Thursday, January 16, 2020

Poetry Friday -- Schooled


foggy view of the sheep farm by our school

It was foggy yesterday.
On my early morning walk,
I considered ways to describe fog.
None were new:
it shrouds and blankets and conceals,
it muffles and oozes,
smooth and thick.
Of course it sneaks,
famously tiptoeing.
It is pensive, introverted,
secretive, and calming.

Later, I asked my students to describe fog.
Suddenly, fog was new again:
clouds too lazy to float,
earth auditioning for a scary movie,
floating water,
clouds coming down to say hi.

At that moment,
I was the fog
and they were the sun,
illuminating new ways
to see the world.


©Mary Lee Hahn, 2020



Catherine has the Poetry Friday roundup this week at Reading to the Core.

15 comments:

  1. I've always liked the Sandburg poem!

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  2. I love this! Kids really do help us to see differently!

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  3. Earth auditioning for a scary movie! Love your illuminating takeaway from this, Mary Lee.

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  4. Gasp! Wow. Sometimes, we just need to step OUT of the way. Brilliant work by your students. "clouds too lazy to float," makes me giggle.

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  5. I love this. Young writers never fail to amaze with their ability to see things in new ways.

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  6. Mary Lee, Your poetry illuminates! This reflection, your title, your discussion with students--thank you for schooling us with your poems.

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  7. I love how you freed your students to find their own beautiful words, Mary Lee. Fabulous!

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  8. Such great imaginations! I especially enjoy the image of clouds coming down to say hi.

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  9. This poem speaks to my daily experience writing with kids. Don't you just love it?!

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  10. I love their fresh perspective! My favorite is the clouds too lazy to float.

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  11. Gorgeous, Mary Lee. I love seeing ordinary things through a child's eyes.

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  12. What a lovely poem. One of my favorite things about working with young children is that they are always showing me new ways to see the world!

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  13. What a wonderful poem, Mary Lee. This line struck me, "earth auditioning for a scary movie." -Great description-but the ending packed a punch. Your photo pairs well with the poem.

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  14. Thanks to you and your students for your inspiring fog poem–and ah to you becoming "fog" and ooo to them the "sun!"

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  15. Oh! Tip-top tiptoe through the fog of convention into the sunshine of our future. Love x 1000.

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