IMPORTANT: READ THIS BEFORE POSTING IN APRIL

For your April Post, please read the directions and follow the instructions:).

Happy National Poetry Month!! 

Poetry is my favorite thing to write. It's using few words to describe a moment, an emotion, a memory, experience, etc. The trick to good poetry is using beautiful words that immediately paint a picture in your reader's mind. It's also all about sound. It's about choosing words with sounds that mimic what you are writing about. Plus, poetry is FUN! No, poetry doesn't have to rhyme, keep that in mind. Remember that poetry is an art form and it's meant to be read aloud. Make sure you read your poem out loud before posting.

Your task this month is to visit this website: National Poetry Month Website--Click Here! Scroll down and there are several very popular poets reading one of their short poems. 

• First, listen to one of the poems. They are short, I recommend listening to it a couple of times. Some are easy to understand, some are not. 
• Post on your April Blog Post which poet you listened to and at least one thing you liked about the poem. It could be the words, the sound, the image it painted in your mind, how they read it, etc.
• Next, write a short poem of your own.
• Remember to do your 3 comments. Again, choose to comment on someone else's writing that you haven't commented on yet.

Example--My Post!

I listened to Marilyn Hacker's "Rune of the Finland Woman". I chose this poem because I knew it was about the Snow Queen and I'm a little crazy about fairy tales. First of all, I thought it was cool that she gave some background before reading, it helped me understanding better. I loved the repetition in the poem because it sounded like a chant. I also really loved the "s" and "w" sounds in the poem because it made it easy to picture a mystical woman. 

My Poem: 

Mountain Twilight

Softly soaking in the stillness, 

crested pines, centennials of God's

majesty are sighing at day's end.

Smoke spilling from crackling

campfires rising, permeating pointed

cones, swirling through netted

needles, drifting heavenward in the

fading light of the setting sun.

Stars sprinkle the creamy horizon, 

swirls of colors, seeping onto

God's canvas. Sleep steals 

across darkening skies, 

whispering in our ears, stroking

tired eyes with measured hand.