I got to participate in three poetry swaps this summer. It was a unique and lovely experience. My last swap was with Mary Lee Hahn. She has been embroidering this year, and I had the pleasure of receiving an embroidered gift made especially for me.
I’m using the bookmark she made in my Dictionary for a Better World, which I’m reading each day. So I also read the haiku each day:
Inspired by my blog posts, she wrote:
after the monsoon
hearts and flowers bloom again
a window opens
This morning I was sitting on my back porch, and I noticed a bloom on a plant that had been all but dead:

And the window she is referring to is my new favorite feature of my house–this window recently opened between my kitchen and living room.
For Mary Lee, I wrote a cento poem based on Mary Lee’s April 2022 poetry collection. If you haven’t already read them, you are missing out.
Doing the Work
They give life, rather than taking it.
Our work done best, is done en masse.
This spring we’re planting, saying please
We’re Cheering for you! Be Courageous!
A cento poem
From Mary Lee Hahn’s April 2022 “Hope in a Time of Climate Crisis” poetry collection
Poem titles from lines 1-9
- The Thing Is
- The Truth
- What If
- A Small Patch
- A Small Patch
- What I Know About Farming
- Dandelions
- Daily Alchemy
- Dear Generation C
Mary Lee wrote a post today, as well, about my poem swap with her. You can read it here. Kat Apel is hosting Poetry Friday today. Be sure to visit and see what is happening Down Under with her two most recent book releases.