Spring Days Like These

at Two Writing Teachers!

I've been welcoming Poetry Month into my classroom, and it's been really fun so far.  When I was walking out of school today, I thought about writing a post about how poetry has always been a part of my life.  As I climbed in the car, I started to think about some of my favorite poems and how special they've been to me. (I always brainstorm Slice ideas in my head while I drive home from school!)

Then I started driving.  I rolled down the windows and opened the moon roof.  The sun was shining so brightly and the air was so warm, and new words just flew out of the breeze and into my head.  As soon as they started to tumble around in there, I knew that I wasn't going to be writing ABOUT poetry anymore.  I was writing poetry.  (This is how poems always come to me: nature, and then words in a jumble that bounce around my head!)

I walked into the house, threw my school supplies on the ground, and grabbed my notebook before the words left.  (Husband came home while I was writing. As soon as he opened the door, I screeched, "DON'T TALK TO ME!  I'M WRITING A POEM!")

So, Happy Poetry Month!

Spring
These days,
when sunbeams sparkle
playfully on the rolling river ripples
and filter
lazily through the just-awakening
green growing trees

I roll
     down
           the windows
and pop open the moon roof,
crank up the country,
and catch
great greedy gulps
of sweet sunshine
and delicious dancing daffodils

Breathe deep
and smile.

These days,
I can
almost
                        reach
                                                           out
and
touch

toe-wiggling sandals,
warm-breeze-welcoming tanktops,
foot-tickling grass

jump
     SPLASH!
          d
            r
              i
                p
                   p
                     i
                       n
                         g
water

crisp crackling fireworks
gleeful glowing fireflies

and days that just never seem to end.

almost.