Solace & Connection {5}

    

Welcome to this week's nature-inspired invitation to write and connect. Each week, I will post a round-up, and you just need to write your blog post and link up at the bottom of my post. I leave a little inspiration each week, but you are free to write about nature:  prose, poetry, images, or anything else you would like to share. 

Today's inspiration comes from The Curious Nature Guide:  "Write a short story or poem about a recent weather event you have experienced." 

It seems that spring brings many unexpected weather events. Some events can happen and change within weeks, days, or even minutes. So, how's the weather in your part of the world?

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Today was a day filled with change. One minute it was sunny, and the next it was raining and hailing, and then the pattern started all over again.

Sun beams 

cast shadows 

on the sidewalk

and usher in 

dark clouds

filled with raindrops

and hailstones

the size of a pea.

I look out over the trees

and a rainbow 

greets me--

Mother Nature's indecisiveness. 

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A Good Deed?

Image on Pixabay

Each week when I go to the store, I shake my head and wonder, "How in the world do some people afford to eat these days?" I am flabbergasted at the food prices, and I know how lucky I am because we are a two-income household. I am so grateful for what I have.

I know stores across the country are closing due to the high shrinkage levels. Even Walmart! I have a background in retail management and know many theft prevention practices, yet catching shoplifters is a tricky situation, and employees have to be careful when they believe someone is stealing from them.

While I was at the store on Saturday, I saw a man at the end of the aisle who looked a little suspicious. My retail instinct went into action. As I watched him, I realized that he was placing items in the waistband of his pants and under a bulky jacket. It looked like packages of meat. He dropped a banana, and I saw him stuff it into a pocket.

I immediately found an employee and described the man to her. As he came around a corner, he saw her and turned around and went in the other direction. I went about my business and checked out. As I was putting my groceries in my car, the employee came out, and I asked her about what happened. 

"He saw me watching him, and he dumped the items in the frozen food section. Thanks a lot for letting us know."

I know times are tough, and it is hard for many families to put food on the table. But that doesn't mean stealing is the answer. I live in a small community, and we have so many resources available to help people with food emergencies. 

I left there thinking I had done my good deed for the day. If that is so, then why does a part of me feel so bad now about reporting him?

 After participating in the Slice of Life March Challenge by Two Writing Teachers, I am continuing to write my stories with other teacher-writers as we share a slice of life on Tuesdays.

Solace & Connection {4}

   

Welcome to this week's nature-inspired invitation to write and connect. Each week, I will post a round-up, and you just need to write your blog post and link up at the bottom of my post. I leave a little inspiration each week, but you are free to write about nature:  prose, poetry, images, or anything else you would like to share. 

I am a little late this as it was a busy one for me! This week's inspiration comes from a Facebook post from Georgia Heard on Earth Day. She asks us to "Put on your poet's eyes & open your heart today and write a poem about the beauty of the earth."

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My First Experience with AI

Something happened this week that completely took me by surprise. I knew it would eventually happen, but I just didn't think it would be so soon.

This past weekend I was grading essays and came across one that was very well written. Too well written. It wasn't 6th grade writing, and it certainly wasn't typical of the work I've seen from this student.

I took my usual next step of putting it through a plagiarism checker. Nothing showed up--100% unique. I tried a few others and received the same results.

Image from Pixabay

I was stumped. 

And then occurred to me...artificial intelligence? Could it be? Could a 6th grader know how to do that? Could I be so naive to think this wouldn't happen in my classroom of 6th graders?

Monday came, and I had the students--yes, I am up to four now--bring me their computers. I searched their history, and sure enough, there it was. Searches and links to AI websites.

Right now, we have no policies in place, but I told my principal, "We better get ready. It's not coming; it's here."

We began testing this week, so I have not addressed it with the students yet, but this was certainly a wake-up call for me.

If you have any experience with students using AI to "cheat" I would love to hear how you and/or your school handled it. I am obviously not prepared!

 After participating in the Slice of Life March Challenge by Two Writing Teachers, I am continuing to write my stories with other teacher-writers as we share a slice of life on Tuesdays.

Solace & Connection {3}

  

Welcome to this week's nature-inspired invitation to write and connect. Each week, I will post a round-up, and you just need to write your blog post and link up at the bottom of my post. I leave a little inspiration each week, but you are free to write about nature:  prose, poetry, images, or anything else you would like to share. 

This week's inspiration: Margaret Simon posted her "This photo wants to be a poem" post, which was a picture of a patch of wildflowers along the roadside in Louisiana. I started thinking about seeds and how they could be a metaphor for continuation of life. This week, look outside for how life is continuing in this season of birth and rebirth. What are you noticing?

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I have a section of pink evening primroses in our landscape. If I am not careful, they can quickly take over this space, but I absolutely love this wildflower.

native wildflower

from wayward, wind-caught seedlings

primrose tsunami

Please share your link below and read and comment on other posts to enjoy the solace and build the connection.

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The Finish Line {11}

 

It is April, and I am joining many others in celebrating National Poetry Month by reading, writing, sharing, and celebrating poetry each day this month. I have chosen to combine my love of reading with my love of writing. I will be writing poems using all things bookish--from titles to quotes to characters. So, come turn the page and write a little poetry with me.

I am lingering in the Poetry Friday community this month, and Jone has the round-up. 

Today's poem is a "found" cherita. A cherita is a poem consisting of a one-line stanza followed by a two and three lined stanza and also tells a story.  My inspiration come from The Running Dream by Wendelin Van Draanen. My poem was written from page 214 in the book, which I had copied and wrote beside in my notebook back in January of 2021.

Crossing the finish line,

even if you don't 

win a ribbon,

is symbolic,

as the finish line

becomes a new starting line.

Check out the Kidlit Progressive Poem, which is being organized by Margaret Simon at Reflections on the Teche. A different poet adds a line each day for the month of April. You can find the poem's trail below.

April 1 Mary Lee Hahn, Another Year of Reading
April 2 Heidi Mordhorst, My Juicy Little Universe
April 3 Tabatha, The Opposite of Indifference
April 4 Buffy Silverman
April 5 Rose Cappelli, Imagine the Possibilities
April 6 Donna Smith, Mainely Write
April 7 Margaret Simon, Reflections on the Teche
April 8 Leigh Anne, A Day in the Life
April 9 Linda Mitchell, A Word Edgewise
April 10 Denise Krebs, Dare to Care
April 11 Emma Roller, Penguins and Poems
April 12 Dave Roller, Leap Of Dave 
April 13 Irene Latham Live You Poem 
April 14 Janice Scully, Salt City Verse
April 15 Jone Rush MacCulloch
April 16 Linda Baie TeacherDance
April 17 Carol Varsalona, Beyond Literacy Link
April 18 Marcie Atkins
April 19 Carol Labuzzetta at The Apples in My Orchard 
April 20 Cathy Hutter, Poeturescapes
April 21 Sarah Grace Tuttle at Sarah Grace Tuttle’s Blog, 
April 22 Marilyn Garcia
April 23 Catherine at Reading to the Core
April 24 Janet Fagal, hosted by Tabatha, The Opposite of Indifference
April 25 Ruth, There is no Such Thing as a God-Forsaken Town
April 26 Patricia J. Franz, Reverie
April 27 Theresa Gaughan, Theresa’s Teaching Tidbits
April 28 Karin Fisher-Golton, Still in Awe Blog
April 29 Karen Eastlund, Karen’s Got a Blog
April 30 Michelle Kogan Illustration, Painting, and Writing

Small Town Hair

Growing up, leaving my small town was one of the first things I wanted to do when I turned 18. I couldn't wait to "get outta here!"

Little did I know then that I would fall in love with my friend's brother, get married, and move back here. As an adult, I realize now the benefits of living in a small town. 

One of those has to do with my hair.

My stylist, or beautician as we always called her, has been doing my hair for almost 50 years. My mother was one of first clients when she started out. We began going to her when I was about 10 years old, especially when my mom would cut our bangs and they were crooked. She worked around my college years and would do her best to schedule me on my days off when I lived out of town.

Brenda lived through my perm days, my hot rollers and Farrah Fawcett days, my Dorothy Hamill wanna be days and now my gray hair days. She helped me to accept my natural curls and to realize that one day I would appreciate "all this hair." 

She has a little shop in her house and schedules me every four weeks. When she finally retires, I don't know what I am going to do. Fifty years is a long time! 

Yes, only in a small town!

 After participating in the Slice of Life March Challenge by Two Writing Teachers, I am continuing to write my stories with other teacher-writers as we share a slice of life on Tuesdays.

Freewater {10}

 

It is April, and I am joining many others in celebrating National Poetry Month by reading, writing, sharing, and celebrating poetry each day this month. I have chosen to combine my love of reading with my love of writing. I will be writing poems using all things bookish--from titles to quotes to characters. So, come turn the page and write a little poetry with me.

Today's poem is a backout poem using a page from the book Freewater by Amina Luqman Dawson, the winner of this year's Newbery Modal and a Coretta Scott King Award. 

Although I not finished with the book yet, it is an amazing read, and I understand why it has shiny stickers on its cover.

I think I just may have another poem come from this book before the month is over.

paper and ink 

held each key 

to reveal the edge of

the still morning air

Check out the Kidlit Progressive Poem, which is being organized by Margaret Simon at Reflections on the Teche. A different poet adds a line each day for the month of April. You can find the poem's trail below.

April 1 Mary Lee Hahn, Another Year of Reading
April 2 Heidi Mordhorst, My Juicy Little Universe
April 3 Tabatha, The Opposite of Indifference
April 4 Buffy Silverman
April 5 Rose Cappelli, Imagine the Possibilities
April 6 Donna Smith, Mainely Write
April 7 Margaret Simon, Reflections on the Teche
April 8 Leigh Anne, A Day in the Life
April 9 Linda Mitchell, A Word Edgewise
April 10 Denise Krebs, Dare to Care
April 11 Emma Roller, Penguins and Poems
April 12 Dave Roller, Leap Of Dave 
April 13 Irene Latham Live You Poem 
April 14 Janice Scully, Salt City Verse
April 15 Jone Rush MacCulloch
April 16 Linda Baie TeacherDance
April 17 Carol Varsalona, Beyond Literacy Link
April 18 Marcie Atkins
April 19 Carol Labuzzetta at The Apples in My Orchard 
April 20 Cathy Hutter, Poeturescapes
April 21 Sarah Grace Tuttle at Sarah Grace Tuttle’s Blog, 
April 22 Marilyn Garcia
April 23 Catherine at Reading to the Core
April 24 Janet Fagal, hosted by Tabatha, The Opposite of Indifference
April 25 Ruth, There is no Such Thing as a God-Forsaken Town
April 26 Patricia J. Franz, Reverie
April 27 Theresa Gaughan, Theresa’s Teaching Tidbits
April 28 Karin Fisher-Golton, Still in Awe Blog
April 29 Karen Eastlund, Karen’s Got a Blog
April 30 Michelle Kogan Illustration, Painting, and Writing

Inkwell {9}

 

It is April, and I am joining many others in celebrating National Poetry Month by reading, writing, sharing, and celebrating poetry each day this month. I have chosen to combine my love of reading with my love of writing. I will be writing poems using all things bookish--from titles to quotes to characters. So, come turn the page and write a little poetry with me.

I recently read Inkwell:  Simple Writing Practices to Restore Your Soul by Anne Elrod Whitney. She writes and explains how writing practices can be a powerful tool to spiritual self-care. 

Although the book has you write about God's presence in your life, she clearly explains that "this book is for people of any faith, including people of no faith."

I am finding that it really is about self-care and self-reflection and looking deeper into the stories that surround us and the stories from which we are made.

I wrote an Etheree poem with my takeaways and some lines from her book.

Inkwell

When

writing

we stop time,

bodies and minds

in syncopation.

Drawing from the inkwell

we remember, describe, act,

reflect life’s experiences.

Noticing is a gift of presence,

so, make writing a moment of choice that

remains rooted in the perspective of now.

Check out the Kidlit Progressive Poem, which is being organized by Margaret Simon at Reflections on the Teche. A different poet adds a line each day for the month of April. You can find the poem's trail below.

April 1 Mary Lee Hahn, Another Year of Reading
April 2 Heidi Mordhorst, My Juicy Little Universe
April 3 Tabatha, The Opposite of Indifference
April 4 Buffy Silverman
April 5 Rose Cappelli, Imagine the Possibilities
April 6 Donna Smith, Mainely Write
April 7 Margaret Simon, Reflections on the Teche
April 8 Leigh Anne, A Day in the Life
April 9 Linda Mitchell, A Word Edgewise
April 10 Denise Krebs, Dare to Care
April 11 Emma Roller, Penguins and Poems
April 12 Dave Roller, Leap Of Dave 
April 13 Irene Latham Live You Poem 
April 14 Janice Scully, Salt City Verse
April 15 Jone Rush MacCulloch
April 16 Linda Baie TeacherDance
April 17 Carol Varsalona, Beyond Literacy Link
April 18 Marcie Atkins
April 19 Carol Labuzzetta at The Apples in My Orchard 
April 20 Cathy Hutter, Poeturescapes
April 21 Sarah Grace Tuttle at Sarah Grace Tuttle’s Blog, 
April 22 Marilyn Garcia
April 23 Catherine at Reading to the Core
April 24 Janet Fagal, hosted by Tabatha, The Opposite of Indifference
April 25 Ruth, There is no Such Thing as a God-Forsaken Town
April 26 Patricia J. Franz, Reverie
April 27 Theresa Gaughan, Theresa’s Teaching Tidbits
April 28 Karin Fisher-Golton, Still in Awe Blog
April 29 Karen Eastlund, Karen’s Got a Blog
April 30 Michelle Kogan Illustration, Painting, and Writing

Solace & Connection {2)

 

Welcome to this week's nature-inspired invitation to write and connect.  Each week, I will post a round-up, and you just need to write your blog post and link up at the blue box at the bottom of my post. Feel free to use image on your post to let people know about the community.

Please read and respond to at least one or two posts to help build the connections between us. 

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This week's inspiration is from Sarah Krajewski who shared an interview with Clint Smith. He states, "Poetry is the act of paying attention." I took a moment to pay attention to and notice the signs of spring I saw just from sitting on my porch swing. 

I turned my noticings into a list poem. Simple, yet captures my moment.

A spring day brings
clear blue skies calling my eyes to gaze upward
birds chirping their sweet songs
dandelions calling the bees
forsythia hanging on to its final blooms
hastas unfurling towards the sun
magnolia blooms bursting to say hello
robins plucking blades of grass to build their nests
open windows welcoming the warmness
a single tulip bud holding tight

a kaleidoscope of color.

Watch the Clint Smith interview here:

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The Progressive Poem is Here, 2023

 

The Kidlit Progressive Poem was created by Irene Latham and is now being organized by Margaret Simon at Reflections on the Teche. A different poet adds a line each day for the month of April. This is my 4th year participating in the collaboration, and I am always inspired by the other poets who contribute and grateful they let me play along!

I am receiving the handoff from Margaret Simon and Linda Mitchell will take it from here. Here is the poem so far along with my added line where the speaker is ready to see what lies ahead.

Suddenly everything fell into place

like raindrops hitting soil and sinking in.

When morning first poked me, I'd wished it away

my mind in the mist, muddled, confused.

Was this a dream, or reality, rousing my response?

The sun surged, urging me to join in its rising,

Rising like a crystal ball reflecting on morning dew.

I jumped out of bed, ready to explore the day.

Thanks for joining me today. The poem's trail continues below.

April 1 Mary Lee Hahn, Another Year of Reading
April 2 Heidi Mordhorst, My Juicy Little Universe
April 3 Tabatha, The Opposite of Indifference
April 4 Buffy Silverman
April 5 Rose Cappelli, Imagine the Possibilities
April 6 Donna Smith, Mainely Write
April 7 Margaret Simon, Reflections on the Teche
April 8 Leigh Anne, A Day in the Life
April 9 Linda Mitchell, A Word Edgewise
April 10 Denise Krebs, Dare to Care
April 11 Emma Roller, Penguins and Poems
April 12 Dave Roller, Leap Of Dave 
April 13 Irene Latham Live You Poem 
April 14 Janice Scully, Salt City Verse
April 15 Jone Rush MacCulloch
April 16 Linda Baie TeacherDance
April 17 Carol Varsalona, Beyond Literacy Link
April 18 Marcie Atkins
April 19 Carol Labuzzetta at The Apples in My Orchard 
April 20 Cathy Hutter, Poeturescapes
April 21 Sarah Grace Tuttle at Sarah Grace Tuttle’s Blog, 
April 22 Marilyn Garcia
April 23 Catherine at Reading to the Core
April 24 Janet Fagal, hosted by Tabatha, The Opposite of Indifference
April 25 Ruth, There is no Such Thing as a God-Forsaken Town
April 26 Patricia J. Franz, Reverie
April 27 Theresa Gaughan, Theresa’s Teaching Tidbits
April 28 Karin Fisher-Golton, Still in Awe Blog
April 29 Karen Eastlund, Karen’s Got a Blog
April 30 Michelle Kogan Illustration, Painting, and Writing

Scritch Scratch {8}

 

It is April, and I am joining many others in celebrating National Poetry Month by reading, writing, sharing, and celebrating poetry each day this month. I have chosen to combine my love of reading with my love of writing. I will be writing poems using all things bookish--from titles to quotes to characters. So, come turn the page and write a little poetry with me.

I chose to use the book title Scritch Scratch to write an onomatopoeia poem--I have no idea if that is considered a form! I am always drawn to nighttime sounds, so that is the direction this poem took.

scritch, scratch

drip, drop

chitter, chatter

flip flop

hoot, hoot

tick tock

chirp, chirp

knock, knock

 

Of all the sounds

far and near

nighttime sounds

I love to hear.

Check out the Kidlit Progressive Poem, which is being organized by Margaret Simon at Reflections on the Teche. A different poet adds a line each day for the month of April. You can find the poem's trail below.

April 1 Mary Lee Hahn, Another Year of Reading
April 2 Heidi Mordhorst, My Juicy Little Universe
April 3 Tabatha, The Opposite of Indifference
April 4 Buffy Silverman
April 5 Rose Cappelli, Imagine the Possibilities
April 6 Donna Smith, Mainely Write
April 7 Margaret Simon, Reflections on the Teche
April 8 Leigh Anne, A Day in the Life
April 9 Linda Mitchell, A Word Edgewise
April 10 Denise Krebs, Dare to Care
April 11 Emma Roller, Penguins and Poems
April 12 Dave Roller, Leap Of Dave 
April 13 Irene Latham Live You Poem 
April 14 Janice Scully, Salt City Verse
April 15 Jone Rush MacCulloch
April 16 Linda Baie TeacherDance
April 17 Carol Varsalona, Beyond Literacy Link
April 18 Marcie Atkins
April 19 Carol Labuzzetta at The Apples in My Orchard 
April 20 Cathy Hutter, Poeturescapes
April 21 Sarah Grace Tuttle at Sarah Grace Tuttle’s Blog, 
April 22 Marilyn Garcia
April 23 Catherine at Reading to the Core
April 24 Janet Fagal, hosted by Tabatha, The Opposite of Indifference
April 25 Ruth, There is no Such Thing as a God-Forsaken Town
April 26 Patricia J. Franz, Reverie
April 27 Theresa Gaughan, Theresa’s Teaching Tidbits
April 28 Karin Fisher-Golton, Still in Awe Blog
April 29 Karen Eastlund, Karen’s Got a Blog
April 30 Michelle Kogan Illustration, Painting, and Writing