Saturday, May 13, 2017

Graveyard End-of-Year Musings, Part II

In Part I, I wrote a little missive to my 8th graders.  For part II, I think I will try and compose a poem from some things I wrote during the time I was with your class.   Do you guys know I did that THREE times, and I never once got bored?  There was always something new to see, feel, experience, or think about.  You should totally go back during the summer to find more writing inspiration.

I also have some cool stuff from The Flying Pig Farm, though... hmmm... what to do? Actually, I really like some of the stuff I wrote while watching you guys work at the farm.  This one is about you.  Sort of.  Or maybe it's actually about me, though, and what I remember from middle school. It's just an honest poem, I guess.  You may see yourselves in it.  Yes, I write about you.  You are the source of some of my richest material.  You are my inspiration.  Thank you so much for giving me this poem.  Anyway, here it is.  It doesn't have a title yet.  If you think of one, you could leave it in the comments.
______________

Girls carry sticks from where they are
unwanted.  The sticks, not the girls.
Although the girls, too, perhaps feel
unwanted, at least sometimes (don't we all?),
like sticks that should be making a path,
like that weed we learned about on our walk.

Boys take out their uncertainties
with shovels, shake the dirt triumphantly
from roots, put what is unwanted into
buckets. A wagon catches
on a corner, and it takes time (and
someone to notice and help) to turn it around.

They want to share their discoveries —
the sound of bees,
the pinecone encrusted with roots,
the bleached chicken bone —
with me.
I tell them to go tell the paper.
It's all about the telling.
There are things to be told, about being unwanted, shaken, stuck.
Sometimes you need a shovel.
Sometimes you need a pen.
___________

Ok, well, now for some fun...  Here are the photos from our graveyard trip.  And my list poem.


There are so many names here I know:
White
Whitt
Marquart
Hendricks
Larsen
Morgan
Allen
Olive
Quinn
Adele



So many more I don't:
Ravenstein
Wilde
Womeldorf
Shouse
Wiggins
Eason
one I can't read because I scribbled it in the margin.  It looks like
Heltemer
but I know that's not right.



And then the ones I wish I had known:
Tiara
Mae
Cassasa
Pamela June
Buck & Elsa
Pearl
Burkepile
Ogilbee
Fortuna


I hope some of you keep writing over the summer!  And that you keep your journals for a few years, and take them out and read them when you're 40.  You can also continue to publish here.  I'll check the blog every week or so to see if there is anything new!
You all have a story to tell.  Even if that story is about Taco Bell!  haha!!
Love you all so much -- Happy summer, everyone !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

PS> I finally wrote Part III


12 comments:

Anonymous said...

Though I am not actually in this class I'm just gunna go ahead and pretend to be. There is a lot of thought put into these poems of yours, it kinda makes you think in a different way. Like we see what you see and how you see it. That is some crazy skill right there Miss teacher lady.

Anonymous said...

That trip to the grave yard was really fun! I know some of those names too. This is a great blog post you should take us to more inspirational places!

Anonymous said...

I loved going to the grave yard. Everything we did this school year was amazing.

Anonymous said...

I love how you format your poems. For some it can be difficult to give up rhyming, but you do it so well and it flows.

Anonymous said...

Awww! I'm going to miss this class and all the people in it! I have definitely made some great memories and I can't wait it write them all down! ❤๐Ÿ‘Œ๐Ÿผ๐Ÿ‘๐Ÿผ๐Ÿค“

Anonymous said...

that looks like so much fun, I wish I was there, did you see the grave that said YO DADDY!

Anonymous said...

Those pictures are great. It is amazing on how many stones have the same or very similar names or last beamed and most of them are not even related.๐Ÿ˜Š I wish that I could have went on this little field trip.

Anonymous said...

love the story. Keep up with the great work. love all of your stories.

Anonymous said...

That is such a cool poem hope to see more. PS. Those pictures you can't see me in them lol๐Ÿ˜‚

Anonymous said...

good job i like the story

Anonymous said...

The graveyard trip was so enjoyable and relaxing. It's helpful when coming up with character names!

Anonymous said...

Happy summer! I'm so sad that we have to leave you on Thursday

Post of the Day

The Illuminati

The Illuminati is a secret organization that's secret and has giraffes. But what if somebody where to go to Taco Bell to get tacos and...