Apr 05, 2010 17:26
My students are working on tribute poems right now based on the poetry of Israeli poet Yehuda Amichai. I used the poem "Throw Pillows" that he wrote about his aunts as a foundation for the class. After we read the poem, we discussed it at length. When I introduced the students to the planning stage, I shared the poem I wrote about my grandfather Papaw, which I wrote using the same technique they would use. Some students asked if they could write TWO poems, one about each grandparent, parents, or siblings. Last night, I decided to run with their idea...I'm going to write one about each of my four grandparents. Here's the one I created at about 1:15 am, when I couldn't sleep. (Thanks to impending school budget cuts.)
My Memom
She taught me how to roll a
pie crust
so thin it was like parchment
and then tenderly lift it
into the fluted tin pan.
We used mine to learn
various pie-patching techniques
She washed my hair with
rain water
and remarked on how soft,
shiny, and curly it could be
as she lovingly combed out tangles
from climbing the mulberry tree
or swinging on the tire swing
She showed me how to catch
lightning bugs
gently putting them in a Mason jar
with sticks and leaves
so they wouldn’t be scared.
They winked on my nightstand
as I snuggled under a thin, blue summer quilt.
By Marjorie Light (4/5/10)
english lessons,
ela,
english 7,
poetry,
marjorie light,
memom poem