How did it get to be Friday already? This week's poem, Spelling Bomb, by Joyce Sidman, is about a kid who did not win the spelling bee. Reading it took me back to 6th grade. Here goes...

Spelling Bomb

to my mother

I can't believe I lost.
I know I disappointed you.
Do you really think I don't care?
I know how important it is to win.

I know I disappointed you;
I saw it in your face when I misspelled.
I know how important it is to win;
I studied hours and hours.

I saw it in your face when I misspelled.
I saw you turn away from me.
Even though I study hour and hours,
I never seem to be your champion....




The rest of this poem and others written in the voices of kids, parents, teachers, pets and one of my favs, the school custodian are in the book This is Just to Say; Poems of Apology and Forgiveness by Joyce Sidman. Illustrator, Pamela Zagarenski and Sidman make a dream team, don't you think? (See my post from last week!)



p.s. Do you know what type of poem Spelling Bomb is? Hint: It's the author's favorite. The answer is in the book. I'll send you a prize if you get the answer right!

p.s.s. Mary Ann over at (Great Kid Books) has the rest of the poetry roundup.


Lisa

It's Poetry Friday! Here is an excerpt from "Winter" out of Red Sings from Treetops; a year in colors, a magically, beautiful book by Joyce Sidman Illustrated by Pamela Zagarenski.


In the winter woods,
Gray and Brown
hold hands.
Their brilliant sisters -
Red, Orange, and Yellow -
have all gone home.
Gray and Brown sway shyly,
the only beauties left.

It's hard to believe Laura's 13!

I think she had a good birthday.

She had presents...





Dinner with the family...





games...





tap, tap





Girls, girls, you're both pretty!





That's better...





Now let Kelley play.




to be continued...

Happy New Year and Happy Poetry Friday!

The new year's first dream -
I see my village
and wake to a chilly tear

This and other works by Issa can be found in a lovely little biography of the great Chinese haiku poet, Cool Melons - Turn to Frogs! The Life and Poems of Issa; Story and Haiku Translations by Matthew Gollub, Illustrations by Kazuko G. Stone.




Speaking of tears, here's another ancient Chinese poem that I love (it makes me cry)...

My loving mother, thread in hand,
Mended the coat I have on now,
Stitch by stitch, just before I left home,
Thinking that I might be gone a long time.
How can a blade of young grass
Ever repay the warmth of the spring sun?

Untitled poem by Meng Jia from the Tang Dynasty (618-907 A.D.)

And finally, speaking of mothers...

To Mother

by Louisa May Alcott

I hope that soon, dear mother,
you and I may be
In the quiet room my fancy
Has so often made for thee,-

The pleasant, sunny chamber,
The cushioned easy-chair,
The book laid for your reading,
The vase of flowers fair;

The desk beside the window
Where the sun shines warm and bright:
And there in ease and quiet
The promised book you write;

While I sit close beside you,
Content at last to see
That you can rest, dear mother,
And I can cherish thee.


Did anyone see the PBS Masterpiece Series about Louisa May Alcott last week? It was very good, based on a new biography about Alcott, but that's a post for another day!

The rest of the Poetry Friday Roundup is over at A Year of Reading.

Cheers!

L