Autumn brings old memories

Time for the weekly Slice of Life at the Two Writing Teachers blog.  Tweet at #SOL14  Thanks Stacey, Tara, Dana, Beth, Anna and Betsy!

      I usually don't work Mondays, so today I played a little bit, taking pictures and really just being out in our fabulous fall weather. It was especially windy, and leaves blew, and blew, then blew some more. Some branches are stripped! My garden filled up with leaves, as did the evergreens. I posted a poem on Margaret Gibson's kidblog site, where they gave a challenge to write a choka, which is a double haiku, for the National Day Of Writing. Check it out from her students! That pushed me to sit in the yard and take a 'burst' of photos on my phone so I could capture leaves falling. See, I really did play! That one leaf in photo two looks like a butterfly!

        Afterwards, I kept thinking of Halloween. I'm old enough that it was way before the huge Halloween candy displays and decorations, and many times we were given apples, sometimes not very good ones, and all sorts of homemade goodies. However, the candy wasn't the big thing anyway, and the people in my little town where I lived until I was twelve were delighted to see us in our costumes and always welcoming. I knew most everyone, and actually remember liking the attention. One memory is when it became very cold and starting to snow, and my choice that year was to be Tinker Bell. I thought I looked so pretty, and then my mother made me wear my winter coat. Big disappointment.

        I also remember enjoying being a little scared. Sometimes people would leap out from behind a bush, and laugh when we jumped and screamed. It was okay because then whoever it was would show themselves, and say "Happy Halloween!" 

        My grandparents read to me all the time, and one final memory I'll share is a favorite scary poem, one my grandfather read every Halloween. There are so many great Halloween poems around. I enjoy them all, but this one brings back my grandfather's voice too--special. If you have a favorite poem for this holiday, share in the comments!

Little Orphant Annie, by James Whitcomb Riley

His inscription: INSCRIBED WITH ALL FAITH AND AFFECTION

 

To all the little children: -- The happy ones; and sad ones;
The sober and the silent ones; the boisterous and glad ones;
The good ones -- Yes, the good ones, too; and all the lovely bad ones.

ITTLE Orphant Annie's come to our house to stay,

An' wash the cups an' saucers up, an' brush the crumbs away,

An' shoo the chickens off the porch, an' dust the hearth, an' sweep,

An' make the fire, an' bake the bread, an' earn her board-an'-keep;

An' all us other childern, when the supper-things is done,

We set around the kitchen fire an' has the mostest fun

A-list'nin' to the witch-tales 'at Annie tells about,

An' the Gobble-uns 'at gits you

Ef you

Don't

Watch

Out!

You can find the rest here.