I'm posting a new poem each day for National Poetry Month. Read on to see more!
JoAnn's Blog
National Poetry Month Day 23
April 23, 2023
I'm posting a new poem each day for National Poetry Month. Read on to see more!
National Poetry Month Day 22 & Happy Earth Day!
April 22, 2023
Millions of animals die each year from ingesting plastic or getting entangled in it. Today's poem is a reminder: one reusable cloth shopping bag can replace dozens of "disposable" plastic bags and (unlike plastic) biodegrade after it wears out.
Our small volunteer group has sewn and distributed more than 1800 handmade cloth shopping bags. The Boomerang Bags movement includes more than 1100 sewing communities like ours, and together we have made more than 500,000 bags. The fabric is donated, so we keep it out of landfills as an added bonus.
When we started sewing in 2016, I thought it was a simple solution. Now I know better. We keep trying.
I'm posting a new poem each day for National Poetry Month. Read on to see more. Note that they are not necessarily final drafts.
4 Comments
National Poetry Month Day 21 & Poetry Friday!
April 21, 2023
These warning signs pop up in our neighborhood every year. I think a lot of people don't realize that pesticides kill all insects, removing food sources from birds and other creatures and depriving us all of their benefits and fascinating company. Margaret Renkl makes the point eloquently in this New York Times article and even offers an alternative for those who are plagued by mosquitos. (The CDC says it is safe for people, animals, and other insects.)
Will we see fireflies this summer? Butterflies? Dragonflies? Ladybugs? Cicadas? Only if people pay attention to the warnings. And care.
I'm posting a new poem each day for National Poetry Month. Read on to see more. Note that they are not necessarily final drafts.
Karen Edmisten has today's Poetry Friday Roundup. Enjoy!
National Poetry Month Day 20
April 20, 2023
This poem was inspired by the view from my window this morning. I caught the photo later when I went out for a walk.
I'm posting a new poem each day for National Poetry Month. Read on to see more. Note that they are not necessarily final drafts. In fact, I recreated today's Canva design after I had already posted it because I thought of a better last line--first time I've done that!
National Poetry Month Day 19
April 19, 2023
Once in a water aerobics class, I looked out the window and said, "Uh-oh! Looks like we might get wet on the way home!" Somebody said, "You're already wet!"
I remembered that this morning as I walked to the pool under threateny clouds. Still cracks me up.
I'm posting a new poem each day for National Poetry Month. Read on to see more. Note that they are not necessarily final drafts.
National Poetry Month Day 17
April 17, 2023
On a good day, I wake up with a poem (or at least the start of one) in my head. Today, I found one as soon as I looked out the window. It started with "Snow is on the ground. Snow is falling still." But "is" is such a boring verb, and daffodils are so much more interesting, specific, and springlike than the ground. I tried out a dozen or more verbs before I settled on "doomed" after I went outside to inspect them. They are now delightful in a vase inside.
I'm posting a new poem each day for National Poetry Month. Read on to see more. Note that they are not necessarily final drafts. Even after I post one, I keep thinking about rhythm, alliteration, and all those other good poetry tools.
National Poetry Month Day 16
April 16, 2023
For today's poem, I played around with repetition and rhyme schemes. I'm always learning!
I'm posting a new poem each day for National Poetry Month. Read on to see more. Note that they are not necessarily final drafts. In this one, for example, I think maybe "circle" would be better than "wheel through" in line 4 because it would add some alliteration. But then I'm not sure about "clear." Still thinking!
National Poetry Month Day 15
April 15, 2023
I may have mentioned that spring is my favorite time of year. Hepatica is one of my favorite spring flowers. We looked for it yesterday in the Kettle Moraine State Forest and found loads of it blooming where we had seen the leaves last fall. Along the way, we listened to frogs and sandhill cranes, and we spotted a turtle on a side path. Today's destination: bloodroot in a nearby park.
I'm posting a new poem each day for National Poetry Month. Read on to see more.
National Poetry Month Day 14 & Poetry Friday!
April 14, 2023
I'm posting a new poem each day for National Poetry Month. Read on to see more.
Jone Rush MacCulloch is hosting today's Poetry Friday Roundup. Enjoy!
National Poetry Month Day 13
April 13, 2023
One of my favorite spots in a nearby park. Across the water, you can see the bench where I sit to watch for wildlife.
I'm posting a new poem each day for National Poetry Month. Read on to see more.
National Poetry Month Day 12
April 12, 2023
I'm posting a new poem each day for National Poetry Month. This one is definitely autobiographical. Read on to see more.
National Poetry Month Day 11
April 11, 2023
I'm posting a new poem each day for National Poetry Month. Read on to see more.
National Poetry Month Day 10
April 10, 2023
We took a walk to the pond in the park and found plenty to see and hear, including golden-crowned kinglets, red-winged blackbirds, kingfishers, wood ducks, and dragonflies. Spring has arrived in our corner of southeast Wisconsin--at last!
I'm posting a new poem each day for National Poetry Month. Read on to see more.
National Poetry Month Day 9
April 9, 2023
Year after year, I'm enthralled by the glory and abundance of spring flowers. They--and the migrating birds passing through--make spring my favorite time of the year.
I'm posting a new poem each day for National Poetry Month. Read on to see more.
National Poetry Month Day 8
April 8, 2023
Oh, the news! Too much to fathom some days. Best we can do is stick together.
I'm posting a new poem each day for National Poetry Month. Read on to see more.
National Poetry Month Day 7
April 7, 2023
My mother was famous for her Spoonerisms, at least in our family. "Claper pips" was perhaps her best known and certainly a favorite.
I'm posting a new poem each day for National Poetry Month. Read on to see more.
And be sure to check out all the other National Poetry Month goodness at Reflections on the Teche. Enjoy!
National Poetry Month Day 6
April 6, 2023
I'm posting a new poem each day for National Poetry Month. Read on for more.
National Poetry Month Day 5
April 5, 2023
The skies are definitely brighter today in Wisconsin! I am overjoyed by the news and grateful to everyone who helped make it happen.
I'm posting a new poem each day for #National Poetry Month. Read on for more.
National Poetry Month Day 4
April 4, 2023
Busy day today, and some of us are anxious. It's Election Day in Wisconsin (GO VOTE!), and another whopper of a storm is on its way. All will be well. I am hopeful.
I'm posting a new poem each day for #National Poetry Month. Read on for more.
National Poetry Month Day 3
April 3, 2023
I plan to post a new poem each day for #National Poetry Month. Read on for more.
National Poetry Month Day 2
April 2, 2023
I plan to post a new poem each day for #National Poetry Month. Read on for more!
National Poetry Month Day 1
April 1, 2023
Welcome to National Poetry Month! For more poetry goodness, check out the 2023 National Poetry Month Kidlitosphere Events Roundup at Jama's Alphabet Soup! Enjoy!
Learning: a Power Outage Haiku
March 30, 2023
Last weekend, we lost power three times during a blustery snowstorm. The official total at the Milwaukee airport was about 9 inches of wet, heavy, sloppy snow. We were lucky that our house warmed up between outages and that the only place we had to go was outside to shovel. Most of the snow has since melted. Read on to find four more haiku I wrote during the storm.
Tomorrow is the first day of National Poetry month! I plan to post a poem a day. Come back and visit!
Mary Lee has the Poetry Friday Roundup at A(nother) Year of Reading. Enjoy!
Squirrels: a Power Outage Haiku
March 30, 2023
snow-laden branches
squirrels chase on undersides
storms don't stop squirrels
Snowblown Ducks: a Power Outage Haiku
March 30, 2023
snowblown ducks shelter
beneath snow-laden branches
safe and warm for now
Songbirds: a Power Outage Haiku
March 30, 2023
power out again
songbirds gather at feeders
only show in town
Winter Storm Warning: a Power Outage Haiku
March 30, 2023
actual forecast
repetition makes the point
power out again
We lost power during a snowstorm last weekend. Surprise! It turned into an opportunity to write Power Outage haiku.
Shopping Bags, Weather, and Poetry Friday!
February 24, 2023
In between writing projects, I often get the urge to sew. And in between clothes-making projects, I make shopping bags to donate or give away. Since 2016, I've belonged to a group of volunteers who sew reusable shopping bags from donated fabric, part of the worldwide Boomerang Bags movement. Our goals are to reduce the use of "disposable" plastic bags and to keep usable fabric out of landfills. The pandemic put a stop to our monthly Sewing Bees, but we all still have stashes of fabric, and we keep plugging away when we can.
Plastic pollution is an enormous problem, and using a reusable shopping bag is a tiny solution. But I firmly believe that tiny solutions can add up to big change if enough of us implement them. In the meantime, remember to bring your reusable shopping bags when you shop!
Tabatha Yeatts is hosting today's Poetry Friday Roundup at The Opposite of Indifference. Enjoy!
Sunshine and Poetry Friday!
January 13, 2023
I'm so much more productive when the sun is shining, and this winter in southeast Wisconsin has been even grayer than usual. It's also notable for its lack of snow. Lucky for me, the temperature has been fine for walking. I can stroll to either Lake Michigan or the Milwaukee River, where nature's delights abound in any weather. On one sunny day, I drafted a stack of haiku, and I've been revising and posting one a day. If you'd like to see more, read the posts below.
Today's Poetry Friday Roundup is at Chicken Spaghetti. Enjoy!
Walking in Sunshine Again
January 12, 2023
This one's from a walk to Lake Michigan, my favorite destination.
Spinning Away
January 11, 2023
I actually saw this happen, but I was too awestruck to try to take a picture.
Invitation
January 9, 2023
On sunny days, I am compelled to write poems. I've got at least a few more to share. Join me? Feel free to add yours in the comments. Have fun!
Jump-Starting Spring
December 29, 2022
Happy Poetry Friday! I'm joining the #PoetryPals this month with a poem that includes a box. Mine holds seeds I collected over late summer and fall. Today was that one bright winter day mentioned in the poem, so I planted some little greenhouses, hoping to give the seeds a head start. The containers you see in the photo include everything listed in the poem and more. Now I'm crossing my fingers that we'll see lots of healthy sprouts in spring.
In case the poem above is hard to read, here it is again:
Jump-Starting Spring
I squirrel away autumn's treasures
in junk mail return envelopes
in a plastic spinach box in the cold garage:
turtleheads, touch-me-nots, penstemon,
columbine, cup plants, coneflowers (purple and prairie),
milkweed (common, swamp, and whorled).
One bright winter day,
at our picnic table-turned-lab bench,
I slice empty milk jugs to hinge open like hope chests,
pour in soil, plant seeds, sprinkle water,
add labels on stakes,
close and fasten,
and mark the outsides for good measure.
With groundless optimism,
I line up the jugs in the snow,
counting on nature and miracles.
© 2022 JoAnn Early Macken
Patricia Franz is hosting the Poetry Friday Roundup on her Reverie blog. Enjoy!