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Things to Do If You’re a Crocus

Be brave
Be first
Burst out of the ground
Before anyone expects you
Catch the light
Stop people
Make them notice
Purple
Pretend its warm
Pretend you’re tall
Pretend spring is the only season
Bow out
Give the others a turn
Dissolve into tissue paper
Sleep

Come back

© 2012 Elizabeth Ehrenfest Steinglass, all rights reserved

At Wild Rose Reader (http://wildrosereader.blogspot.com/) Elaine Magliaro has a wonderful poem, “Things to Do If You Are a Grandfather Clock: An Original List Poem.” Before reading her poem, I had always thought of list poems as lists of items, like a list of groceries or a list of things in a pocket. Elaine’s poem expanded my horizons and inspired today’s poem.

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8 replies
  5. April Halprin Wayland
    April Halprin Wayland says:

    Liz…this is beautiful!

    And your poem for March Madness is a stunner!

    Playing with Words
    by Liz Steinglass

    I am a poet.
    Words are my game.
    I dribble them wildly
    Without any shame.

    I manipulate sound
    To score with the crowd.
    I finish each period
    Sweaty but proud.

    Wowee.

    In admiration,
    April Halprin Wayland
    from http://www.TeachingAuthors.com

  7. skanny17
    skanny17 says:

    Hi Liz,
    I love your poem from March Madness! I am just entering the poetry for children blogosphere with verve. So I am grateful to have found you on here. I am enjoying reading your poems and can’t wait to learn more. I was an elementary teacher for 40 years, retired last June and still volunteer at my school regularly. At the time I could have retired I “discovered” poetry in all its glory. Not that I hadn’t loved it before, but I figured out a way to make it the centerpiece of literacy and what a find. The children gobbled it. Poems became a part of daily life in my classroom. Now I am trying to share my approach, so have been speaking at conferences, but must get a blog going. My simple, not updated website is poetryonparade dot com. It gives a little look at what I have done. Have you checked out PACYA? I can tell I am going to enjoy your site. Have you found J Patrick Lewis’s Zeno form? I think you would like it. I think it was on a Poetry Friday or From Miss Rumphius blog. I still have to check out your profile!
    PS We have some kind of crocus weed that has invaded our lawn so we have them all over. While pretty, they really are a nuisance and almost impossible to get rid of. Sort of the wealth of riches problem.

    Janet

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