Poem a Day Challenge Day 21

On Haiku day
The boys love poetry
Simple and short

Poem a Day Challenge - Day 15

For this one we had to take a poem we liked, alter the title and write another version. I took a go at this one:

The Roads Taken

Two roads converged in a Georgia town
And seeing that both I could travel
At the light I looked around
Nothing there could make me frown
But my plan would soon unravel

Mapquest said there would be a turn
Trusting still I ventured on
Many were lessons I had to learn
Though blessed by views of kudzu and fern
I felt my path was lost and gone

Backtracked that morning more than twice
Turned around on roads of clay
The air still crisp and oh so nice
With music as my only vice
I saw how way leads on to way

I am now telling with a sigh
At last I made my destination
O’er valleys low and hills so high
Beneath a cloudless southern sky
I found a bit of relaxation


Original tite: "The Road Not Taken" by Robert Frost
I worked to keep the same rhyme scheme

Poem a Day challenge - Day 13

Volumes

Bookstores lure me
I’m certainly vexed
With pages and covers
Illustrations and text

Paper or hardback
What to choose
A tome or trilogy
I continue to muse

Alphabetical order
Or tossed together
Stacked and sorted
I could look forever

History, romance
Classics, how-to
Gathered in my arms
Not just a few

Home to my bookshelf
The collection grows
They sit and beckon
Poetry and prose

What to read next?
Shakespeare or Dickens?
Steinbeck, Spinelli
’Tis no slim pickins’

Binchy has her own shelf
Now numbering eighteen
There’s Sparks and Sharra
Or The Problem of Pain

Do I want to laugh?
To cry, to learn?
Ah! I’ll read the borrowed
One I must return

From the Poem a Day Challenge - Day 10

I Didn't Wait for Saturday

I cancelled
the hotel reservation.
Storms were moving in.

On the road home,
my music and myself
were pleasant company.
In a small Georgia town
I stopped.
The bookstore was beckoning me.

As I stepped into
a familiar world
of books and hospitality,
treasures and free coffee
awaited me.

On the road again
with caffeine and bargains,
my Friday night journey continued.

From the Poem a Day Challenge - Day 3

It's An Art

The problem with seventh graders is
They ask the wrong questions.
Why do we have to do this?
Complete sentences? Are you kidding me?
What did you say?
When's it due?

Is this for a grade?
Why can't I use pink ink?
What's wrong with that?
What homework?
When's it due?

Are we having a test?
When's the test?
Are we watching a movie?
When's it due?

Is there any extra credit?
What page are we on?
When's it due?

Can I get a drink of water?
When's it due?

“He Heard a Ruffle in a Bush”

When did I quit seeing the little things? When did things cease to stir awe inside me? Some of my best memories are filled with small wonders, fleeting moments, little things.
I still find joy whenever I spot a dolphin in the ocean. The first time was when I was nine or ten. My cousins were visiting and our families headed out one summer morning for the beach. When we reached the parking lot, we kids ran to the walkway over the road that dead ends into the sand. Looking out over the sun sparkled sea we saw three dolphins curving in and out of the water. I was so enthralled as I watched until they were out of sight.
Even a small touch, a hand on mine, can mean so much. One night as a teenager, my dad was driving me home from a school function when it began to pour down. The rain and lightning were so severe that we sat in our car in the driveway until there was a lull in the storm. Dad reached over and took my hand. I don’t recall what he said, but I do remember it was a real surprise. Dad had never been very affectionate. I’m not sure what he was feeling, but I remember the tender thoughts that stirred within me. I let him hold my hand. I wasn’t scared of the storm, but I didn’t want him to know that. I wanted him to think he was comforting me. Maybe that night was the beginning. I know, for me, it was very revealing. Dad really loved me. I know because of that small touch.
I need to be more aware of these moments. I don’t want to miss the dolphins or rainbows or falling stars. I want to enjoy wind chimes in my backyard and the ducks in my pond. I want to hear the ruffle in the bush.

"People in his Town and Neighborhood Judge People on Their Cover"

Judging people on their cover. If we are honest, I think we all do this, often unintentionally. We may say,"It's what's on the inside that counts," but the inside stuff determines, usually, what the outside stuff will be.

A teenager dressed all in black has chosen that dark look for a reason. We often think Gothic or,like my mother, witchcraft. I think it can be many reasons. One is to draw attention, perhaps to worry parents, or to try to say "I'm different", even though many friends are wearing black, also. So it could be to belong - to fit in with others by dressing like them. It might be to hide, or to blend into the background. Or to camouflage a large figure. Perhaps it's an indicator of a persistent melancholy, teenage angst. No matter what the reason, the cover does project the inside even though we just can't see that inside.

This is similar to book covers. Dark covers with gold writing? Classics. Dark covers with dark writing?Mysteries or horror. Pink and white with cutesy graphics? Chick lit. A passionate embrace? Romance.Food? Cookbooks. You get the picture.We may not know the story until we actually read it, but perusing the cover will give us a big clue.

So, when you see a woman with a good figure wearing a short skirt, you know it's to show off the legs. Because she wants a guy? She wants to be hip? She knows she has good legs? Or,just perhaps it's her sister's skirt because hers are all dirty. And today she likes the way this skirt looks and feels and she may just try to keep it permanently.

Many people dress according to occasion, weather, or what's clean. Others let their mood be their guide. Feeling frumpy? Overalls and a tee today. Energetic? A running suit. Business like? A knee length skirt with heels. Bohemian? A broomstick skirt and peasant blouse. Nothing in particular? Then jeans it will be.

Jeans are the most versatile, long-lasting staple of the fashion industry. You can dress them up and down, they come in a multitude of sizes, shapes, and shades. You've got skinny, embroidered with hearts, adorned with silver studs, bell bottoms,low-rise, high-rise,blue, black, even green. Age doesn't matter, either. From 6-60 and beyond, jeans are here to stay.

So, our cover is a matter of availability and preference. It says something about us. The only problem is, occasionally the meaning is lost in translation.