Also blogging with my students at Linda & Jonathan's Class Blog
Those Things That Grow
For ‘things that grow’, I
was told to care
thus I’m growing a poem
right now to share.
My list lingers,
counting on my fingers,
I say ten,
then think again.
There’s shoots and roots,
and seeds a growin’
soon as rain comes, we’ll
be seeing
green stems, flowers, buds
keep bursting
also thirsting, just like
children, needing care.
I see them growing
everywhere.
First they arrive, need
lullabies,
rock-a-bye-babies with
gentle cries,
yet suddenly, they’re
leaving home
grown to live lives on
their own.
Other growing items I’ve
written down
are brains and toenails and
hair and towns.
Buildings grow, too, and so
does knitting.
Guess my list has grown
too, so now
I’m quitting!
Linda Baie © All Rights
Reserved
Love the line, "I’m growing a poem right now to share..."
ReplyDeleteYour extended metaphor rocks.
Thanks Mary Ann.
DeleteI need a poem of green and growing. I need SPRING!!!!
ReplyDeleteThanks for this as I start a day in rain :(
Bonnie
And we always wish for a little rain our way, Bonnie. Thanks!
Delete"Guess my list has grown too so now I'm quitting" This is delightful! We are expected to get some snow this weekend.
ReplyDeleteOh no, not again! I've been so busy I haven't watched the weather. At least the spring snows bring good moisture! Thanks, Kendra.
DeleteI love watching things grow. There is a joy watching them reach their full potential and sometimes even surpassing expectations. I am glad you grew this poem.
ReplyDeleteThank you. The picture above is a clematis vine that seems to be growing inches every day. I love those growing things too!
DeleteSpring is a delightful time of year. I love watching things grow and love the creative spin your list making took.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Ramona, it's a beautiful time of year!
DeleteI can see a vine with the growing things entwined in it. Nice ending.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Donna. It was fun to write, and surprising to see where it took me!
DeleteLove how you played with the extended metaphor in your poem -- nice surprises as new things grew in those final lines. :)
ReplyDeleteThank you, Jama. Sometimes writing surprises, doesn't it, the paths that grow into new ideas?
DeleteWonderful spring poem. I especially like you moved from plants to children and beyond.
ReplyDeleteThanks Judy, thinking of my students always green and growing, too was fun to include.
DeleteMy favorite two lines: "brains and toenails and hair and towns.
ReplyDeleteBuildings grow, too, and so does knitting."
I can't wait to see the clematis growing in our yard. We have gorgeous dark blue blossoms throughout most of the summer.
Yes, the clematis is so gorgeous, agreed, Laura. Thanks!
DeleteI enjoyed this very much. How it rolls through the tongue as you read it. For some reason I loved the lines:
ReplyDeleteFirst they arrive, need lullabies,
rock-a-bye-babies with gentle cries,
There's just music to it. :)
-iphigene
I loved thinking of the plants as babies needing our care. Thanks, Iphigene.
DeleteGosh....this poem took me to an unexpected place. Interesting how the writing mind works. Glad you went with it! It works.
ReplyDeleteThanks, it is a bit of whimsey really, but fun to consider all those growing things.
DeleteYour images of growing things, especially "buds keep bursting" is giving me a severe case of spring fever, Linda! Love the babies and knitting, too. Happy Friday!
ReplyDeleteSpring is certainly here. It was over 70 today, but then sometime we might have snow again. Green and growing, however! Thanks, Catherine.
DeleteDear Linda of the Green Thumb, you're growing poems and children's minds every single day! What a gift.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Michelle, fun to see those growing things!
DeleteWhat a fun poem! I especially love "buildings grow and so does knitting: both for its great rhythm and the contrast between those two things--hard and soft, big and small, up and down.
ReplyDeleteKarin, thank you. There is much in the world that I found I could put into the poem. Glad you enjoyed it.
DeleteGrowing things like lists make your poem fresh. The last line makes me laugh.
ReplyDeleteHa! I'm not sure it's the greatest in the world, but the rhyme kept me there. Thanks, Margaret.
DeleteI love your description, rock-a-bye-babies with gentle cries. So many things that grow to make you the poet in the know. Thanks, Linda, for a gentle poem to transition us to spring.
ReplyDeleteSo glad you enjoyed it, Carol. It was fun to write, to include "other" things. thank you
DeleteLoved this! The picture is a nice accompaniment as well. So many things grow, sometimes things we don't want to grow too, so maybe it is good that you quit. ;)
ReplyDeleteHa! Great point, Betsy. And yes, it could have gone on and on.
DeleteWell done. Poetry is becoming more appealing to me every day.
ReplyDeleteGive it a try, Kimberley, it's totally satisfying, at least to me. Thanks!
DeleteHad to smile when I read your poem Linda! Lots of rowing things indeed.Loved your slice today!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Beverley, it was a fun poem to write.
DeleteDon't be quitting! I love this poem, especially the toenails and brains and towns all together. So fun, Linda!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Melanie. now I hope you and others are thinking of all the growing things!
DeleteStarting with a great image--growing a poem--and ending with a smile. Nicely done, Linda!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Jane-as said above, much fun to write.
DeleteI like that switch from the babies to the other things that grow!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Mary Lee. Lots of growing things around!
DeleteCelebrating Monsters! - what a great idea. Your post made me think of some picture books. Psssst! It's Me the Bogeyman by Barbara Park and the Monstore by Tara Lazar. These are very fun reads.
ReplyDeleteRuth, Ingrid has both of those books, I am not kidding. She really does love monsters! Both are fabulous, I agree. Thanks!
DeleteWhat a great ending! And a fun homage to all things growing; thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteI think if I sat still long enough, I could watch the buds and leaves grow this weekend - everything is becoming so green! :0)
Thanks Robyn, I agree, green and growing fast!
DeleteGreat poem, Linda! I love the way you think outside the box including knitting to your list of things that grow. Clever! =)
ReplyDeleteHa! Guess the list wasn't all about spring, right? Thanks, Bridget.
Delete