Slice of Life Story Challenge March 21 -A Rainbow Connection

The sighting of a rainbow this morning as I walked around my neighbourhood, prompted a connection to a poem I wrote some years ago. The poem was written as part of a poetry festival at the school at which I was teaching, at that time. As I photographed the rainbow, the memory of that poem came into focus. Words and pictures blended in my head. It was my rainbow connection…
 
Here’s the photo:



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Here’s the poem:

People Are Poets
The sounds of the people fresh and alive
Words full of wonder that have to survive
Out in the playground, on any street
The power of poets, give us words to repeat.
Let the words ring out
Let the poet inside you sing
People are poets
Only a poet can colour the wind.

Its the happiest moments captured in time.
Emotion and passion, rhythm and rhyme.
Words that can warm me or make me feel cold
Poets are fearless, outrageous and bold.
Let the words ring out
Let the poet inside you sing
People are poets
Only a poet can colour the wind.

It’s the music of thought, rainbows trapped in a jar
Words full of wonder, heard from afar
Like the moon through my window, the words reach my heart
The world needs its poets to each play a part.
Let the words ring out
Let the poet inside you sing
People are poets
Only a poet can colour the wind.

 

 

 

 

Comments

  1. Anonymous21 March 2013 at 22:01

    Rainbows are like miracles. I understand why you were inspired.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Margaret Simon21 March 2013 at 22:05

    I always think of a certain friend when I see a rainbow. We text each other and remember her husband who died.
    Love the poem and its repeated refrain. "People are poets. Only a poet can color the wind." Love this thought.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Unknown21 March 2013 at 22:06

    Poetry, rainbows--lovely connection.

    ReplyDelete
  4. elsie21 March 2013 at 22:28

    Poetry always leaves me in awe because so few words have such power. I love your message and that refrain needs to be my mantra.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Donna Smith22 March 2013 at 01:41

    Rainbows and poems are always worth stopping for.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Jackie22 March 2013 at 02:43

    I can see how the rainbow would bring memories of that poem. You are so right...we need poets...and 'only a poet can color the wind'...so true. Thanks for sharing your rainbow connection with us. Jackie http://familytrove.blogspot.com/

    ReplyDelete
  7. Anonymous22 March 2013 at 07:58

    What a powerful poem! I, too, love the refrain, "People are poets. Only a poet can color the wind."

    ReplyDelete
  8. Anonymous22 March 2013 at 07:58

    How did you get your blog title "Living Life Twice"? Just curious...

    ReplyDelete
  9. Tara @ A Teaching Life22 March 2013 at 08:59

    Let the words ring out
    Let the poet inside you sing.

    Beautiful lines - poetry is song, after all.
    Lovely to have a double rainbow remind you of this stored away poem.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Jaana22 March 2013 at 11:12

    "The world needs its poets to each play a part." This line in your poem really spoke to me as I was reading it.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular With Other Visitors

Writing Opposite Poems

Image
 O pp o s ite  P oem s In his book, ' How To Write Poetry,'  Paul Janeczko presents the idea of opposite poems. Paul suggests they could also be referred to as antonym poems. This is wordplay and it's fun to try. Here are some examples Paul provides to help us see very clearly how these short little poems work. I think the opposite of chair Is sitting down with nothing there What is the opposite of kind? A goat that butts you from behind Paul Janeczko You will  notice the poems are written in rhyming couplets. They can be extended so long as you remember to write in couplets. Paul shows us how this is done. What is the opposite of new? Stale gum that's hard to chew A hot-dog roll as hard as rock Or a soiled and smelly forgotten sock You might notice that some of Paul's opposite Poems begin with a question. The remainder of the poem answer the question posed. Opposite poems are a challenge, but it is a challenge worth trying. Not eve...
Read more

Writing About Reading - Reading Reflection Journals:

Image
UPDATED February 2022 Writing in response to literature can be a great way for students to organize their thoughts, explore what they think, and generate ideas. One of the strengths of writing in journals is that it allows students to capture all of those great ideas that generally float off into the air during the discussion.  Journal writing can also become drudgery if students are asked to write too often, given little choice or inspiration in what to write, or if they simply don't have anything to say. While some students eagerly share their impressions about selections they have read in class discussions, others are less comfortable and keep their thoughts to themselves. In an effort to encourage all students to think more about what they read and confidently share their observations and opinions, some teachers are turning to the reading reflection journal and are gaining insights they never anticipated.  The Value of Reflection Journals   Journals assist teachers...
Read more

Learning How to 'Zoom In' When Writing

Image
It is important for young writers to understand that not all parts of a story are equal. There are parts through which a writer moves quickly, and important parts where the writer slows down and lingers a while. This is where the writer might intensify the action or reveal the character’s reactions in greater detail. Young writers need to know that this is a deliberate strategy on the part of the author. The author consciously zooms in. The writer uses a magnifying glass to view a part of the story more closely; to focus on a moment and to slow down time. When an important part of the story is enlarged upon, it   is a signal to the reader, that this part of the story is important. The strategy of ‘zooming in’ goes by many names: ‘exploding a moment’ ‘magnifying a moment’, ‘hotspot’ ‘snapshot’, ‘adding detail’ or ‘slowing the action.’  What ever the name, the idea is the same. The author writes in a way that expands a significant part of the story with the intentio...
Read more

Slice Of Life Story-The Trials Of A Left Handed Writer

Image
Amazingly I learnt to write using my left hand. An achievement against the prevailing beliefs of the day. My very first teacher saw it as her mission in life to ‘fix’ the poor, wretched little boy suffering from what she clearly diagnosed as left handed disease. She must have thought, 'This child must be re formatted! If he remains left handed he will be forever condemned to writing in a scrawl that no one will be able to read. Ugly hand, ugly hand.' ...They tried to say it couldn't be done, it mustn't be done. They took the pencil out of my left hand and placed it in my right hand. It felt unnatural. It felt weird. It was not right. More to the point it was not left. I was not about to conform. At least they didn't try tying my hand behind my back. Watch me I said. I may be an oddball, left handed scribbler but I am a determined oddball. I mean how boring would the world be if everyone wrote with their right hand? So I dug my toes in –and my hands to...
Read more

Exploring Themes in Poetry With Emerging Writers

Image
There is so much more to poetry than haiku and acrostics. Yet, so many young poets never get to experience the rich breadth of poetry beyond these highly structured forms. Why? Primarily, it’s about their teachers comfort levels with poetry. We often teach to what we know, meaning that being adventurous and taking young poets into new realms is not part of the poetic landscape for many. This sells young poets and poetry itself short. Last week I had the pleasure to again work with a group of young poets from Derrimut Primary School grade 5/6 in Melbourne’s west. We have been exploring patterns and repetition in poetry. We have explored personification as a literary device to develop the writing of poetry. We delved into the idea of writing through a mask to provide inanimate and animate entities with a voice. They told stories in words from their own perspective. On this occasion we again went to the edges and began to explore poetry through themes. We discussed a range ...
Read more