More Words-More Stuff

Amy Ludwig VanDerwater, on this Friday, goodbye to November, hosts us at her wonderful blog, The Poem Farm.  Travel out to the farm to see what's happening there!  

        Thank you Amy!

             In the arduous task of cleaning out things, it is a constant question of what to keep, what to leave for my own children to deal with someday, and what to throw away.  In my thoughts, this poem emerged.  I imagine you have noticed I am rather single-minded these days.  It’s all about the changes and the move. 

   “A poem is a small or large machine made with words.”  William Carlos Williams

Ch, ch, ch, CHANGES

     Every week, Ruth and Stacey host Slice of Life Tuesday on their Two Writing Teachers blog.  Come check out everyone's slices!

Stacey Shubitz wrote a blog post Sunday that touched me about keeping busy, or not, and planning with more attention to needs, and with a further link to another blogger that expanded the reasoning of handling all that one puts on to-do lists.

Stacey began with looking at lists with the following headings:

Needs

Wants

Shoulds

Musts

Coulds

Mights

             She further asks why not look at the mights, wants and coulds first, instead of the musts and shoulds. 

             And then asks if we might look at needs differently, look at them first! 

             As some of you might have read, I am moving, in a couple of weeks!  I am fortunate that I do not have to vacate my house all at once.  I’ve already closed on my new home, and am moving some things a little at a time.  It is very close to my work, so every day for a couple of weeks I’ve moved some things in, to help with the big move later.  I do have movers hired, but am trying to move many things first, both to make it easier on the “un-packing” and on the “expense”. 

Busy, Busy Week-Not As Much Reading!

Jen and Kellee host this kidlit meme at TEACH.MENTOR.TEXTS.  Join us to see what we're all reading.

          It's Monday! What are you Reading? is another meme hosted by Sheila at BOOK JOURNEYS that offers reviews of all kinds of books.  

        If you’re on Twitter, use the hashtag #IMWAYR when sharing your link!

        And, Myra, Fats & Imogene host the blog, Gathering Books and challenge us with their reading Challenge, which you can find here.  This week, I read three books that were honored with awards.

Blackout – John Rocco   

Created with the look of a graphic novel, this tells the story of an urban family who finds stars on the roof  (in the night sky) and a party of many neighbors on the street.  Rocco shows the characters with a clever use of light and dark in his cartoon-like illustrations. Even with all the electricity expected, then lost, the family learns the fun of other kinds of entertainment, doing things together! 

Caldecott Honor book in 2012

Monsters of Men – Patrick Ness

I finally finished this very long story, and it continued to be a marvelous, edge-of-the-seat, heart-rending story. The characters are flawed, as everyone is, which made one think again and again, how does one make 'right' decisions and keep from negatively impacting others while defending oneself and others close?   I got so involved with the characters, wishing for good ends so much that I sat in my driveway more than once, listening to just one more part.   It is quite a story, and I wonder how I would have felt if I had read a print book instead of listening?  The actors creating the book were wonderful, and of course after listening to them for over 30 hours, I thoroughly got to know them. 

       winner of the Carnegie Medal last year

Moving Day - Coming Soon

         Thanks to Mary Lee Hahn at A Year of Reading for hosting Poetry Friday today.  Drop by to see what others are sharing!

            Almost exactly two months ago I visited a library near my school, and thought I would drive around the neighborhood.  Oh my!  I found a house that I liked and called a realtor whose name I had kept.  Through personal soul searching and persistent paperwork I now own this house.  I may write about it later, but now I only want to share that I am moving in a couple of weeks.  I am leaving my home of thirty-four years.  I am crazed, sad, excited, exhilarated, nostalgic, and hopeful. 

A Little Bit of Gratitude

           Every week, Ruth and Stacey host Slice of Life Tuesday on their Two Writing Teachers blog.  Please come to visit some, or all, of the bloggers' posts.

        

          The Teaching Authors have posted, I think, for the second year in a row, the Thanksgiving challenge for the next two weeks to write a “thanku”, either in their comments or link to them in your own blog post.  I imagine you can guess that a “thanku” is a thank you written in the haiku form.  You can find the link above that explains all about it.

         There are numerous ways to be grateful, in special places at special times.  I hold dear my family as you all know, and friends far and near, but the newest group that help me live my life are the blogging friends.  Friendship is born out of commonalities and indeed there are friends out there who believe what I believe about learning and growing and being kind.  I write this "thanku" for all of you.

Gratefulness blossoms as friendship is fertilized, slicing words with friends.

  Gratefulness blossoms

as friendship is fertilized,

slicing words with friends.

 Happy Thanksgiving Everyone - To You and Yours!

photo credit: kabils via photopin cc

So Many Good Books Available!

Jen and Kellee host this kidlit meme at TEACH.MENTOR.TEXTS.  Join us to see what we're all reading.

          It's Monday! What are you Reading? is another meme hosted by Sheila at BOOK JOURNEYS that offers reviews of all kinds of books.  

        If you’re on Twitter, use the hashtag #IMWAYR when sharing your link.

I’m trying to read most, if not all, of the Cybils nominees in poetry this year since I’m a beginner second round judge, & feel as if it’s a education of sorts to read those which others nominated, those who’ve been doing this longer than me.  I read two this week & can see that the judges in the first round have a tough job before they send the finalists their picks.

And, I’m still listening, nearly done with Monsters of Men, Patrick Ness’ Chaos trilogy.  It continues to be fascinating. 

This week I read some great books!

Anticipation

           Thanks to Anastasia at Booktalking who is our host today for poetry Friday.  Drop in to see what's there!

Dear Winter,

I have missed you all the sweat-drenched summer,

gleeful that you were hanging behind 

the glory that is fall.

Yet now that you are about to arrive

and I know that you are near,

I wonder about the long nights

and days of cold.  I want

my sheets to be flannel and my comforter

filled with down.  I worry about the inches

of snow I will need to shovel,

and corners around which

my car will creep.

I already feel the tires slipping,

but managing to hit the curb only once.

Yet,

Winter, your snowflakes

quiet the days,

and soften the nights.

And the woolen scarves

hanging now in the back hall

wait to wrap me in hugs.

I will taunt

others to try my idea

of a towel warming rack.

I will give down socks for Christmas. 

And keep the teapot whistling,

ready for sweet sips,

because finally the merest

thought of you causes me

to shiver with delight.

     

                         Truly Yours,

                                             Linda

Another Goodbye and A Happy Birthday

Tuesday Slice of Life Posts are hosted by Stacey and Ruth at their Two Writing Teachers blog.  Please join us for a wonder-filled day of reading.  And thank you Ruth and Stacey for special Tuesdays!

     My daughter Sarah's birthday was yesterday, November 12th.  She is quite a special young woman--wife, mother, daughter, friend.  I am always proud of all the things she does, how she acts, what she says about life. I like her and I love her.  
     I am still working on a writing project of goodbye poems that tell stories I remember about my grandchildren and my children.  Here is number nine, dedicated to my daughter.

Fabulous Books This Week!

Jen and Kellee host this kidlit meme at TEACH.MENTOR.TEXTS.  Join us to see what we're all reading.

          It's Monday! What are you Reading? is another meme hosted by Sheila at BOOK JOURNEYS that offers reviews of all kinds of books.  

        If you’re on Twitter, use the hashtag #IMWAYR when sharing your link!

        Charles Dickens said, "There are books of which the backs and covers are by far the best parts."   This week, however, it isn't true at all, and I'm only trying to catch your attention to the gorgeous covers on the books I read.  They really are pretty.  

Bear Has A Story To Tell – by Philip C. Stead, illus. by Erin E. Stead

This has to be one of the most beautiful picture books I’ve read in a while.  Bear is getting ready to go to sleep and goes to his friends to tell them a final story before hibernating.  He meets a mouse, a duck, a frog and a mole, all too busy to listen.  What happens next will be left to discover.  The illustrations are beautiful, spare watercolors, giving the animals such sweet expressions.  Each whimsical spread shows both the friendships and the waiting for spring.

Praise To The Unsung

Poetry Friday is hosted today by the creative Ed DeCaria at Think Kid, Think!  Every Friday is a pleasure to read each entry.  Come join us at Ed's!

Since our terrible fires last June, I have become so thankful for those who work hard to keep us safe.  Those firefighters worked with less sleep than seems humanly possible, in dangerous conditions, to save homes, the habitats of both humans and animals.  This past week, and just two days ago, storms, rain, and then snow hit the eastern side of our country, and millions lost power, while others lost even more.  

Mary Oliver Keeps Me Living

                Slices of Life happen often.  To find out about these slices, you only need to visit Ruth and Stacey at their blog Two Writing Teachers to read what others have shared.  

              So, I hope you do not think it blasphemy that I change a few words from A Summer Day by Mary Oliver and ask "Tell me, what is it you planned to do with your one wild and precious hour, last Sunday?"  

Did you

           See the day yawning before you, and 

Snuggle under the covers a bit longer, or arise earlier and watch the beautiful sunrise?

Take the time to call a friend you haven't talked with for a long while?

Read an extra book or two with your children?

A Good Week of Completing Books!

         Jen and Kellee host this kidlit meme at TEACH.MENTOR.TEXTS.  Join us to see what we're all reading.

          It's Monday! What are you Reading? is another meme hosted by Sheila at BOOK JOURNEYS that offers reviews of all kinds of books.  

        If you’re on Twitter, use the hashtag #IMWAYR when sharing your link!

Books are lighthouses erected in the great sea of time. 

                                                                   ~E.P. Whipple

            BE SURE TO VOTE IF YOU HAVEN'T ALREADY!

The Sixty-Eight Rooms – by Marianne Malone

This is an interesting middle-grade novel with an adventure in the Thorne rooms at the Chicago Art Institute.  I think everyone, adults too, likes to imagine what it might be like to shrink and travel into different places, including the real Thorne rooms, created in the 1930’s by a Mrs. James Ward Thorne, include rooms from numerous historical periods. Ruthie and Jack, sixth grade friends discover magic as they investigate the rooms, and end up creating some magic of their own in their own lives and lives of family friends.  I listened to this and thoroughly enjoyed the story that touched briefly on the French Revolution and the Witch Trials of Salem.  The tapes included an interview with the author and additional information about physical science. 

Backseat Blues

Poetry Friday is hosted this week by my terrific blogging friend Donna, at Mainely Write.  Thanks, Donna.

I’ve been writing goodbye poems over the past months for a personal project about different ways of looking at children (mine, others, and grandchildren, too) growing up.  I’ve chosen to do a series of poems at different stages in children’s lives, essentially saying goodbye each time. I plan to put them all into a book someday for my family.   I have begun using photos to help remember and have now started some work on my children as they grew up too.  I love telling stories through poetry, and I love poems of goodbye, so I thought this would be a good way to combine both passions.  

Here is my most recent one, a mixture of times from remembered conversations during the usual chauffeuring of my children.  If you are a parent, you will know that the best conversations happen from the backseat.  Lately my three year old granddaughter told me I was a good driver.  When we sit still in a car, we notice things, we think things, and we talk.