Blog Archives

Poetry Friday: Oidhche Shamhna (Halloween Night)

10/29/2020

Did you know? Snèap (turnips) were the first Jack O' Lanterns.

Tuesday in Scottish Gaelic class, I found some Halloween phrases and worked to create a "found" poem with them.

Oidhche Shamhna
by Jone Rush MacCulloch

a' ghealach os cionn
fuaim na gaoithe
bidh taibhsean agus uilebheistean ann
ruith
air slighe lanntairean snèap
Oidhche Shamhna

Halloween Night
by Jone Rush MacCulloch

the moon above
the sound of the wind
ghosts and monsters are
running
on the turnip latern path
Halloween Night

If you ever want to know what ELL (English Language Learners) go through, I suggest learning a new language. I decided to record my poem. Halting, unsure, hesitant but I did it. You can find it here: https://youtu.be/eoxf6n8-pNo. Enjoy.

Head on over to Linda at TeacherDance who is hosting our Halloween Eve Poetry Friday posts.
Linda has a prose poem and another, "Sill Halloween". Enjoy.

WINNER, WINNER, PUMPIN PIE DINNER: JAMA, you won a copy of THIS POEM IS A NEST. Congrats!

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Wordless Wednesday: Week 44

10/28/2020

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Monday Musing

10/26/2020

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"Every country has the government it deserves"
~Joseph de Maistre

Joseph de Maistre first stated this in 1811.

The quote became a variation on a theme as Thomas Jefferson said “The government you elect is government you deserve'' and Alexis de Tocqueville said, “In a democracy, people get the government they deserve.”

It's a quote I've spoken often and especially this year. I voted, have you?

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Sunday Solace: Week 44

10/25/2020

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Poetry Friday: Johanna Wright Interview and GIVEAWAY

10/23/2020

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Meet Johanna Wright, illustrator of THIS POEM IS A NEST

Welcome to Poetry Friday, late edition. I just returned from traveling yesterday plus got up at 3:30 AM to take oldest grand to swim practice, and Buster has needed attention (poor guy caught kennel cough) so I'm just getting to this. Some days are like this, right?

Our Poetry Friday is hosted by Jama at Jama’s Alphabet Soup

I can't remember when it was that I learned that local artist/illustrator/author, Johanna Wright, was illustrating Irene Latham's book, THIS POEM IS A NEST. I was thrilled as I love Wright's work.

I recently had the chance to interview her about her work on the book.

But first a little video from Johanna talking about her process.

How did you decide which nestling poems would get an illustration?
It was tough to decide what poems to illustrate! There are so many in this book that called out to me. The editors gave me a lot of freedom to pick what I was inspired to work with. So I made a list of those that called out to me the most and we went from there. Some of the poems I had ideas for right away, and others I played with lots of ideas before settling. It was a really unique and fun book to illustrate!

I love the illustration for “Black”, can you share a bit about that?
“Black” was one of the illustration ideas that came to me right away. I love to put a bit of magic into my artwork, and it was fun to interpret that poem in that way. In general I tried to apply nature and magic themes throughout the book. It gave me a bit of a framework and helped me feel less overwhelmed with illustration options!
I notice a lot of magic depicted and at work work in your illustrations. It seems that it’s a constant theme for you no matter where your art leads. Would you talk about that a little bit?
Oh I love that you’ve noticed that and, yes! Magic is a big theme in my life and work. I love to include it as much as possible. Seeing life through a lens of magic makes everything a bit more bearable and fun and full of possibility.

Illustration for the poem, "Hidden Treasure Story"

Illustration for the poem, "Herd of Alpaca in the Rain"

I know that often the author and illustrator don’t get to talk about the book. Were you and Irene able to chat about ideas and concepts?
Irene and I didn’t chat directly during the making of the book, but our fabulous editor Rebecca Davis did a great job of communicating our thoughts to each other. When the book was done Irene and I did have some exchanges that were really fun! I love her work and felt so lucky to be a part of this book project.

GIVE AWAY~ WIN A COPY OF THIS BOOK

Comment and I will select a winner and announce it next week.

What are your current projects? What would you consider your signature style? Right now I’m working on illustrating and writing a deck of oracle cards and developing a new, illustrated, guided journal. I’ve really enjoyed combining my interests in healing energy and intuition with illustration these past few years. It’s taken me a long time to feel brave enough to share that work, but I feel like people are more receptive than ever to self healing and creative tools, so it feels like a good time for it! My signature style...I love to have my characters a bit sketchy and free. When I'm working in full color you'll usually find a layered painted background. I've been working with a darker palette the last few years, with brightly colored characters layered on top.

What would you like to share that I haven’t ask?
I just really loved working on this special book and I’m excited for kiddos to dive in and make their own poems based on this concept!
Johanna Wright has illustrated and written several books. My grands and friend's children have been gifted her books. I love her art work, the richness of the colors and the magical quality.

Bunnies on Ice by Johanna Wright
The Best Bike Ride Ever (by James Proimos)
The Orchestra Pit by Johanna Wright
Clover Twig and the Magical Cottage by Kaye Umansky
Clover Twig and the Perilous Path by Kaye Umansky
Celie Valentine Friendship Over by Julie Sternberg
Celie Valentine Secret’s Out by Julie Sternberg
Celie Valentine Everything’s Changed by Julie Sternberg
Keep a Pocket in Your Poem
The Magic of Mindset by Johanna Wright
This Poem is a Nest by Irene Latham

Thanks for stopping in, Johanna and sharing with us about THIS POEM IS A NEST.

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Wordless Wednesday: Week 43

10/21/2020

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Sunday Solace: Week 43

10/18/2020

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Poetry Friday: HOP TO IT, Part Two~ Grab an Umbrella

10/16/2020

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There is a lot of goodness to be had in the Poetry Friday community today. Please visit Janice at Salt City Verse for more places to read poetry.

I will get right to it. Yesterday was the official book birthday of HOP TO IT: Poems to Get You Moving, edited by Janet Wong and Sylvia Vardell. It features 100 poem by 90 poets that will make you wiggle your hands and toes, hop, skip, stretch, and jump in puddles.

The Children’s Book Council (CBC) selects a small number of new releases to highlight on their “Hot Off the Press” page ever month. This month, they chose HOP TO IT. What an honor.

Lucky me to have my poem, "Umbrella" in the collection. Living in the Pacific Northwest, there's plenty of rain and puddles for jumping, I've always been that person.

Janet Wong and Sylvia Vardell create books that are treasure troves for anyone sharing poetry with kids. In HOP TO IT, each poem is paired with a book. This is something I did when I taught poems and books, they make a lovely paring. So I am thrilled that The Big Umbrella by Amy June Bates and Juniper Bates was selected to be with my poem.