STUDENT POET OF THE DAY:ROBERTO RUBIO-OJEDA

Everyone knows about the Geico Gecko, but what about this Gecko? Seven year-old Roberto Rubio-Ojeda introduces his friend in the poem below. This piece shows us the fun of rhyming, something that children of all ages enjoy.

THE GECKO

A Gecko is sticky,

It can climb on a wall.

It can't stay forever.

Sooner or later it will fall.

A gecko's color is bright shiny green.

What if it was dark green?

Perhaps it would be mean!

A Gecko can't fly

Into the sky.

It if was sick and it was my pet,

I would take it to a vet.

A Gecko is big.

But not like a pig.

The Gecko is long,

But it's not very strong.

We can go on a walk,

But he can't really talk.

I will defend my friend

To the very end!

by Roberto Rubio-Ojeda

Roberto is the son of Roberto Rubio Torres and Monica Ojeda. He is in the second grade at Cartoogechaye Elementary School in Franklin, North Carolina.

STUDENT POET OF THE DAY: LOGAN WALKER

Rain and more rain! I bet the frogs are happy. First grader Logan Walker knows who likes frogs.

Read on!

FROGS

Oh Frogs!

How they jump into a pond.

Oh, how they splash!

They splash all over you!

I know you may not like them,

but I know somebody who does--

MY BROTHER!

Logan Walker, 1st grade (Homeschool)

Logan is the son of Davied and Kristie Walker of Webster, NC.

STUDENT POET OF THE DAY: KYLIE COX

(Cloud watching from an airplane window)

Kylie Cox, a 3rd grader at Blue Ridge School in Cashiers, NC, obviously likes watching clouds, as do I. I confess that I've never seen a cloud monkey, but that's likely because my imagination isn't as lively as Kylie's!

CLOUD MONKEY

High in the sky

so high, so high

I see a monkey

skate boarding in the sky.

I see the monkey

flipping, tripping,

turning, and limping

as the clouds pass

by.

---Kylie Cox

Blue Ridge School

STUDENT POET OF THE DAY: HANNAH MALOY

Here I sit drinking my morning coffee and reading Hannah Maloy's charming " Morning Coffee." Hannah is in the 6th grade at Macon Middle School.

MORNING COFFEE

To Ohio

past flat grounds.

I say,

"Mama, look at all those gardens."

To Aunt Soni's house

greeting them with

hugs and kisses.

Aunt Soni says,

"You've grown a mile."

Then to Meemee and PapaDon's

where in the morning,

PapaDon,

in his pj's,

drinks his coffee and

reads his newspaper.

He says, "Want some coffee, Sweetie?"

Hannah is the daughter of Holly and Mike Maloy of Franklin, NC.

STUDENT POET OF THE DAY: AMELIA OWENS

(Native American depiction of Mother Nature that hangs in my office.)

As a beautiful sunny day dawns in the mountains, 8th grader Amelia Owens reminds us of the the Earth that graces us with this beauty.

WHO AM I?

Who am I?

I have blown through your hair

And I have touched your cheek.

Who am I?

I have shone on your face

And my tears run down your skin.

Who am I?

I have been in a vase on your dining room table.

You can see me out the window.

Who am I?

I am in everything

And you can find me everywhere.

Who am I?

I have nurtured you

and supplied everything for animals and mankind.

I have been your mother ever since forever.

Who am I?

I am Mother Nature.

----------------

Amelia Owens

8th grade

Macon Middle School

STUDENT POET OF THE DAY: LINDSEY DODGE

Lindsey Dodge, a sixth grader at Macon Middle School in Franklin, has written a touching poem about the loss of her grandmother.

EVERYTHING

Everything is the same

Her clothes still hang in the closet

Pictures sit there gathering dust

There's still her place on their bed

Pawpaw doesn't disturb

by Lindsey Dodge

Lindsey's parents are Beth Simons and Paul Dodge of Franklin, North Carolina.

STUDENT POET OF THE DAY:LIA WALDRUM

(Blue Bottle in my kitchen window)

Lia Waldrum is a 5th grader at Cullowhee Valley School. The title of her poem asks, "What Is Blue?" She answers with a run of images that are a delight to read and visualize. Any of these lines could be the first line of a new poem, don't you think?

WHAT IS BLUE?

Blue is the sky on a winter evening.

Blue is a cut of sapphire sparkling on a ring.

Blue is slow and tired.

Blue is the ocean where the turtle glides.

Blue is the night, bright with glittery stars.

Blue is a mountain peeking up at the sky.

Blue is the little butterflies that flutter in the Spring.

Blue is a marker sliding silently on the board.

Blue is a leather belt.

Blue is a beautiful bead on an Indian vest.

Blue is a pair of jeans, cozy and worn.

Blue is a Spring nightgown.

Blue is a child's stuffed animal.

Blue is the wild wind whipping around the house.

Blue are the little curtains in the parlor.

Blue are the shutters on a window.

Blue is an icicle--drip, drip, dripping.

Blue is a tasty blueberry.

Blue is a humpback whale, yawning in the deep.

Blue is the sugar icing on a cake.

Blue is the wrapping on a birthday present.

Blue is paint on a wall.

Blue is a blank TV screen.

Blue is nail polish.

Blue is holding your breath too long.

Blue is a stained glass picture.

Blue are the lines on notebook paper.

Blue is a pioneer bonnet.

Blue is a carefully knitted scarf.

Blue is a sucker.

And blue is a parakeet.

by Lia Waldrum

5th Grade

Cullowhee Valley School

Lia's parents are Joe and Nelia Waldrum in Sylva, North Carolina.

A CONVERSATION: WILLIAM EVERETT

I'm trying a new feature on the blog today, one tentatively called Conversations, in which a writer's offering is posted for comments and responses. These need not be "critiques," as such, though I think most writers would welcome intelligent suggestions. Rather, this is to be a way for authors here in the mountains and elsewhere to engage each other in lively discussions of their work. The first feature is a poem by William Everett, novelist, essayist, scholar and poet. His website is www.williameverett.com. PLEASE LEAVE YOUR COMMENTS. LET'S SEE IF WE CAN GET A CONVERSATION GOING ACROSS THESE RIDGES!

She is ready,

purse packed,

hands pocketed in resolution,

standing by her charge.

Will she fly through puffball clouds,

piercing azure heavens like a needle?

Or will she cruise majestically across the land,

blowing tumbleweeds and sagebrush in her wake?

Perhaps the sea shall feel the power of her legs,

the undulations of her mermaid form.

For she is ready,

her glowing hair pinned sleekly back,

the keys clutched in her hand.

She is the girl with the ’55 Plymouth fins.

---William Everett

STUDENT POET OF THE DAY: ALEX DAVIS

Alex Davis's haiku-like poem has stayed in my mind ever since I first read it. I like the interplay between" tumbles" and "cushions".

THE WATERFALL

by Alex Davis

The water tumbles

Over the edge

The velvety moss

Cushions its fall.

Alex is a 6th grader at Macon County Middle School and is the son of Tina and Jason Bruce of Otto, North Carolina

STUDENT POET OF THE DAY: SARA JENKINS

Six grader Sara Jenkins has written a haunting poem about the ocean, not the sunny vista of Summer days but the depths and their secrets. Her ability to move this poem along in a compelling way impresses me. Sound effects (look at that second stanza...) work beautifully. Line breaks are good, as are the three-line stanzas, with the closing pared to two, clean and a bit scary. This piece reminds me of the Swedish poet Tomas Transtromer's "Deep Down."

THE OCEAN

by Sara Jenkins

The sound of waves

crashing down

bothers me.

Its depth I fear

and things that swim the waters

with arms and legs and daggers.

The shipmates

lost at war

haunt the waters.

The secrets

never revealed.

-------------

Sara lives in Franklin, NC. Her parents are Tanya and Shannon Jenkins. Like Abrianna Berry she attends Macon Middle School.

POET OF THE DAY: ABRIANNA BERRY

Last fall the Great Smoky Mountains Bookfair sponsored a Poetry Contest for K-12 students in Macon, Haywood, Jackson, and Swain Counties. The winners were posted on my NC Laureate blog in November. Going through the rest of the poems submitted, I was struck by how many were just plain good, worthy of being enjoyed by readers of this blog. For the next two weeks I will be featuring one of these young poets daily. Each one will receive a small "thank you" from me. Please stop by everyday to read their work.

This first poem is by Abrianna Berry, who lives in Franklin, NC, and is in the sixth grade at Macon Middle School.

Squirrel Hunting With My Dad

We went up the mountain where

My dad hunted when he was little.

It was cold the wind

Whipping up the holler, trees shaking.

Me and Daddy went to the top of the mountain.

We sat down and waited and had

A silent talk.

*******

by Abrianna Berry,

daughter of Mark and Stephanie Berry

Franklin, North Carolina

Someone teaching in the 6th grade at Macon Middle School is doing a wonderful job encouraging students to write from their most cherished experiences. This young poet presents a moving and thoroughly believable scene; the wind whipping up the holler uses sound to make us feel the effects of the cold and the climb to the top of the mountain. The "silent talk" shows a depth and maturity beyond a sixth grader's years. Abrianna is already a poet, and I hope she continues to read poetry and to write it.

MAGPIE TALES: LES FENETRES

Cinquains are fun: the syllables run in this order per 5 lines--2, 4, 6, 8, 2. I used to day-dream in classes about when I'd be able to wear my French looking open-toe sling backs after a long winter. I wish I owned a pair of shoes like the above from Magpie Tales.

LES FENETRES

Windows

I look out of

while I sit in English

Class wondering how long before

I can

wear sling

backs, how flirty

these windows look, filling

with green buds and snazzy birds blitz-

ing by!