For Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. - Poem #292

"Any law that uplifts human personality is just.

Any law that degrades human personality is unjust."

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Today is an important day.

Earlier this week, Carol Rasco from Rasco from RIF tweeted, "Dr. King's letter from the Birmingham Jail and the statement by local clergy prompting the letter. http://bit.ly/hDM72e"  

I followed Carol's link and through her blog found Dr. King's Letter from a Birmingham Jail and the Statement by Alabama Clergymen Directed Against Martin Luther King Jr. I had never read either of these documents before, and if you have not done so, I highly recommend you do.

Students -Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s letter is so strong, so eloquent, and choosing one point was important to me in writing today's poem.  This section inspired me deeply:

"First, I must confess that over the past few years I have been gravely disappointed with the white moderate.  I have almost reached the regrettable conclusion that the Negro's great stumbling block in his stride toward freedom is not the White Citizen's Counciler or the Ku Klux Klanner, but the white moderate, who is more devoted to "order" than to justice; who prefers a negative peace which is the absence of tension to a positive peace which is the presence of justice...Shallow understanding from people of good will is more frustrating than absolute misunderstanding from people of ill will.  Lukewarm acceptance is much more bewildering than outright rejection."

I wanted to write about silence, how choosing silence is as dangerous as choosing evil.  I began writing and very soon, I began to struggle with rhyme.  Entering "silent" into RhymeZone, there was only one rhyme: violent.  I was startled, and I knew that this rhyme would form the foundation of my poem.

Today we can read about the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial under construction in Washington DC.  Every day we can live our lives as walking memorials, standing up for good and speaking out for justice.

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Poem #291 - My dad works in a coal mine...

Students - I wrote this poem out loud, vocally.  Driving home from school yesterday, I flicked on the radio and heard the words, "...coal miners..."  I do not even know what the rest of the sentence said.  But instantly, I flicked off the radio and began writing in the air with my voice.  Somehow I knew what to write about.  

I repeated each line over and over again, playing with sounds and meters until I finally found a place to stop my car - a tiny post office.  And in its darkened parking lot, I sat and jotted these lines into my notebook.

Stories about trapped coal miners haunt me, and I sometimes think about the bravery of people who work in physically dangerous professions.  Yesterday I wondered, "What might the child of a coal miner think when kissing Daddy goodbye?"  

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Poem #289 Speaks to Children Who Bully

This poem is dedicated to Hannah, for her strong heart and kindness in the face of a difficult day.  

Students - we have spoken before about how writers take on topics which trouble them.  When I read the story over at Two Writing Teachers about Hannah's experience at recess, immediately I knew that I wanted to write a poem about this feeling.  I certainly know how it feels to be left out.  It has happened to me...it happens to each of us.  But what will we do?  I hope my children, and I, will react as Hannah did.  I hope to react not by running away, not by acting out of my own mean places, but rather by creating a new solution and inviting others to be a part of it.

If you read what Hannah's mom (Ruth Ayres) wrote over at Two Writing Teachers, you may have noticed that the words, "...don't know what's in my heart..." are directly repeated in today's poem.  That is because they are perfect words, and I felt grateful to hear them and pass them along in another shape.  Sometimes beautiful words come to us when we listen to wise people of any age.  Thank you, Hannah.

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Poems Can Ask Questions - Poem #271

Yesterday our family had the opportunity to serve a meal at the Response to Love Center in Buffalo, NY.  Service will become a part of our family's life in 2011; it is time that we reach out beyond our own four walls.

Students - you may notice that this poem asks a question right in the last line.  If you want your reader to think about something, go ahead and ask a direct question in your writing.  You will not get to hear the answers in your readers' heads, but you will stir up some thinking.  And stirring up questions is part of any writer's responsibility.

If you did not notice the sidebar note, I will be donating $1 to Reading is Fundamental for every new twitter follower I receive before December 31, 2010.  Here is a list of those participating in this campaign for RIF, launched by Jason Pinter.  If you are not on twitter, I have to say that I wondered about it too.  I'd describe twitter as a quick version of facebook with many fascinating links and connections...all tied to what interests you most, professionally or personally. 

For a wise post about wants and needs, read Stacey's piece over at Two Writing Teachers.  I'm sharing this too late for the giveaway, but these book-peeks are not to be missed.

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MyPoWriYe #144 - Isolation

Earlier this month, I bought a new telephone.  It's smart.  Well, it's not really smart.  But it can do a lot of things.  My phone can do many things that it seems smart...but phones are not smart.  People are.

In trying to decide whether to get this "smart phone" or not, I talked for a long time with the man in the store.  He, too, raised several children without a television and he understood my concerns about "getting sucked into my phone".  In fact, he told me that many people come back into the phone store after owning their phones for a month to say that they do not know how to pull themselves away, that their telephones are taking over their lives. That is not smart.  It is sad.

Technology is useful as it teaches us and as it connects us.  When technology makes us less human and more robotic, it becomes dangerous.

Students - you can see that I feel strongly about this idea.  What do you feel strongly about?  What worries you or makes you think, "Something is wrong here."  It is important that we think and speak about our thoughts and concerns...this is what makes a difference in our world.  You are smart.  Speak up.

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MyPoWriYe #127 - Daisy

This week, Tricia's Monday Poetry Stretch over at The Miss Rumphius Effect suggests that we write poems full of sound and listening. 

 

Students - For this poem I decided to write about remembered sounds rather than present sounds.  One way to plant a sound or a feeling or a thought in readers' minds is to tell them what is NOT THERE.  Then your readers will imagine the sound, feeling, thought before they make it disappear.  It's amazing what writers can make people's brains do: laugh, remember, weep, connect.  Try this sometime - write what you hear.  And then another time, write what you do not hear.

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MyPoWriYe #115 - Failed Flea Circus

Oops!

by Amy LV

Well, our dog Cali has fleas.  She did, anyway.  After an herbal treatment which did not work but smelled like potpourri, she has now had a vet treatment which we hope is working.  Hence, the idea for this short poem.

Fleas and ticks will suck your blood and may carry terrible diseases too.  So I don't recommend the old fashioned flea circus.  Try a caterpillar circus instead.

Students - Again, I stress the importance here of making something out of your annoyances.  The other day I wrote about getting stuck with the last sliver of soap, and now this.  Material...it's all material.

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Animals' Song of the Gulf - MyPoWriYe #73

Sometimes there are poems you wish you didn't have to write.  Thoughts you wish you didn't have to think. News you wish you didn't have to watch.  Facts you wish you didn't have to know.

Yesterday at The Drift Record, Julie Larios shared "Seal Lullaby" by Rudyard Kipling along with photographs of the oil spill in the Gulf.

What can any of us say?

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MyPoWriYe #59 - The boy said,

We're new to the world of childhood athletics, so sometimes I ask questions of my friends with older children .  Last weekend, my friend Debbie told me that her son works as an umpire.  He loves the game, enjoys children, works outside, and makes good money in a short time.  The only problem?  Parents.  Some teen umpires end up calling games or even quitting their jobs because of angry and out-of-control parents.

Georgia Heard, in her inspiring book Awakening the Heart, teaches us to write about our concerns. 

If you are a coach, know a coach, or have children playing sports, you might find this article by Bruce Lambin about How to Handle Parents useful.

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