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.
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