Filling the Well: Yasunari Kawabata and Alexander Mercks

 

"Snowy mountain and spring Milky Way Niigata" by Koichi Hayakawa

As he caught his footing, his head fell back, and the Milky Way flowed down inside him with a roar.

 

– Yasunari Kawabata, from Snow Country

 

 

"Milky Way"

A handpan meditation by Alexander Mercks

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nf36kl9UQLM

 

 

 

April 1: Michelle H. Barnes and Cosmo Sheldrake

April 2: Hans Christian Andersen

April 3: Guy Finley, Anneke van Giersbergen and Árstíðir 

April 4: Joseph Campbell and Fabien Weibel

April 5: Salvador Dalí and Pilobolus

April 6: Jacob Nordby and Talking Animals

April 7: Aileen Fisher, XTC, and Takarazuka Ballet

April 8: Amit Ray and Yehuda Amichai

April 9: Frances Hodgson Burnett

April 10: Frank Lloyd Wright, Stéphane Grappelli, and Django Reinhardt

April 11: John Burroughs and Stunts Amazing 

April 12: Beverly Cleary

April 13: Lee Bennett Hopkins and Judy Collins

April 14: X. J. Kennedy, Godfrey Reggio, Philip Glass, and Ron Fricke

April 15: Lucille Clifton, Anthony Howe, and Akeboshi

April 16: Donna Tartt and Micah

April 17: Kobayashi Issa (International Haiku Poetry Day)

 

 

Filling the Well: Auguste Rodin and Jamie Scott

 

Wendy Corniquet

The main thing is to be moved, 

to love, to hope, to tremble, to live.

 

– Auguste Rodin

 

 

"Spring"

A time lapse short film by Jamie Scott

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m6Uw2DJ9Md8

 

 

 

April 1: John Muir

April 2: e.e. cummings and enra

April 3: Edith Wharton and Henri Matisse

April 4: Cesare Pavese 

April 5: Anton Chekhov and Cat Stevens

April 6: Ray Bradbury and... cats 

April 7: Oliver Wendell Holmes and Hanjin Song

April 8: Albert Einstein and John Bohannon

April 9: Florence Parry Heide and Andres Amador

April 10: Zelda Fitzgerald and Arvo Pärt

April 11: Elinor Wylie

April 12: David Ault and Imogen Heap

April 13: William Shakespeare and Alice Tzue

April 14: Bruce Garrabrandt and OK Go

April 15: Anne Kent Rush and Bill T. Jones

April 16: Carl Sandburg, Raymond Crowe, and Louis Armstrong

April 17: Jean Houston and Lunch Break Quartet

April 18: John Milton 

April 19: Dante Alighieri, Don Francis, and Gregory Alan Isakov

April 20: Theodore Roethke and Charles Reznikoff

April 21: Octavio Paz and Salvador Dalí

April 22: Vincent van Gogh and Katsushika Hokusai

April 23: Nizar Qabbani and Quixotic

April 24: Auguste Rodin and Jamie Scott

 

Two Line Tuesday: Pablo Neruda

tanakawho

Green was the silence, wet was the light,
the month of June trembled like a butterfly

– Pablo Neruda, from "Sonnet XL"

Two Line Tuesday: Elizabeth Appell

Alexas_Fotos

And then the day came when the risk to remain tight, 

in a bud, was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.

– Elizabeth Appell

(mistakenly attributed to Anaïs Nin)

Two Line Tuesday: Vincent van Gogh

"Dandelions in spring" by Virginia (Ginny) Sanderson

It is looking at things for a long time 

that ripens you and gives you a deeper meaning.

– Vincent van Gogh

DMC: "A Springtime Affair" by Michelle Heidenrich Barnes

T.Kiya

In honor of Valentine's Day, I thought I might try a love poem for Buffy Silverman's challenge. It's not a typical love poem, perhaps, but I've learned it's best to let my muse have her way.


A SPRINGTIME AFFAIR

Nature and I have an understanding.
She goes about her day—
          bees pollen-bobbing for their deliveries
          clouds sky-surfing at high tide
          roses petal-kissing on the bush I neglected to trim last season
And I pretend to go about mine—
          words clinging to the page
          like Spanish moss on blossom-ready branches
          holding on to hope despite a stiff, chilling breeze.

© 2020 Michelle Heidenrich Barnes. All rights reserved.


I shared another poem about a chance springtime rendezvous this past Monday. It's well worth a read if you missed it.

Buffy Silverman has challenged us to write a poem that uses combined or invented words. Click HERE for more details and to read this month's Spotlight ON interview. Our featured daily ditties this week included poems by 4th grader Breighlynn, Tabatha Yeatts, and Janice Scully. All poems on our February 2020 padlet will be included in a wrap-up celebration on Friday, February 28th. One lucky participant will win a personalized copy of On a Snow-Melting Day: Seeking Signs of Spring (Millbrook Press, 2020).

Linda Baie is our Poetry Friday roundup matchmaker today. You'll find love poems (and other offerings) at TeacherDance—take one home that touches your heart.

Haiku Garden: Celebrating Spring

Abhishek Sundaram

Haiku amongst friends—
Is there any nicer way to welcome spring?

I'm celebrating this week's vernal equinox with haiku from the Golden Haiku competition, sponsored by the Golden Triangle Business Improvement District in Washington D.C.

This annual competition selects haiku to be displayed on more than 300 signs adorning tree boxes throughout D.C.'s central business district, "to bring a smile to commuters and visitors alike and brighten the winter landscape as flowers began to bloom."

It certainly brought a smile to my face to find out that my haiku was selected as one of two honorable mentions! 

Toshihiro Gamo

The contest's “Spring in the City” theme turned out nearly 2,000 entries from 50 countries and 41 states, and the District of Columbia, which the judges narrowed down to about one hundred favorites. Read them all here. Among them, you might recognize at least two other names—Diane Mayr and Elizabeth Steinglass, both of whom have been featured in the Haiku Garden at Today's Little Ditty (here and here). Diane and Liz have kindly allowed me to post their winning "Golden Haiku" as well. I'm tickled cherry blossom pink to be in such good company!

Oak leaf buds by staticgirl

"Hooped Moon" by Joey Rozier

Beautiful, aren't they? 

The photos, by the way, weren't part of the contest, just my attempt to pretty-up today's post.

I also wanted to tell you what a fantastic time I've been having doing "research" for next month's Classroom Connections series! I've been reading so many wonderful and diverse books—eclectic poetry collections, lyrical picture books, and engaging verse novels. The insights and classroom exercises the participating authors and editors are sharing for elementary, middle, and high school students are also amazing! So stay tuned for National Poetry Month. Next week I'll be publishing the schedule of events. 

Did you know today is National Goof Off Day? Now that's a holiday I can use! Rebecca Herzog is rounding up the Poetry Friday fun and games at Sloth Reads. Once again it seems I've missed the mark when it came to participating in this week's theme, but lest I be considered a party pooper, here's a goofy poem from a few years ago that might fit the bill.

Two Line Tuesday: Rainer Maria Rilke

It is spring again.

Jay Hsu

The earth is like a child that knows poems by heart.

– Rainer Maria Rilke

DMC: "Spring" by Janice Scully

SPRING

It’s coming, coming
slow as snails—
See the snowdrifts melt
in tiny trails?

Each day the ice grows
weak and thin.
Go ‘round the lake,
or else fall in.

Mud on shoes
and on our floor.
Friends ride scooters
to the store.

No more coats.
Children sing.
Jump ropes thump—
It’s early Spring.

© 2018 Janice Scully. All rights reserved.


Click HERE to read this month's interview with Julie Fogliano. She has challenged us to stare out the window and write a poem about what we see. You might even consider writing something down every day for a week:

At the end of the week, read through what you wrote and write your favorite bits on a separate piece of paper. I bet there will be a poem in there somewhere… see if you can find it.  – J. F.

Leave your poem on our May 2018 padlet. While some contributions will be featured as daily ditties this month, all contributions will be included in a wrap-up celebration on Friday, May 25th, and one lucky participant will win a personalized copy of her stunning new picture book from Roaring Brook Press:

DMC: "A Season of Poems — a Quartet" by Jane Baskwill

A SEASON OF POEMS—A QUARTET

Poems in Winter

Poems in Winter are
Slow to rise,
When storms rattle the window panes,
And wind whistles through cracks,
They shiver and shake and hide undercover,
Not wanting to come out,
Not willing to leave their nest,
Until lured by the snap-crackling of a promise,
Drawn to the warming intoxication of the hearth,
Cold hearts melt as icy fingers thaw,
They curl up by the fire momentarily,
Poems in Winter
Make good kindling.

Poems in Spring

Poems in spring are hopeful,
They start as small shoots to be nurtured
And protected from the whims of nature,
Some germinating too early,
Catching the gardener unaware,
Some awakening from a winter’s rest
Only to die from joyful pruning,
Some growing rapidly,
Taking over their assigned space,
And spreading into others’,
Forcing their presence,
In need of shaping, tending, taming,
They seek attention, consideration, celebration,
Poems in Spring
Rejuvenate the spirit.

Poems in Summer

Poems in Summer
Are a procrastinator’s dream,
They lie about on porches or swings,
Or in the shade of a tree, dozing,
With their eyes closed against the brilliance of day,
When summer breezes blow,
They drift into neighbour’s gardens,
Waiting for someone else to find them,
Caring not for the woes of the world,
Nor if they should live beyond today,
Poems in Summer
Are lazy.

Poems in Fall

Poems in Fall
Explode with colour and embrace their calling,
They drop from leaf-laden trees
Without care or misgiving,
Coming to rest with joy and abandon
They are propelled along pathways and old railway beds,
Moving briskly with stalwart determination,
They gather in piles and heaps, on stoops and verandas,
Impatiently demanding to be,
Poems in Fall
Have an urgency.


© 2017 Jane Baskwill. All rights reserved.


Click HERE to read this month's interview with Melissa Manlove, Senior Editor at Chronicle Books. Her DMC challenge is to write a poem that explores how writing (or a book) is like something else.

Post your poem on our May 2017 padlet. While some contributions will be featured as daily ditties this month, all contributions will be included in a wrap-up celebration this Friday, May 26th. Two lucky participants will win a book published by Chronicle earlier this year: LOVING VS. VIRGINIA by Patricia Hruby Powell, illustrated by Shadra Strickland, or LOVE IS by Diane Adams, illustrated by Claire Keane.

DMC: "Ode to Spring Soil" by Michelle Kogan

ODE TO SPRING SOIL

You feel soft and squishy, as her

shoes ooze over with clumps of your midnight mix.

Your earthy scent magnifies, as she moves toward you.

Swish, her foot slips and she sloshes down,

sliding to the ground; savoring your richness between her wet lips.

Why have you softened so early? Spring Soil,

for centering and slowing her, before the rush of summer.

 

© 2017 Michelle Kogan. All rights reserved.

Helen Frost has challenged us to write an ode poem this month, following these instructions:

Choose an object (a seashell, a hairbrush, a bird nest, a rolling pin). It should not be anything symbolic (such as a doll, a wedding ring, or a flag). Write five lines about the object, using a different sense in each line (sight, sound, touch, taste, smell). Then ask the object a question, listen for its answer, and write the question, the answer, or both.

Click HERE to read her sample poem, "Ode to a River."

Post your poem on our March 2017 padlet. All contributions will be included in a wrap-up celebration on Friday, March 31st, and one lucky participant will win a personalized copy of her latest novel-in-poems from Farrar, Straus, and Giroux/Macmillan:

DMC: "Narcissus" by Michelle Kogan

Poem and illustration © 2015 Michelle Kogan. 

All rights reserved.

Margarita Engle has challenged us to write a tanka this month. She suggests we think of it as a five-line travel diary about a subject of our choice. Click HERE for more details.

Send your tanka to TodaysLittleDitty (at) gmail (dot) com, or use the contact form in the sidebar to the right. All contributions will be included in a wrap-up celebration TOMORROW, March 27th. One lucky participant will win an autographed copy of Margarita's delightful new picture book:

This just in: SPRING!

Balloons in the Sky, by Sammie Jeanne on Deviant Art

I DO believe in spring!

I DO believe in spring!

I DO believe in spring!

Perhaps if you say it enough, it will come true.  

        It worked for me!

                   Okay, so I live in Florida.  What's your point? 


But before we get to our poetic celebration of the season,  A NOTE OF THANKS:

Even though I didn't make it past the first round in the March Madness tournament I wrote about last week (and even though I only lost by one classroom vote), I feel like a winner for having received so many wonderful votes of confidence from family, friends, fans, and peers.  THANK YOU for believing in me!  With Round 3 currently up for vote, the competition is heating up, and I hope you will continue to show your support of this wonderful spotlight on children's poetry!

Now, back to our regularly scheduled programming.

When folks say "e. e. cummings" and "spring" in the same breath, it often precedes the poem, "Spring is like a perhaps hand."  Beautiful poem, I agree.  But today I would like to share another:

[in Just-] 

in Just-
spring          when the world is mud-
luscious the little
lame balloonman

whistles          far          and wee

You can read the rest here.

And as a special treat, from The Voice of the Poet, here's e. e. cummings reading his own work:

Happy Spring!  

Sky Balloon, by Danielle on Deviant Art

With National Poetry Month just around the corner, get ready to hang on to your hats for a whirlwind of fun festivities.  Yours truly will be hosting in two weeks with some exciting new features to announce, but in the meantime, enjoy today's Poetry Friday roundup party being hosted by Mary Lee at A Reading Year.

Two Line Tuesday: Frances Hodgson Burnett

First Spring Rain, Nevena Uzuroz, via Wikimedia Commons

"Is the spring coming?" he said. "What is it like?"...

"It is the sun shining on the rain and the rain falling on the sunshine..."

–Frances Hodgson Burnett 

from The Secret Garden

March Madness

Spring has arrived! 

The calendar says so, 
           the azalea bushes concur, 
                         and then there's this:

"What is this lunacy that has so thoroughly distracted you from writing this blog post?"  Ah, yes... well, I suppose you have a point.

Now in its third year, the March Madness Poetry Tournament was designed by Ed Decaria to bring the excitement of the NCAA March Madness tournament to the world of kids’ poetry. 64 poets from around the world participate in the event; together, these poets write 126 new kids’ poems in just 21 days.

For me, it's my second year as an enthusiast, my first as a participant.  I lapped up the wonderful poetry that came out of this deliciously insane event last year, and even though I wasn't an authlete, I still got my butt kicked.  Well, sort of.  When I think back on it, March Madness was the kick in the pants I needed to start Today's Little Ditty.  And here we are, nearly one year later, happy as a mad hatter to look back on how far we've come.

Here is my #MMPoetry first round poem, currently up for vote (until Friday night, 10:40pm EST):

IN CONCLUSION …

Kids of the jury, believe me,
if you had a sister like mine,
you, too, might be bucking authority—
her conduct was way out of line.
She kidnapped my Captain America
and threw him in Barbie’s pink jail!
So it seemed like a sensible sequitur
to place the ad: “SISTER FOR SALE.”

© 2014 Michelle Heidenrich Barnes.  All rights reserved.

I'm up against a worthy competitor, but win or lose, it's all good.  I'm proud of myself for coming this far!

I'm also excited about my secret plans for continuing to grow and develop Today's Little Ditty into an even more active and vibrant community.  Look for an announcement next month, but in the meantime, let's enjoy the sweet anticipation for a few more weeks, shall we?

Oh, and by the way, did you know I'm only 10 likes away from 100 on my Facebook writer's page?  Today's Little Ditty sure would appreciate a birthday present like that.  And hey, look!  There's a link on the right side of this web page... just sayin'.  <wink>

For those, like me, who like Poetry Friday, you'll find today's roundup at The Drift Record.  Thanks Julie!

Two Line Tuesday: Ralph Waldo Emerson

 

The Courage of Snow Drops, by Gemma Grace

Adopt the pace of nature:

her secret is patience.

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

Tuesday's Miracle

"A rest in rotten row" 

1892 watercolour by Rose Maynard Barton (1856 - 1929), PD -1923

Springtime and babies—the two get along famously.  So in honor of the former, today's little ditty describes the latter.  Works for me. 

Tuesday’s Miracle

Five little fingers clutched around one

A smile that’s brighter than midday sun

A dear little face with sparkling eyes

A miracle dressed in a baby’s disguise

© 2005 Michelle Heidenrich Barnes.

For more poetic delights, don't forget to visit Elizabeth Steinglass with today's Poetry Friday round-up.