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

I found this sweet little poem by Oliver Herford in last week's Poetry Friday roundup. I loved it so much I had to share it here! The rest of the roundup is at Susan Writes. Merry Christmas!

I Heard a Bird Sing--

I heard a bird sing
In the dark of December
A magical thing
And sweet to remember.

‘We are nearer to Spring
Than we were in September,’
I heard a bird sing
In the dark of December.


Bird graphic courtesty of Penniwig's.

Hanukkah began Friday at sundown. Here is a poem in honor of the Jewish Festival of Lights. The rest of the Poetry Friday lineup can be found at Random Noodling.

Blessed is the Match

by Hannah Senesh

Blessed is the match consumed
in kindling flame.
Blessed is the flame that burns
in the secret fastness of the heart.

Read the rest of the poem and learn more about Hannah Senesh here.

Poetry Friday Schedule

Here is the Poetry Friday schedule for the next few weeks:

11/27 Becky (Becky's Book Reviews)
12/4 Elaine (Wild Rose Reader)
12/11 Diane (Random Noodling)
12/18 Susan (Susan Writes)
12/25 Kate (Book Aunt)
1/1 Mary Lee (A Year of Reading)
1/8 Tricia (Miss Rumphius Effect)
1/15 Mary Ann (Great Kid Books)
1/22 Liz (Liz in Ink)
1/29 Anastasia (Picture Book of the Day)
2/5 Olgy (Children Come First)
2/12 Lee (I'm Here. I'm Queer. What the hell do I read?)
2/19 Irene (IreneLatham.com)
2/26 Jone (Check It Out)

I've been looking for this one:

Introduction to Poetry

Billy Collins

I ask them to take a poem
and hold it up to the light
like a color slide

or press an ear against its hive.

I say drop a mouse into a poem
and watch him probe his way out,

or walk inside the poem's room
and feel the walls for a light switch.

Read the rest of the poem here.

The Poetry Roundup this week is over at The Drift Record. I found this Thanksgiving Blessing among the posts at Carol's Corner. It certainly was a blessing and it gave me food for thought. I am as thankful for it as I am the food I am about to start cooking! I felt like the words were written especially for me. This is why I love Poetry Friday. There are treasures out there just waiting to be found. Happy Thanksgiving, enjoy!

A THANKSGIVING BLESSING


May we be aware not of the things we lack,
but of all that we have.


May we feel not the absence of those we love,
but the presence of those who love us.


May we see not just the harshness of our world,
but the gentleness of its mystery.


May we know not the cold of despair,
but the warmth of hope rising.


May we speak not of our hurts and losses,
but of our healings and blessings.


May we be with each other not in the shadows of the past,
but in the light of the present.


May we bring to our table not judgment, resentment, or anger,
but acceptance, compassion, and forgiveness.


May we remember to feed our spirit by living out of thankfulness.

Anonymous