listen - day 20

    

As I strive to become a better listener and to connect more with my sense of hearing, National Poetry Month 2026 finds me writing daily, handwritten, index card poems inspired by sounds and listening.. I have begun a new notebook to collect the sounds I notice throughout the month, and I will reflect on them in short poems. My ears - and my heart - are open wide. 

 

I invite you to join me in this project, on any of my projects from the past 16 years, or on a project of your very own. To do so, simply write a poem each day of April in any way you wish. Share or don't share, as you wish. Your poems are your poems. Your projects are your projects. And if you wish learn a bit more about writing poetry, I welcome you to the short lessons in the tab above: COAXING POEMS VIDEOS - 2024.

 

National Poetry Month 2026 Poems 

April 1 - listening, listening

April 2 - clicking kitty

April 3 - spring morning 

April 4 - tea

April 5 - team

April 6 - from far away 

April 7 - on a day of April snows 

April 8 - breakfast

April 9 - beep beep beep 

April 10 - now

April 11 - but why?

April 12 - winter warmies

April 13 - better than a touch screen  

April 14 - swish of the brush 

April 15 - heartbeat 

April 16 - robin? sparrow? 

April 17 - a good meal 

April 18 - their notes 

April 19 - the show 

 

Here is poem 20 - 

Students - One thing I always find interesting during a National Poetry Month project is that as the month goes on, I find myself wanting to use words that I know have appeared in other poems, words that I do not wish to repeat. This month, when this has happened, I flip through my deck of listen poem cards and check, "Did I already use this word?" If so, I find a new one. Today I considered and rejected these: secret, whisper, soft, sing. You can see lots of scribbling out in the draft above!

 

I have mentioned many different things to notice about poems this month and am wondering what you notice I tried as a writer in today's short verse. What do you notice about the sounds? The way the words lay on the page? The title? Thinking about another's poem, whether you like the poem or not, can give a person ideas for their own writing.

 

Hmm. I am realizing that both yesterday's poem and today's poem are about performances...the brain is, indeed, a curious place! 

 

To learn about many of the wonderful National Poetry Month projects happening online this April, visit the generous Jama Rattigan at Jama's Alphabet Soup. 

May you find the secrets that live inside of you!

xo,

a. 

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Think About What Is Growing Now

Teapot Full of Flowers

Photo by Amy LV

Students - My birthday was this week, so I picked a teapot full of zinnias and other flowers from my gardens and brought them to my mom. I'd thrifted the teapot a few weeks ago, and it was fun to turn it into a vase. I was excited to give my mom the flowers and also to wait for more zinnias to replace the ones I'd cut. Zinnias are a "cut and come again" flower, meaning that the more you cut the flowers, the more the flowers grow. I love that. You can see more growing already, here outside my writing shed, Gratitude.

Gratitude with MORE Zinnias

Photo by Amy LV

Thinking about the generosity of such flowers, I remembered each time our family has adopted a new pet, the way that each of our hearts grew bigger and more full of love. We didn't need to worry about sharing or not having enough love. Our love was give and give again.

Claude and Winnie

Photo by Amy LV

Today, when I wasn't sure what to write but still felt happy about the birthday flower teapot, I decided to write about zinnias...and in doing so, I realized that writing, too, is write and write again. The more I write, the more easy and comfortable it is to write. The less I write, the more difficult it becomes. When I pay attention and write, connections grow.

So, I am thinking about this. Giving helps us as much as it helps others. When we give, we grow.

Another Scribbly Draft

Photo by Amy LV

What is growing in your life? It may be a plant or a creature or an idea or a feeling. It might be a curiosity or wish or a goal. What do you wish to grow of more in your life? Even though there are many aspects of life that we cannot control at any given time, we can always find meaning and water the things we wish to grow within ourselves. We can be generous to us.

Regarding technical poem stuff, this poem is written in rhyming couplets, two lines at a time, each two rhyming.

This week, Molly is generously hosting the Poetry Friday roundup over at Nix The Comfort Zone with poetry that reminds us of the beautiful pause of summer. Each Friday, all are invited to share poems, poem books, poetry ideas, and friendship in this open and welcoming poetry community.

May you grow as you choose, my friends.

xo,

Amy

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Collect Colors & Surprise Yourself

 

The Sky's Clothes

by Amy LV

Students - Yesterday I had another joyful meeting with Mrs. Jermolowicz's students from Luther J Schilling School in Homer Glen, Illinois. We are connected through Kids Need Mentors which is a program that pairs educators and authors for year-long partnerships. When we meet, we read and write and share, and I look forward to each visit. They may share here someday!

Yesterday, we had sound troubles (my computer)...so we shared in the chat, and we wrote together kind of in silence. Our time together grew the poem I share today. Here's what we did, and here's how you can try it too. 

Divide a page in your notebook into four boxes as you see below. Somewhere in each box, write the name of a color that you have seen today. If you would rather choose your colors in a different way (favorites, colors that remind you of your grandfather, garden colors, lunch colors, what you're wearing colors), feel free. It just matters that you have a few color choices.

Then, take a few minutes to jot whatever comes to your head about any of the colors in its matching box, in any order you wish. You might write about all colors in order. You might stick with one. You might jump around.

See if you are given a line or two of a poem. I chose to stay simple and just revise my lines a little bit.

My Color Notes

Photo by Amy LV

It can be very helpful to try a little game like this to get your writing going. You can play such idea-generating games by yourself, with a friend, a group of friends, or a whole class. When our brains play and feel free, they can be very generous with ideas!

My next book, illustrated by the wonderful Emma Virj

án, enters the world next Tuesday, March 1! It is a celebration of Poem in Your Pocket Day, titled IF THIS BIRD HAD POCKETS, A POEM IN YOUR POCKET DAY CELEBRATION, and you can see the beautiful book trailer, made by the great folks at Wordsong/Astra Books for Young Readers. It's my third COVID book release (WRITE! WRITE! WRITE! in March 2020 and THAT MISSING FEELING in January 2021), and that has definitely been strange.

I feel so thankful to have collaborated on this book with Emma and everybody at Wordsong/Astra. I learned a lot along the way and was filled with such wonder as I wrote. Poem in Your Pocket Day is on April 22 this year, so you might want to mark your calendars and start choosing your own pocket poem.

Enjoy this trailer if you wish...

Tricia is hosting today's Poetry Friday roundup at The Miss Rumphius Effect with the results of an Exquisite Corpse game she played with some poet friends and also an upcoming poetry challenge called an ekphrastic doditsu (read the post to learn more!) Please know that all are welcome each Friday as folks share poems, poem books, poetry ideas, and friendship.

Happy color collecting!

xo,

Amy

Please share a comment below if you wish. 

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

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