Original poetry- Just in Time for Earth Day by Claire C.

After being inspired by the poetry from the first session with Ms. Williams, we then sought to create some of our own. When writing poetry about nature, there are a variety of directions you could go with your ideas. Some choose to create a stunning visual with romantic detailing of their encounters with nature by painting a picture of the scene in the reader’s mind. You could also choose to turn natural objects or their actions into symbols for more abstract ideas such as peace, happiness, change, etc. Possibly, you could bend words so that the beauty and grace of nature is used to advocate for conservation or heightened consciousness of our environment. There are many ways you could incorporate the elements into poetry, it’s just a matter of understanding the natural world and how it balances with the human language, as well as your own perception. Here are a few of our own poems:

Flow

By Larkin B.

The wind burns my face leaving the tops of my cheeks chafed.

Cloth covers my body allowing only two watery eyes to show;

gazing up, I see the trees sway back and forth greeting me.

The naked limbs of the tree allow the sun to creep through and touch my face,

warming me against the bitter cold.

The sound of water racing down the stream whispers in my ear,

trying to be louder than the screams of the wind.

Answering the call I shuffle to the creek,

the mud grabs my foot pulling it deeper and deeper into its murky depths.

Yanking my foot away I reach the water and place my feet into the chilly stream;

I glance to my left and see a beaver dam has succumbed to the untamable force of the water.

 I let the river hold me and the flow of the creek takes me away

Evergreen Trees

By Charlotte V.

Evergreen trees in the winter blue,

Give vibrant rays of color to the barren landscape.

They seem like summer balled up into bark, leaves, and branches.

They are bright, colorful, and inspire happiness even on the dreariest of days.

Their branches, they dance in the rain,

And grow in the mild sunlight,

Their needles perch lazily,

Bathing in the sun’s raw, pale light.
Their roots stretch far beneath the surface,

Twisting a tortuous path among themselves,

To get the water they desperately need into their veins.

Their trunks stand firm, even in the worst winter storms.

They are the glue that holds the branches, needles, and roots together.

These components are what make the tree whole,

They are what makes the tree give life to the death of winter.

While on my nature walk, I found a clump of evergreen trees. I was shocked by how much vibrancy they brought to the dark and barren forest. I began to think of each element of the tree and how it relates back to the tree as a whole, which led to the lines referring to each individual element, the branches, the needles, the roots, and the trunk. I used personification for each element because I think of a tree being more alive, than dormant plants.

Untitled

By Lauren K.

Flowers in her hair

Clouds in her mind

Water in her veins

Lava in her head

Us in her soul

Storms in her heart

She is our mother, Mother of the Earth