Celebrating Poet Laureate Joy Harjo

Family Album

Photo by Amy LV

Students – I am so happy to share the name of our new Poet Laureate of the United States.  Joy Harjo is a wise, accomplished poet whose work I admire greatly. She is a member of the Mvskoke Nation and our first Native American Poet Laureate.  You can read more about her at The Poetry Foundation. As Poet Laureate, Joy follows the talented Tracy K. Smith whose daily radio program and podcast, The Slowdown, has been a gift.

Joy Harjo
Photo by Karen Kuehn
From The Poetry Foundation Website

I wrote today's poem by reading and reading one of my favorite Joy Harjo poems, Once the World Was Perfect. I simply read and read it again, aloud, listening for a connection, for something I could write in the silence of my listening. Joy's image of people from long ago stays with me. Below you can read the beginning lines of this poem:



Once the World Was Perfect
by Joy Harjo

Once the world was perfect, and we were happy in that world.
Then we took it for granted.
Discontent began a small rumble in the earthly mind.
Then doubt pushed through with its spiked head.

Read the rest of the poem HERE.



Writing in the silence after reading is a beautiful, inspiring way to listen to what is inside of you. Should you ever feel at a loss for words, read something you love. Read it more than once. Read it aloud. Then listen. Write.

Did you notice that my poem is written with a circular beginning and ending? Remember, this is a type of beginning and ending you can always try out.

For other Poetry Friday posts highlighting Joy Harjo, visit Mary Lee at A Year of Reading, Irene Latham at Live Your Poem, Michelle Kogan at Michelle Kogan, Catherine at Reading to the Core, and Carol at Carol's Corner. Thank you, Mary Lee, for the suggestion to share Joy's words today. I have been happy about this announcement all week.

Linda is hosting today's Poetry Friday roundup over at A Word Edgewise with something fun - a clunker exchange! She's also got this week's poetry offerings from all around the Kidlitosphere. Please know that we gather each Friday, and all are always welcome.

Please share a comment below if you wish.

If you are under 13 years old, please comment only with a parent 

or as part of a group with your teacher and class.

Family Photographs, Family Stories

Great Grandmother Anna Elsa Feder Conolly

Photo by ?

Students - Each one of us carries a history full of names and dates and songs and stories. We may not know much about these people or even know their names, but still they are here, floating over our shoulders, coursing through our veins.  And we can write about them.  I am on a family history quest these days, learning what I can about the family that came before me.

Above, you see a photograph of Anna Elsa. She was my mother's mother's mother, and we never met as she died seven years before I was born. But I love that strong look in her eye.  How I wish I could chat with her over a cup of mint tea.  

I have written about family objects and photographs before, most recently in November, about my Great Aunt Tom (Anna Elsa's daughter and my grandma's sister).  This is a recurring topic for me. 

If you have interest in your own family history, ask a family member older than you to tell you a story or two.  I just asked my parents to each keep a little notebook of stories as they remember them. Such stories are precious stones. 

Note that today's poem is written in quatrains.  Each stanza has four lines with lines 2 and 4 rhyming.  If you wish to rhyme a poem, always be sure to do the Does This Make Sense Test.  All you have to do is read your poem, line-by-line, asking yourself, "Does this make sense?"  If you force your rhyme, it may not.  You'll know.  And if you don't want to admit it, be brave and ask an honest friend to run your poem through the Does This Make Sense Test for you! 

Life is brief and beautiful. This week the poetry community sadly bids farewell to Paul Janeczko.  Recipient of the 2019 NCTE Excellence in Poetry for Children Award, Paul was a brilliant poet, anthologist, and teacher of teachers. I am grateful for the body of work he has left behind as it will continue to teach me and so many others in the years to come.  His new book, THE PROPER WAY TO MEET A HEDGEHOG AND OTHER HOW-TO POEMS, illustrated by Richard Jones, will be released on March 12.  May he rest in peace, knowing he has left a bright legacy of words.

Robyn is hosting today's Poetry Friday roundup over at Life on the Deckle Edge with a wee trip to Scotland and bit of bird goodness. Please know that the Poetry Friday community shares poems and poemlove each week, and everyone is invited to visit, comment, and post.  And if you have a blog, we welcome you to link right in with us.

Please share a comment below if you wish.

If you are under 13 years old, please comment only with a parent 

or as part of a group with your teacher and class.