Poetry Friday: Haiku Riddles

Tricia (The Miss Rumphius Effect) challenged us to write haiku riddles based on the book If Not for the Cat by Jack Prelutsky.  I shared that book on this blog a while back.

Here are two I wrote this week:

thin spaghetti legs
neck, limber long gathers fish
graceful in flight

grey scarf of dawn
weaves diamond dewdrops in, out
top fir boughs vanish

 

Do you know what they are?  Did you guess Blue Heron and Fog?  Lots of great poetry can be found at Susan Taylor Brown.

This is a cross posting and uses the word “fog” from One Single Impression.  Another fog poem can be found here.

One Single Impression: Fog

Sweetest in the Gale provided the prompt, “fog”, for One Single Impression this week. Perfect because with the changing of summer into fall, the fog has drifted in from its vacation.

fog 
wraps fir boughs
morning prayer shawl

For more on fog, visit One Single Impression.

One Single Impression: Romance

The prompt at One Single Impression this week is ”romance”.  The following was inspired by yesterday’s dawn.

sky-blue-pink morning
hand in hand down the dirt path
sacred rendezvous

Totally late with this.  But more on the prompt cant be found here.

The Key to the New Year

Okay, I know that September is not the calendar new year. For me, however, starting back to school signals a new year.  Just think, I have started 52 new years in September not counting my stint at LaVerne nursery school.  I love this time of year, so fresh and optimistic.  And that’s the key to having a great year.

Another key to have a fantastic new start of school is having big ideas.  Because if I don’t have the big ideas, I am sunk.  This school year I am teaching the fifth graders for an hour.   This enables me to spend time in the computer lab and really get into research skills.  It also saves the district money.  This idea both excites and scares me.  I am so use to running my lessons on a 30 minute cycle.  It means being organized and over-planned for my students.  It was means that I can book talk more about what I am reading.

This school year we start 30 minutes later (which also saves the district money).  This is going to be a challenge for me. I get up at 5 AM.  I am awake most days at this time. So I love that I am getting bonus time in the morning to get things done. But the leaving later from school, that’s the challenge not so fun.  I am sure I will adjust.  Gotta find a good hot water maker and start drinking afternoon tea consistently. This will be key in staying focused as the afternoon wears on.

I feel as though I have been on a writing/blogging drought.  Only 3 entries in August (good grief) and 4 in July.  My brain went on vacation.   And yet, there has been a sense of accomplishment.  I did have two poems published.  One appeared the monthly Four and Twenty Journal and one was featured this past week on their blog site. 

So now the days are marching toward being shorter (we have 13 hours of daylight and are losing minutes every day).  Yesterday, I rearranged the living room which is our “winter patio”. 

It will be where I can hang out during the school year to write and watch the seasons. Moved the couch as it just did not allow for optimal weather watching.  We tried this arrangement when we first moved in but this is slightly different (less furniture).

The keys to a great new year:

-Write three observations each day thus depositing into the poetry account (thank you, Naomi Shihab Nye)
-Continued revisions on my WIP.
-Write to the prompts given at Sunday Scribblings, One Single Impression, Poetry Stretch, and Read, Write, Poem.
-Instill the love of reading into fourth and fifth grade, help them learn who they are as readers.
-Exercise consistently.  Try to walk the out door track at school at least twice a week.

What I am looking forward to this year:

-First photography show in Pompton Plains, NJ (“Rush MacCulloch” Women: Three Generations) the photography of an aunt, niece, and great-niece.
-Visiting my aunt and the show in October.
-Once a month Family Library Nights (instead of twice).
-My monthly writing critique group.
-Continues networking with writers in the Portland area.
-Photography field trips.
-My book club, we have some great books to discuss!

What are your keys to success in projects? To read others take on the word “key“  visit Sunday Scribblings.

One Single Impression and News

The prompt at One Single Impression this week: “copse”.  We are facing another heat wave this week.

Copse

meditation morning
below gnarly oak branches
-escape from heat

News: My poem, “Nirvana” is published on-line at Four and Twenty: A Short Form Poetry Journal.  Click on the shirts, p. 22.  

Another poem will be featured on Sept 1.  I have weekly poetry prompts to thank for planting the seed of each poem as well as my writing group for their feedback in revision.

For more wonderful poetry on this week’s prompt, visit here.  Thank you, Kitehorse.

One Single Impression: Ocean

“Ocean” is the prompt from Sweetest in the Gale (formerly Fledgling Poet) at One Single Impression. 

Seaside, Oregon 2009

I have been reading Jane Reichhold’s Writing and Enjoying Haiku this summer.  It’s been my summer book study over at “Check It Out”.  Just so happens that I revised this haiku originally posted in 2007.

foamy ocean waves
lace pattern on wet sand
crab scuttles alone

Revision 1:

ocean crochet
solitary crab scuttles
ebb tide remnant

Revision 2:

solitary crab scuttles
over foamy crochet
ebb tide remnant

To read about my revision process, visit here.  And be sure to visit others take on “ocean” at One Single Impression.

Summer Smackdown Check-in

I missed last week.  Was at the coast with family for more vacation.  But I did get my revision completed before I left and sent out to my writing group. Hooray for that!

So this week, writing group (AKA Southeast Stories) met for an extended time and lunch.  It was a special celebration as it marked a year since we first met and formed our group.  Currently there are five of us who meet monthly, all working on a variety of genres.  I love that we have found a lot of common ground to laugh, talk, and share our writing life with each other.

I love the input from these women.  Watching this story evolve is an amazing experience.  I have listened to authors  shared about their writing process, about how the characters take one these lives of their own.  I could not imagine it until now.  It is happening to me.

What else is happening is that I am having difficult concentrating on any other writing other than this project.  I keep looking at the weekly writing prompt for poetry and come up empty minded. 

But, I am scribbling thoughts on post-its about the current project and the inside head conversations are non stop about the project. Thinking about where to revise and leave some of the story behind. 

Funny, on Monday, when the group met, I came to a point where I realized that perhaps, just perhaps, there was a different ending point.

I am doing a personal book study about writing haiku. It is the focus of my Poetry Friday posts at Check It Out.  I decided it was a great way to up my game in that area.  I have had the book on the shelves for a couple of years and have perused but never actually read cover-to-cover.

I plan to work on the project this weekend while avoiding the heat. My goal is get it sent to someone outside the group by the end of August. Others are checking in about their revision at Brimstone Soup.

Summer Revision Smackdown

I wish I could say that I really did but…distractions! First the book club women and I visited a bead store in Seaside, Oregon.  Huge distraction,  reminded me of the beading I have waiting for me. 

The biggest distraction last week was my ailing cat.   I found myself yesterday, hanging with her instead of  revising (which I had set the day aside to do).  Maybe it was the gloominess of the day. Yesterday was a fall day, cloudy, cool, with impending rain which arrived in the early evening.  I found myself napping and Mocha along with the pooches were at my side.

She’s a fighter that cat.  Probably from her scrappy, feral beginnings.  Still chowing down food. 

So today and tomorrow are my days to revise and send to the group. We meet next week.  This month marks one year since our critique group formed.

The Recipe Poem: Tribute to Mocha

How to Say Good-bye

Tricia at The Miss Rumphius Effect provides a poetry challenge each Monday. This week it’s to create a recipe poem.

                                                                                              
Mocha before her nose became cancerous.
 Mocha, aka Mocha Latte, and Mochabeans, (15) has cancer of the nose. Six weeks ago, we drove her to the vet thinking it was time. Jumping out of the vet’s arms, we chose to board her as we left for the weekend. We knew this day would eventually arrive. I will spare you the details of her nose but last night her eye started tearing as well. Weight loss as well, even though she eats like a pig.

I found her at a latte stand, 1994. A beautiful diluted calico, probably born feral. She was the most independent of the three cats. Three years ago, when she became the only cat, she finally decided to trust us enough to venture onto our bed and be part of the family along the two doxies. Last night she slept there all night, unusual and even stuck around this morning as I wrote.

So my recipe is how to say good-bye:

fold her into your lap
sprinkle love words
knead fur, take note
of her frailty
mix in memories
mousing skills, shyness, love of the garden,
and faithfulness
sift in trust and compassion
melt love into her fur
hold on- let go
once more
fold her into your lap 
shed tears

Sweet, sweet, cat I do not want to say good-bye.

 Postscript: 1:30 PM: Just returned from the vet.  Mochabeans got a reprieve.  The vet said based on the fact that she is eating, drinking water, active, we could choose to wait so we did.  When asked if it were his cat what would he do, he said he would wait.  She has lost more weight so it is a matter of time but not today.  As I write, she went outside to lounge.

Summer Revision Smackdown Summary

 

June 2009 is past. I was on the road when it left us. My last week of the Summer Revision Smackdown was without meeting goals.  A lot of time spent getting ready for the Disneyland trip and some play.

I did spend time in my head thinking about revision. And I plan to set goals for this month in the area of revision. I revised five poems and sumitted four to a local ezine for poetry. 

My biggest July goal is to get a project ready to send outside my writing group.  I have had an offer from someone to read it and give feedback. This terrifies me a bit.  I am working on the second have of the project which is intense.

Holly and Jolie are doing an awesome job of getting everyone pumped up about revising.