Eletelephony

by Laura E. Richards

Once there was an elephant,

Who tried to use the telephant—

No! No! I mean an elephone

Who tried to use the telephone—

(Dear me! I am not certain quite

That even now I’ve got it right.)

Howe’er it was, he got his trunk

Entangled in the telephunk;

The more he tried to get it free,

The louder buzzed the telephee—

(I fear I’d better drop the song

Of elephop and telephong!)

A friend shared this poem with me. I can’t find the author. This is one of those poems I wish I had written. What do you think? 

I wish you were a book

so I could

flip through your pages

and

underline my favorite things about you

fold your pages’ corners

and

tell my friends about how wonderful you are

I would save you

in a bookshelf next to my bed

where I come to escape reality

and

dream of things that make me happy

I would read you again and again

as if you were the only book I’ve got

and

I would take you everywhere with me

because you would make me happy

with the way you choose your words

and

how sweetly you let them flow through paper

Could you use this poem as inspiration to write your own? I wish you were a…skateboard, pencil, calculator…any other ideas? I may try and write my own.

Here’s an original poem. It’s a list poem and a quickly written first draft. There’s a lot of emotion on this poem. What do you think? Can you guess how I’m feeling? What was happening? What do you think it means? (Use lines from the poem to support your ideas.) 

Writing always makes me feel better. Has there ever been a time when you’ve felt emotions strongly? Feel free to leave an original poem of your own in the comments. 

April is National Poetry Month. There are so many ways to celebrate this special time! I am going to celebrate by blogging every day. In my daily blog, I will include an original poem, a favorite poem, or instructions on how you can write your own poem. My hope is that you blog everyday with me, but that isn’t a requirement. Everyone will be required to blog once a week.

For my first day of blogging, I want to share my first favorite poem with you. Emily Dickinson  and her poetry touched my heart at an early age. My first favorite poem is here:

I held a Jewel in my fingers —
And went to sleep —
The day was warm, and winds were prosy —
I said “‘Twill keep” —

I woke — and chid my honest fingers,
The Gem was gone —
And now, an Amethyst remembrance
Is all I own —

These words brought me comfort during a sad time. I loved the idea of an amethyst remembrance…so valuable. And the feeling of being outside on a warm day and falling asleep…that conjures feelings of peace! Do you have a favorite poem? What’s your favorite?

Poetry makes me feel so many things. So, today to start…I’m going to begin a list poem about poetry. (This is a first and incomplete draft.) Feel free to add lines to this poem in the comments. 

Poetry

emotions pouring out like maple syrup

connecting who I am with the “who I am” of others

luring laughter, giggles, tears, and desperation

sharing deep secrets through metaphor, imagery,  hyperbole…so the secret remains

painting on the page with ink and words

Can you add a line (or more) here to complete the poem?