Today is Poetry Friday, and the roundup is happening over at The Opposite of Indifference blog with Tabatha Yeatts hosting. She shares a funny poem “Prof of Profs.”
Look what I got from Australia! Thank you Kat Apel for this beauty. Look at that cactusy font she used, and I love the metaphors throughout. “Remember your soft centre / is sweet and refreshing, so… / Grow your heart!” is my favorite.
Kat also shared other poems about cactus and this, my favorite, about the arid land in her Queensland. It reads like it came from a blockbuster musical filmed out on the bush. I so love the form she used in this poem, which is an echo of “On Kiley’s Run” by Banjo Paterson. I’m sharing the first stanza below. Do read the rest of the poem here.
This Land
By Kathryn Apel
Horizons stretch forever ’cross
This sunburnt land.
The shimmer of a heatwave’s gloss
That melds with parched and tufted grass,
As hot winds blow and dust storms pass,
While brittle, yellow tumbleweed
Is swept along with careless heed
Across the land.
Thank you, Kat, for sending
your beauty across the world
landing in my heart
On Wednesday, I went to the virtual book launch that Patricia told us about in July. Earlier, on Poetry Friday she shared the poem, “The Big Box of Books”, she wrote during a Mindful Poetry Moment; it is one of two of Patricia’s poems included in the anthology. I had first learned about the Mindful Poetry group from Patricia last February on this post. In April I got busy with other poetry opportunities, and I didn’t participate in any of the activities. However, after spending some time with these mindful poets on Wednesday, I will definitely check out The Well for April 2024.
My Sealey Challenge Update (with some photos of favorite poems)
August 4 – Where the Deer Are by Kate Barnes (a gift from Linda Baie)
August 5 – Gmorning, Gnight! Little Pep Talks for Me and You by Lin-Manuel Miranda
August 6 – Martin Rising: Requiem for a King by Andrea Davis Pinkney and (ill.) Brian Pinkney
August 7 – I Offer My Heart as a Target by Johanny Vazquez Paz
August 8 – Keep a Pocket in Your Poems, Classic Poems & Playful Parodies by J. Patrick Lewis
August 9 – No Matter by Jana Prikryl – I had no favorites in this one. It was a tough read. I didn’t like it.
August 10 – The Year of Goodbyes by Debbie Levy
Books for next week and beyond
Peace to all those in Maui. How awful to be on an island with the devastating fires. Praying for all. Here is the organization President Obama shared if you want to help: Hawaii Community Foundation
It’s tough to see some of the images coming out of Hawai’i — a place that’s so special to so many of us. Michelle and I are thinking of everyone who has lost a loved one, or whose life has been turned upside down.
If you’d like to help, you can do so here.…
— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) August 10, 2023
What a varied collection of poetry! Thank-you for sharing our cactus. I do love what the Poetry Swap brings – getting to know another poet better as we hunt for inspiration, then share a piece of them-and-self back with them. I think we both did that – and had such fun in the process. (I have shared your poem and art on my blog today. Thank-you!)
And my goodness. I can’t tell you how lovely it was to read your comment about This Land; ‘It reads like it came from a blockbuster musical filmed out on the bush.’ Thank-you. That’s some praise!
Oh my. I’ve just been reading about the fires in Maui. How horrific. I had no idea…
Thank you for sharing such a wonderful selection of poetry today! I enjoyed reading all of them. For some reason, the phrase “peach-meat sun” struck me today. : )
The perfect way to begin my Friday—especially since Pádraig and Poetry Unbound is on hiatus. Don’t you crave “a small happy society/of souls who are gentle and do no harm”? Thanks, Denise.
I saw President Obama’s tweet, have given, but it seems like such a little for all the heartbreak we’re seeing there! Thanks for sharing Kat’s lovely art & poetry piece about cacti, Denise. It’s a beautiful poem, kind of an ode but amusing. I love the reference to kid gloves! And all your other sharing from your Sealey Challenge reading, a basketful of goodness! A friend lives on a farm, trains and shows horses. I will send the ‘pasture’ poem to her! Have a great weekend, Denise!
Denise,
What a full month of poetry! And thank you for sharing more about Mindful Moments Poetry and The Well. I’ll look forward to connecting with you there, too. I’m not sure I could ever manage a book/day of poetry – but I love that you shared faves from your dive, especially Lin Manuel-Miranda’s pep talk!
Your post is so packed with goodness that I don’t know where to begin! I love Kat’s sense of humor. Delightful cactus poem! J. Patrick Lewis’ “Grief is the Thing with Tissues” is also going into my e-file. Thanks for all!
I love this post! There is so much just for me! I mean…did you know I was looking for all of this right now? Did you read my mind? This post is just for me…I know it. And, and, and, I got your poetry swap yesterday–on my birthday! How did you manage that? You are full of surprises and a tiny bit of magic too.
Thanks for celebrating Kat and Patricia this week, Denise. And for the peek inside your Sealey reading.
So much goodness here that I don’t know where to start. 🙂 I think I need to re-read and dive deeper.
And oh, yes, the devastation in Maui. What a good idea to post the link for helping.
Thanks for all this poetry goodness, Denise, as well as all the links. I’m writing down many of the titles you shared – looking forward to an expanded poetry collection soon. So great to see Patricia on screen!
So much poetry goodness, indeed! I especially loved the peek into your Sealey reading (I miss J. Patrick Lewis so much! I wonder what he’s up to?) and your honesty about the book you didn’t like.
Kat is a treasure herself. I met her at NCTE. Can’t remember the year, but I remember her tall, kind presence. We were all best friends because of this Poetry Friday community. Her poem for you says so much about life and being who you are meant to be. Let the cactus be cactus.
Kat’s poem is such a gift! I opted out not to poetry swap this summer because of travel commitments and general OMG fatigue, but seeing all the swap goodness reminds me of the treasures that are created and shared. I also enjoyed seeing the snippets you shared from your poetry reading. “Shattered” , with its clever internal rhymes and “peach-meat sun”, is my favorite. Thanks for all the sneak peeks and all the links!
What a collection of great poems! And yay for Patricia!!!
“So much goodness” is an understatement! Thanks for sharing your treasures, Denise!
Lots of poetic goodness here, Denise. Thank you for sharing it with us. I couldn’t stand one of the books I read for the Sealey Challenge! Usually I don’t have that strong a reaction, so I’ll have to think about why. I’m not keeping up every day, or even close, but it does have me reading.
Thanks for your rich post Denise–love the cactus ode poem Kat wrote, (I touched on cacti this week too…) and reading about all your Sealy books too!
Thank you for sharing Kat’s cactus poem. I especially love the advice for “when you’re feeling prickly” and the beautiful ending!
Nice collection of poetry, Denise. I envy all of you doing the Sealy Challenge. I attempted it last year but did not complete it and am relieved I did not commit to it this year with the events of the last month. (If I commit to something I do everything I can to keep the commitment.) Perhaps next year will yield a quieter summer.
I am anonymous above. Sorry – hit enter too quickly. Carol Labuzzetta