Happy Poetry Friday! I'm participating in the wordplay challenge presented by the Poetry Sisters. Today's poem is based on the exercise suggested by poet Nikki Grimes in this interview with Michelle Heidenrich Barnes.
RAIN (a wordplay poem)
RAIN is a vertical word.
Its letters are streaks down a window—
except for proud R with its chest puffed out.
RAIN hangs out with CLOUDY and GRAY,
TORRENTS and BUCKETS,
CATS and DOGS.
RAIN is a glittery word.
It glimmers. It glistens.
It gussies up TREES and UMBRELLAS.
(c) 2021 JoAnn Early Macken
These wordplay poems remind me of the brilliant animal poem collection Words with Wrinkled Knees by Barbara Juster Esbensen. Twenty years ago, I received the Barbara Juster Esbensen Poetry Teaching Award for my work with a third grade class using Esbensen's book A Celebration of Bees: Helping Children to Write Poetry. With the prize money, I was able to buy a copy of Words with Wrinkled Knees for each student in the class. I have such fond memories of the experience that it's hard for me to pick a favorite poem, but here's one:
What a moonstruck
word. O W L !
Such round yellow lamps
for eyes and the hoot
built into the name
Beaked and taloned
it leaves the page
at dusk When blue light
turns to shadow
and wind moves
the empty paper this word
O W L
opens soundless wings
s a i l s o u t
to where the smallest letters
cower in the dark
--Barbara Juster Esbensen, Words with Wrinkled Knees
Linda has this week's Poetry Friday Roundup at TeacherDance. Enjoy!
JoAnn
