WRITE TIME 4/30/2014

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DIG INTO YOUR POET'S TOOLBOX AND BUILD A POEM THAT SAYS "YOU."
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PROMPT #10 - Write a poem about a rule that drives you crazy and why.
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Will meet you back here Wednesday, 5/7/14, on LET"S TALK POETRY to share what I've been inspired to write.
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SPECIAL NOTE: Although this is the last day of National Poetry Month, do not let this be the last day that you celebrate poetry. Here at Let's Talk Poetry we celebrate poetry all year long. Stay tuned and stay immersed in all things poetic.

INTERNATIONAL JAZZ DAY

MY EFFORT AT PROMPT #9

Okay, so I'm a day early this week.


Crooked Horn


Check out horn man on the corner
Blowin'
Music flowin'
In the wind
Crooked horn moanin' and groanin'
And
Risin' to a level
Where it's never been
People out shoppin'
Stop and listen
Horn man riffin'
Scattin' and scalin'
Crooked horn wailin'
Horn man playin'
Some jazzy be-bop refrain
Reminiscent of Bird
Prez
Coleman Hawkins
John Coltrane
A Love Supreme
A Love Supreme
Listen to the crooked horn
Scream
Notes risin' and drivin'
Crissin' and crossin'
And
Hornman endorsin'
His lyrical flow with
A melody
Warm and tender
Check out
Horn man on the corner
Blowin'
In sweet surrender

SHOUT OUT TO THE STREET TEAMS

THIS IS HOW WE CELEBRATE POEM-IN-YOUR POCKET DAY AT LET'S TALK POETRY, "WHERE THE LOVE OF POETRY IS WAITING FOR YOU."

SHARING A POEM AT FINISH LINE
EASTLAND MALL, WHITEHALL, OHIO

PASSING OUT POCKET POEMS
#2 BUS STOP, WHITEHALL, OHIO

2ND ANNUAL LET'S TALK POETRY'S
POEM-ON-A-BALLOON DAY
WHITEHALL, OHIO

BALLOONS LAUNCHED AT 2:10 P.M.
HEADED DUE WEST FROM WHITEHALL
TOWARD BEXLEY, OHIO 

"MAYBE THIS YEAR SOMEONE WILL RESPOND."

STUDENT AT THE UNIVERSITY OF TOLEDO
PREPARING HER POCKET POEM

A FAVORITE POEM WAITING TO BE SHARED
TOLEDO, OHIO

THIS POEM IS READY TO GO!
TOLEDO, OHIO

STUDENTS FROM LICKING HEIGHTS MIDDLE SCHOOL
SHARING THEIR POEMS
PATASKALA, OHIO

READING POETRY AT THE LIBRARY
REYNOLDSBURG, OHIO

SHHHHHHH! QUIET PLEASE!
THIS IS THE LIBRARY!

WRITE TIME 4/25/2014

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DIG INTO YOUR POET'S TOOLBOX AND BUILD A POEM THAT SAYS "YOU."
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PROMPT #9 - Write a JAZZ POEM. A JAZZ POEM is a piece written about anything in the key of jazz. **see previous post "Celebrate International Jazz Day"
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Will meet back here on Wednesday, April 30, 2014 (International Jazz Day), on LET'S TALK POETRY, to share what I've been inspired to write.

STILL MORE WAYS TO CELEBRATE NATIONAL POETRY MONTH

As National Poetry Month winds down, the ways to help celebrate it continues to grow. To spice up the end of the month try the following:

• Recite a poem to family and friends, be it a holiday or birthday celebration. Your own, of course. But you can use one of your favorites if you like.
• Visit a poetry landmark. Pay homage to a poet's  life and work by seeing where it all took place, or started out. While in New York City next month, I plan to take a walking tour of LANGSTON HUGHES' Harlem of 1926.
• For poetry landmarks in your area, click on poets.org then Poetry Near You, then Poetry Landmarks.
• Add a special poem to the end of your e-mails. Check with your e-mail provider for ways to create a personalized message on your emails.
• Start a poetry reading group. Select books or poems that invite readers of all levels. Hey! Start a "framily" group!
• Take a poem out to lunch. Put some poetry in your lunch period by reading a special poem, quietly or if possible, out loud; after you have eaten, of course. It will be like dessert or a snack or something.

        ENJOY THE LAST FEW DAYS OF NATIONAL POETRY MONTH!

CELEBRATE INTERNATIONAL JAZZ DAY

April 30, 2014 is celebrated as International Jazz Day all over the world. It's objective is to highlight jazz and it's diplomatic role of uniting people in all corners of the globe.

Here at LET'S TALK POETRY we celebrate by naturally, poeming.

Write a jazz poem. A jazz poem is a piece written about anything jazz: an artist (singer, musician, writer, painter, etc), or it can be written in the voice that jazz is played or sang in, if you know what I mean. Anyway, Do your best to jazz your piece up!

For a comprehensive understanding of this whole jazz thing click on the following link jcdudleypoet.blogspot.com

MY EFFORT AT PROMPT #8

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Okay! I missed you on Wednesday, but here is my poem:


c.y.a.


where do you run to
where do you hide
when the storm starts
to rumble
better get inside
look out the window
what do you see
a bolt of lightning
just shattered that tree

HAPPY POEM IN YOUR POCKET DAY

DREAMS
by Langston Hughes

Hold fast to dreams
For if dreams die
Life is a broken-winged bird
That cannot fly
Hold fast to dreams
For when dreams go
Life is a barren field
Frozen with snow.

POETRY EVENT

For New York City residents and those in the vicinity, join POETS HOUSE for POEM IN YOUR POCKET DAY, on April 24, 2014

POETS HOUSE staff and volunteers will hand out pocket-sized poems, inspired by local landmarks in recognition of the upcoming 50th Anniversary of the New York City Landmarks Preservation Law.

From 4pm-7pm, a Neighborhood Poetry Read-in takes place with the Brooklyn Poet Laureate, Tina Chang, and the Queens Poet Laureate, Paolo Javier.

                    BRING A POEM, OR FIND ONE THERE!

For more info on the events click on the following link poetshouse.org

HAPPY EARTH DAY!

If we are to have tomorrows
We must protect our
Earth today and help
Keep it clean
Keep toxic wastes
Off our shores
Polluting the waters
We all must drink to
Survive
Help to save the forest
Pine trees we cut down
To make way for
Things we don't need
Trees help freshen the
Air we breathe
For life
Keep the doorways open
For the future of us all


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Crafting A Poem
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The poem above was "crafted" from a select group of words, with the instructions to create a poem for Earth Day. (The select words are underlined in the poem)

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See the post "POEMING FOR EARTH DAY," dated 4/19/2014, on this blog, LET'S TALK POETRY.

HOW TO CELEBRATE "POEM IN YOUR POCKET DAY"

On 4/24/2014, "Poem In Your Pocket Day," select a poem you love, carry it with you, and share it with others throughout the day.
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Here are some other ways to celebrate:

SHARE A POEM ON TWITTER- USE #pocketpoem

ADD A POEM TO YOUR EMAIL FOOTER.

MAIL A POEM TO A FRIEND.

POST A POEM ON YOU BLOG OR WEBSITE.

POEMING FOR EARTH DAY

EARTH DAY is celebrated every year on April 22 throughout the world. It's purpose is to draw attention to the problems of the entire world community and to make the world a better place in which to live.

To learn more about this event, and to take an active role in the various campaigns already in progress, click on the following link earthday.org and get involved.

Help celebrate EARTH DAY here at LET'S TALK POETRY by writing a poem to assist with the educational aspect of the movement: making folks aware of the really serious problems of the world through LEARNING.

 Use the following word group: PINE---SHORE---TOMORROWS---DOORWAYS--- to write your poem. OR WRITE FROM YOUR HEART!

                                           HAPPY EARTH DAY!

WRITE THAT POEM 4/16/2014

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DIG INTO YOUR POET'S TOOLBOX AND BUILD A POEM THAT SAYS "YOU."
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PROMPT #8 - Develop the following statement into a poem: "lightning just shattered that tree." The statement can be your title, your first line, or your last line. The choice is yours.
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Will see you back here, Wednesday, April 23rd, on LET'S TALK POETRY to share what I've been inspired to write.  See Ya!

CRAFTING A POEM

The following poem was crafted from a select group of words with the instructions to create a poem for the Spring season. (the select words are underlined in the poem)

See the POST  "Spring Has Sprung,"  dated, 3/21/2014, on this blog, LET'S TALK POETRY.
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SIGN OF THE TIMES
(a Spring poem)

Emergence of Spring
The beginning of life
As it is
Is not
Only about the buds
Blooming on the apple
Trees in the field
As much
As it is
About the baby birds
Restless in a nest above
On the limbs of those
Trees chirping blindly
Eyes closed to the
Colors of Spring
Mouth open wide to
Receive food
Trusting that it will be provided
To grow and become
Strong with wings
To fly away to become
Independent to leave from
The shadow of birth
And much like a child
Walk on their own two feet

MY EFFORT AT PROMPT #7

SAY WHAT?


It's easy to understand
As the story goes
A highly evolved man
Born into the world
A carpenter by trade building
Hope among the people of
His day and times for
A better life but
For lack of a better
Word
Say what?
I just cannot
Figure out maybe
I will one day understand
Where boiled eggs and
Bunny rabbits
Fit into the scheme

HOW WE CELEBRATE AT "LET'S TALK POETRY."

On "poem in your pocket day" we celebrate at LET'S TALK POETRY in a couple of ways:

(1) We have street teams in various sections of our neighborhood here in Ohio pass out poems in the community. Last year we had teams in Pataskala, Whitehall, Reynoldsburg and way up in Toledo, courtesy of Toledo University, participating in this event.

 These teams were made up of students on the junior high school, high school and college level. We look forward to recruiting these students again this year.

(2) In 2013 we launched our first annual "Poem on a Balloon" event. We taped poems to helium balloons and released them into the open air. Included with the poem was a message containing the web site address of  LET'S TALK POETRY with instructions for the "finder" of a balloon to contact us and let us know where they discovered our balloon.

 It was like sending a message in a bottle and finding a whole new POETIC adventure in learning where it wound up. Unfortunately we did not get any messages back. This year we hope to do better as we prepare to launch LET'S TALK POETRY'S  2nd Annual Balloon on a Poem Day, on April 24, 2014.                                                    

                                                      STAY TUNED!

POEM IN YOUR POCKET DAY

The celebration of National Poetry Month is steadily gaining momentum. So in keeping step with this incredible burst of energy, on April 24th comes a very special event of the month: POEM IN YOUR POCKET DAY

Poem in your Pocket Day is enjoyed by poets and writers all over the country. It is celebrated in schools, libraries, bookstores and other literary-minded organizations throughout the nation.

On this day, Thursday, 4/24/2014, thousands of people will carry a poem in their pocket to share with other people.

To celebrate, just select a poem you love, (yes, it can be your own) carry it with you on April 24th, and share it with others during the day, by either letting them read it, or better, reading or reciting it to them.

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FLASHBACK:   As a middle school teacher back in 2006, on poem in your pocket day, my class shared poems we had created, with our school principal by marching, unannounced, into her office, just before lunch and reciting them. I will never forget the thrill in her eyes to see our Special Education students read with such confidence. We then presented her with a booklet of these poems that we had published just for her, we called it "The Poets Cafe."
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***For information, celebration tips, and poems, (in case you can't find one) click on this link poets.org

JOIN THE FUN WITH PEOPLE ALL OVER THE NATION IN CELEBRATING POEM IN YOUR POCKET DAY!

WRITE TIME 4/9/2014

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DIG INTO YOUR POET'S TOOLBOX AND BUILD A POEM THAT SAYS "YOU."
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PROMPT #7 - Write a poem describing the traditions and events surrounding a holiday (holy day), such as Easter, Good Friday, Passover, or whatever you choose.  Just Have Fun!
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SEE YOU BACK HERE, WEDNESDAY, APRIL 16TH, ON LET'S TALK POETRY, TO SHARE WHAT I'VE BEEN INSPIRED TO WRITE.

(5) MORE WAYS TO CELEBRATE NATIONAL POETRY MONTH

(1) Watch a POETRY-RELATED movie. There are quite a few. More than you probably imagined, but try, POETIC JUSTICE wTupac Shakur and Janet Jackson or COOLEY HIGH wGlynn Turnman and Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs or my favorite: DEAD POET'S SOCIETY wRobin Williams. You can find more if you google-search poetry-related movies, soooooo get some friends together, pop some corn and ENJOY!

(2) Write a letter to a POET whose work you admire. If you don't tell them, how will they know?

(3) Join a POETRY ASSOCIATION. It can be local or national. It can be The Poetry Foundation in Chicago, Poets House in New York City or where ever you are located. Personally, although I reside in Ohio, I'm a member of the Academy of American Poets (poets.org), but this month I will hook up with the Ohio Poetry Association. Now get going!

(4) Sign up for a POETRY CLASS or workshop in a college or arts center or museum or library or even online, if you prefer. You can never learn too  much!

(5) Borrow a BOOK OF POEMS from the library, or, buy one or two or three from a POETRY BOOKSTORE.

CELEBRATE NATIONAL POETRY MONTH AND HAVE A GOOD TIME!

 

MY EFFORT AT PROMPT #6

***Sorry I missed our appointment yesterday. But I'm here today with this:




CAMERA SHY

Folded and creased picture
Glued to the page
Circa early 1950's
Black and white of course
Perforated edges as torn
Out of another album
A lopsided wooden church
With a steeple
Looms large
In the background
A handsome young man poses
With his foot on the fender
Of a late model Pontiac
My grandmother dressed
In her darkest Sunday best
Inadvertently passes through
The path of the camera's lens
And just as the Kodak clicks
Covers her face with a
Widespread hand

WRITE TIME 4/2/14

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DIG INTO YOUR POET'S TOOLBOX AND BUILD A POEM THAT SAYS "YOU."

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PROMPT #6 - Pull out the FAMILY PHOTO ALBUM and write a poem to describe an OLD PHOTO.

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See you back here Wednesday, April 9th, on LET'S TALK POETRY to share what I've been inspired to write.

MY EFFORT AT PROMPT #5

I get annoyed when

People act like

They don't see me

At Family Dollar

Standing on line

At the check-out counter

When clearly

I was here before

They were

Pushing their cart filled up

With a hundred dollars

Worth of stuff

Trying to back-in

While looking ahead

Squeezing into a spot

That isn't there

USING THE WRITING PROCESS TO WRITE POETRY

The WRITING PROCESS consists of (5) interconnected steps:

1-PREWRITING: the thinking, planning, and organizing that helps you get ready    to write your poem.

2- DRAFTING: writing your poem for the first time.

3- REVISING: changing your poem to improve its content and style, which may     involve rewriting, adding, deleting, and moving what you've  already written.

4- EDITING: checking your poem to find and correct mistakes in spelling,               capitalization, punctuation, and grammar.

5- PUBLISHING: sharing your poem with other people.

As you become comfortable with the WRITING PROCESS, these steps can be adjusted to fit the way YOU write.

The WRITING PROCESS will help you to write and rewrite until you are pleased with your poem and ready to share it with others.

                                  USE IT OFTEN