Monday, September 30, 2013

Falling Pears & September Chalking


Today is Chalk-a-bration, a celebration of poetry in chalk rounded up each last-day-of-the-month by Chalk-a-bration founder, teacher and blogger Betsy Hubbard. Stop by Betsy's blog, Teaching Young Writers, to visit other chalk poems and hey - why not chalk your own and share with us!



Click the arrow to hear me read this poem to you.

Students -Today's poem is about exactly what our family is doing at exactly this moment in time.  Picking pears.  And apples.  This fall's harvest at The Poem Farm is glorious, and we are gathering all we can from branches and ground.  Yesterday we filled four bags of pears, and today I will chop some up and dry them in our dehydrator for snacks through winter.

You will see that today's poem is short, does not rhyme, and simply stops a moment in a season.  It is a haiku, I suppose, though it does not beat out the 5/7/5 syllables we may first consider when thinking about haiku.  Yesterday, as I watched our children climb this tree and shake the branches, I thought, "It is raining pears!"  I will try to post a video of today's shaking as it is quite amazing to watch so many pears fall at once.  One must get out of the way!

Watching seasons carefully for signs and beauties and surprises is a wonderful way to sneak up on a poem idea. Try it. Look outside.  Walk in a natural place.  What is changing?  What strikes you?  Try writing a few short lines of your observation.  Let it be short.  Include only what matters.

If you would like to read more about haiku and Issa, a well-loved haiku writer, this book with story and translations by Matthew Bollub and illustrations by Kazuko G. Stone, is a great place to go.


Our Pear Tree
Photo by Amy LV

My Sweater Pocket
Photo by Amy LV

Happy Chalk-a-bration!  Thank you, Betsy!

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6 comments:

  1. This is a first for chalk-a-bration. A poem in a tree is marvelous. I smiled so big when I saw this earlier this morning on my phone I think everyone around me was puzzled! Love it so much. Thanks for being such a great supporter and I am so glad you joined in today.

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  2. I can't help but sing to myself after seeing your chalk poem today. Think of the 12 Days of Xmas song - "...and a poem in a pear tree." Love it!

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  3. Love your poem in a pear tree and the pear in your pocket, too. What fun to harvest pears! I use the book Cool Melons to teach my students about haiku. I find it releases their imagination. Happy Chalka- bration. I took a little hint from you and had my students record their chalketry today. Stop in and listen. http://reflectionsontheteche.wordpress.com/2013/09/30/chalkabration-for-two-voices/

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  4. Great photos! Getting a shot of the chalkboard poem in a tree is special. Wow, you are lucky to have such a harvest! What will you do with it? Pear jam, pear butter, pear leather?

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  5. Hi, Amy. Your poem reminded me of one of my favorite Mr. Putter and Tabby books, Mr. Putter and Tabby pick the pears. (The fruit doesn't fall like morning rain so much as it flies like pear-sized hail, but it all ends deliciously.)

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  6. I love your pear poem, Amy! I also like the idea of a chalk-a-bration! Thanks so much for sharing! = )

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