Catching up a little bit....

I know that I haven't written anything in ages, so I thought I would share a little bit of what I have been doing. I've been doing graduate school.....lots and lots and lots of graduate school. I now have only two finals standing between me and a Masters of Education from Southern Methodist University. I will graduate on Saturday, May 12, God willing, and I am SO HAPPY!!!! I have loved my professors and my classes, but I am exhausted, and I'm ready to be finished. And, don't ask if I intend to get a PhD--the answer is no. More grad classes in English, yes, but not another degree, just more learning for the joy of it.

To start, I've decided to share a set of poems with you, along with a stop-action video I made about how I think high school students believe poetry is created. Both of these were assignments for classes this semester. I share the poems with some trepidation, because I have never thought of myself as a poet. However, I am pleased with how these turned out, and even if no one else likes them, I do. So, if you like them, please leave a comment and tell me, and if you don't, please don't tell me. I wrote them from my heart and they express some very tender feelings. I don't see them as publishable, but I think they are pretty good. Here goes:

This first one is an homage to e.e.cummings, one of my favorite poets:

                                                            r     r    i    a  

                                                        a                         g

                                                    m                               e

                                                For                                to

                                                                               suc-

                                                                                ceed,

                                                                                         we

                                                                                                n

                                                                                                e

                                                                                               e

                                                                                              d

                                                                                            3:

                                                     M e                          God,

                                                                 &    Michael

 This one came about because I keep hearing people say that God is always serious and stern. I don't think so. Have you looked around?

 To those who wonder….

Elephants and squirrels that fly,

Jelly fish and octopi,

Of course our God can laugh…

Hear the loud hyena howl,

Kookaburra, hooting owl,

Of course our God can laugh…

He who made the mustard seed,

Prickly pear, and tumbleweed,

Of course our God can laugh…

Talking donkeys, parting seas,

Plagues of frogs and fires and fleas,

Of course our God can laugh…

Each and every tiny flake

complete, original, unique.

Gleeful with creative joy,

Of course our God can laugh…

Mighty Everest, sinking knolls,

All in all,

Paradoxically enthralled.

Of course our God does laugh.

He laughs and laughs and laughs….

I don't know about you, but I love LOVE, to read. These are some thoughts about my book friends.

 

Some of my favorite people live only in books.

I enter their worlds with scarcely a look

back into mine.

I see Jane touring Yorkshire, Elizabeth at Pemberly,

Anne and her captain before they set out to sea.

I so admire Newland, who sacrificed happiness

for the sake of his children, whose lives he did surely bless.

Ma Joad kept the family together as best she could.

Gatsby loved Daisy, something I never have understood.

The Archbishop cared for his flock oh so tenderly,

He and the rest share their thoughts and their lives with me.

Earnest, Eliza, Hamlet, and Tiny Tim,

Marlow and Marmee, Scout and her brother Jem.

They’re not just in books, they’re people I know.

       And I feel so bereft,

                when the story ends

                            And they go….

I haven't written anything about my mom....I just couldn't find the right words. But in working on my poetry assignment, I came up with this. It expresses a little bit of what I've been feeling and thinking....

 

I notice the birds more,

now that Mom is gone.

She was always the one

who pointed and cried:

Look over there,

Do you see it?

I didn’t then.

But now I do.

The bright red cardinals

were her favorites.

But she loved them all.

And, by osmosis I think,

I learned one or two.

When threatened, Blue Jays fight back—

they show up in droves.

Mockingbirds sing from the tops of the trees,

and are blithely unconcerned with human sleeping habits.

Mourning doves coo softly,

so serious in their formal gray suits.

I remember last summer, when we watched 72 pelicans

fly over Surfside; of course we counted them.

One time we searched (and searched and searched)

for the tiny golden-cheeked warbler in Lost Maples park.

Thank goodness for the experts who pointed him out.

We never did find those woodpeckers near Huntsville,

nor get a glimpse of the Canada Geese in the marsh.

(we did see seven alligators, though).

Together we tramped through the underbrush, or sat on the front porch,

Always watching and waiting and listening to the birds.

But now I must listen alone…..

                                        Or maybe not

     My children and grandchildren also love Nana—and her birds, too.

This one is not meant to aggrandize myself, only to express the idea that I, and all of God's children, have tremendous potential, but I think sometimes our potential almost scares us, and we back off. 

I think I could be

something great.

But sometimes, I’m afraid.

I see a glimpse of the

amazing—

But I hold back.

Why?

I try to imagine eternity;

what I could be…

I can’t wrap my mind

around it all.

And yet, I want to see,

I want to be,

Something great.

With the help (lots of help) of Michael and Kara, I also created a couple of videos. Poetry Magic is posted on Google Docs. You can see it at: Poetry Magic


The other video features all three of my grandsons, but at this moment, I can't figure out how to upload such a huge file, so I'll ask my technical director (Michael) and get back to you on that one.

The third big project was a WebQuest, which is a research project for my students that uses information on the web. Here is the link to Create Poetry Magic  Be sure to look at all the pages--there's a great picture of Jamie near the end.

Well, that's about it for school this semester. I took the comprehensive exams on April 14 and I both survived the experience and passed the test. It is not something I would like to repeat, but I'm proud of myself for my accomplishments.