My Birthday - Poems about Occasions

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Photo by Amy LV

Happy birthday to all leap year babies!

Students - Today's poem is a holiday poem, a math poem, and a riddle poem! The other day, when I sat down to write, I got thinking about what a special year this is...leap year! I stopped to think about those with birthdays on February 29 and how they can only celebrate their true birth date every four years.

Writing a math riddle poem is a neat little exercise.  Just come up with a math problem in your head (or on paper) and then play around with it and with words, turning it into a verse.

Having a leap year birthday puts a person in a special sort of club, much like being a lefty. And so of course, there is a group you can belong to. It's called The Honor Society of Leap Year Day Babies. You can read about why founder Peter Brouwer founded this group here at the LOS ANGELES TIMES.

Did you know that there is a special newspaper that only comes out on leap days?  It's in France, and it's called La Bougie du Sapeur!

To read about some children who have leap year birthdays, check out THE WASHINGTON POST.  To read a bout a leap year couple, check out npr.  Too, npr has some suggestions about how to spend this extra 24 hours...

And now for a few words from Marilla, NY native, Scott Gowanlock, about having a leap year birthday.

I love having a leap year birthday because I can trick people when they ask my actual birthday. They don't actually believe I am actually five years old, so when I show them my license, they are amazed. Also, 75% of the time I can have a 2-day birthday because I was born in February so we celebrate it on the 28th, but I was also born the day after the 28th which is March 1. This gives me a 2-day birthday! We usually celebrate it on whichever weekend falls closest to the day, either before or after.

When I was born, I was supposed to be on the news as I was the first Buffalo leap year baby born in 1992. However, on that same day, a woman had her second leap year baby so they interviewed her instead.

Thank you, Scott.   Happy birthday!

Did you figure out the answer to this poem's question?

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Poem #287 says, "Listen to Your Shoes!"

My "New" Goodwill Shoes

Photo by Amy LV

Once again, today's poem comes from Tricia's Monday Poetry Stretch over at The Miss Rumphius Effect.  It's fun to see what other writers post given the same nudge.  

Students - Oh, what fun it is to make inanimate objects talk!  To me it does seem as if every thing in the world has feelings and secrets, and my daughter Hope has this same sense.  Yesterday morning I found her hugging our Christmas tree to say goodbye, something I used to (and still) do.

To open yourself to this way of thinking, spend an afternoon asking yourself, "Hmmm...what would that clock say?  I wonder what my pencil is thinking..." and on and on.  You may discover a secret door into an interesting poem or story.

Somewhere during the past few weeks, I read a poem about how shoes have many body part names: eye, heel, sole, tongue.  Unfortunately, I cannot remember the poem, but surely it also provided inspiration for today's poem.  If you know which poem I'm talking about, please leave its title in the comments.

Today I am tickled to announce the illustrator of my forthcoming poetry book with Clarion Books.  It is talented watercolorist Robbin Gourley, full of whimsical joy and realism too.  I could not feel luckier.

Today is also my first interview ever.  Toby Speed, of The Writer's Armchair, graciously invited me to her blog for tea and a chat about The Poem Farm.  If you're interested in learning the history of this craziness, please visit.

If you did not see yesterday's ALA winners, here they are at The American Libraries magazine.  Congratulations to all!  Please note that Joyce Sidman's poetry book, THE DARK EMPEROR, won a Newbery Honor.

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Today's date is 1/1/11.  By day's end, Charles Ghigna and I hope to post the collaborative poem contributed to by so many - "1/11/11."  Happy one one one one one day!

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