of our poems.  I highly recommend Georgia's webinars at The Poet's Studio (see more here) and Grant's book POETRY COMICS. He is brilliant! Here is an example of his work:

A nice marriage of poetry paired with simple illustration in comic-book style.

So... without further ado, let's start with:

 White

This is the poem that started my fascination with writing poems inspired by color. Pondering the color "white," I started by thinking of all the boring things in a kid's life that are white— a piece of blank paper, a bland bowl of cold white oatmeal, white paint or crayons, etc. Then I thought how the one white thing a kid would LOVE is snow. When I decided to use the word "appetite," it seemed right to end with a food metaphor. I could just imagine the red cardinal as the cherry on top.

A favorite photo of my backyard.

Shadow

I have only skied a handful of times in my life, but all of them have made me feel this way. But with courage and perseverance, each ride down built my confidence, and I really enjoyed it. At 6'2" tall, the runs felt incredibly steep to me. I remember wondering whether the reason small kids are so fearless is that their line of sight is much closer to the ground.

Sun Glow

With 24+ inches of snow this week, I must say, a getaway to Florida is sounding better and better. For this SUN GLOW poem, I thought of a child hearing that his grandparents were snowbirds and misinterpreting it... literally!

Thank you to Margaret at her blog Reflections on the Teche for hosting Poetry Friday this week. Be sure to stop by and see the other great poems linked on her blog. If you'd like to know more about Poetry Friday, this is a great resource from Renee LaTulippe.

See you next week!

I am Embarrassed to Say...

Growing up in a mostly white town, my only interaction with people of color were Karen Miller and Pat Davis in my home room, who were bused in from Boston in the late '70's VERY early every morning to the suburbs for their education. And even then, homeroom was so short that you really didn't have time to get to know each other. When I think about it now, I can't imagine the stress busing added to the students and their families.

I am embarrassed to say that, till recently, I never took the time to explore the rich black history out there, and get to know the incredible people who lived it. Books have opened that door for me, as they can for you and your kids. I wish my community had been more diverse back when I was growing up. I would have been so much richer for it.

Recently, however, I have enjoyed learning some of this history through novels and movies.

In 2024, at Boyds Mills (Highlights Foundation) I was blessed to have Charles Waters, Irene Latham and Lacresha Berry as mentors- three talented poets and authors.

Irene Latham and I at NCTE 2024 in Boston for the poet meet-up.

Lacresha Barry and I met up on an early morning walk around the Highlights grounds (2024) and had a lovely conversation .

Charles Waters and I at Highlights 2024

Charles was the first person to make me feel like I was really a poet. I am grateful for that.

One morning, during a break in the presentations, I browsed the library, where they sell books, and picked up Charles and Irene's novel, AFRICAN TOWN. Thumbing through the first pages, I was immediately hooked. This amazing novel pulled me right into the hearts and experiences of African men, women, and children torn from their native land. It was inspired by the story of the last slave ship, the Clotilda. It is told in easy-to-read poetic dialogue. Waters and Latham cleverly gave each person a unique voice through the way they used their texts. The verse novel format was very effective in expressing so much in very few words.

AFRICAN TOWN is a powerful book that brings history to life. "Chronicling the story of the last Africans brought illegally to America in 1860, African Town is a powerful and stunning novel-in-verse. Told in 14 distinct voices, including that of the ship that brought them to the American shores."

You will feel their joy in dance and celebration, their fear and confusion as they are pulled from all they know, and their incredible spirit of hopefulness, courage as they persevere, always looking toward a better future.

The extensive back matter is FASCINATING and a great finish, answering many of my questions about what happened to the characters I grew to love. This is real American history about rising above hate, prejudice, and horrible events to create the home, family, and life you desire. A great catalyst for important discussion with your children. HIGHLY RECOMMEND!

"I will give every last drop of blood in my veins until this monster called slavery is dead."

 -Cynthia Erivo as Harriet Tubman-

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GqoEs4cG6Uw

Then, awhile ago, my husband and I watched HARRIET, the story of Harriet Tubman. I had heard her name growing up, but never took the time to learn her story. (Shame on me!) Working as a slave, she made the gut-wrenching decision to escape her captivity and run to freedom. Leaving her husband and family behind, she traversed alone over 150 miles on foot to freedom. The amazing thing is that she turned right around and over 10 years, as the most well-known conductor on the Underground Railroad, made 19 trips back to the south to help over 300 slaves get to freedom- and "never lost a single passenger." The movie Harriet should be a must-see movie for all. What an inspiration!

I am so grateful that, as I have gotten older, my community has become so much more diverse. I seek out people's stories and love to hear about their history, experiences, and faith. I see the world, not as black and white, but as a colorful spring bouquet, each blossom unique and perfect and beautiful.

Thank you to Charles Waters and Irene Latham for their beautifully written, meaningful, and poignant poetic exploration of slavery. Every person young and old will be enriched by AFRICAN TOWN and HARRIET. I hope you will check them out.