Welcome to Poetry Friday.  We are so close to half way through the year.  Does anyone know how to slow down time? This week Buffy at Buffy Silverman is sharing observations and thoughts about spring time.  I love her photos and what she has cerated with the word 'time'.

Summer means swapping poetry with others.  This past week, I had poetry mail from Tabatha. She has a teaser in her post for Mary Lee a couple weeks ago. Blessings. They are rather fun to write.  This blessing from Tabatha speaks to anyone cultivating words. Yesterday I started collecting the poems that have lived on my blogs since 2006 and it indeed felt like I was a standing in a poem garden,

A blessing for those who cultivate words
by Tabatha Yeatts 
for Jone
 
May the sun find your seeds 
and rain settle on your sprouts 
and may you pick the weeds
of distraction and fear 
from around your precious seedlings.
 
May you invite birds to sing 
on your branches, bees to 
circle your blossoms, and 
praying mantises to stoutly 
guard your growth.
 
May your fingers be nimble
as you stand before rows of bushes,
ripe with the fruit of your imagination.
 
May your feet tread 
gently but firmly as you walk 
the dirt paths between these overflowing bushes,
​holding your words in your hands, 
your pockets, and cradled 
in the bottom of your shirt.
 
May you find the few you need
on the sparse bush that holds words
for hard times, for times when silence
and togetherness
are most necessary.
 
May you stand before 
the one you never 
thought would bear fruit 
and feel the joyous
bewilderment 
of seeing more than you can hold.

My response:
seeds of sprouts
nimble with imagination-
your blossoms

walk dirty paths
hold words in silence
feel joyous

~jone rush macculloch, 2021 draft

Welcome to Poetry Friday.  There is SO much happening.  And some my fault as I took two weeks away from posting.
First, all the poetry magic is being rounding up by none other than Christie Wyman at Wondering And Wandering.  

A HAPPY BIRTHDAY shout out to Christie as she has completed another journey around the sun. Hooray.  And it just so happens I have a little surprise for her in the prize announcements below.
Second, I do have some announcements about giveaways after the MAIN EVENT which is to honor #MarvelousMaryLee.

 In October  2007, I was a lucky person to meet Mary Lee at the first ever Kidlit/YA blogging conference in Chicago, IL.
Her blog, A Year of Reading was one I read each week and looked forward to the book and poetry connection.
Poetry projects each April, poetry swaps, commenting on poems, haiku, and thoughts about social justice to give her students agency, Mary Lee may be retiring but I imagine her legacy is long-lasting. 
I am so excited for your new chapter, Mary Lee. May it be rich with roads that are unexpected and magical. So glad I have gotten to know you through poetry.  Here's to the journey.  The following poem is cubed and found.  I looked through your poems of the past year and gather words to write something in honor of you.  The photo is from last weekend in the Redwoods State and National Forests, norther California

I have four book prize packages to send to four readers from the April Giveaways:
THE SNOW FELL THREE GRAVES DEEP by Allan Wolf:  Linda Mitchell
STARFISH by Lisa Fipps: Heidi Mordhorst
EVERYWHERE BLUE by Joanne Rossmassler Fritz: Michelle Heidenrich Barnes
THE WISDOMOF TREES by Lita Judge: Christie Wyman
Please contact me so I have your mailing addresses. 
CONGRATULATIONS.

I'm so happy to host Poetry Friday this week.

A new year, fresh and into the second month already.  How does that happen?

Poetry Friday is a weekly happening for all who love poetry,  Write it. Read it. Pass it on.

I found my first Poetry Friday post HERE. It was to announce the CYBILS POETRY winner for 2006.  The post ran in February 2007.  Thirteen years of Poetry Friday for me.  Whether you are new to Poetry Friday or have many posts, welcome, welcome.

There were a total of eleven participants for the 2021 New Year Poetry Postcard Exchange.  
​This week I curated words from all the poems creating a FOUND poem.  I hope you will consider joining the exchange in 2022.

Refusing to Wait for Springtime

Minted moon silverdrops, yesterday’s rain,
reflecting an invitation for merrymaking on the icy pond.

Beneath the surface, unseen creatures
busy themselves with an honest day’s work.

Chickadees flying free, blue herons perching
high in a tree watching the morning joy. 
​
© jone rush macculloch (2021 draft) 

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

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!

Welcome to Poetry Friday.  For other places to find poetry in the world, please go to Bridget at wee words for wee ones

 If you haven't gotten THIS POEM IS A NEST by Irene Latham  and illustrated by Johanna Wright yet, go to your nearest independent book store and order.  What a delight: poems as nests and little nestlings inside the nests.  Today I decided that I would play with the poem nest, "Autumn" and see what nestlings I could find.

It's really fun and soothing to do blackout poetry.

​climb the branches
where the crispcool world
settles
+++++++++++++++++++
dizzy leaves flood
the stage below
a sun puddle, clouds still
+++++++++++++++++++
imagine another life
the whisperweight of faith
with ancient memory
​+++++++++++++++++++

What nestlings can find?  The art work is by one of my favorite local artists, Johanna Wright.  I will be featuring an interview with her soon. Stay tuned!