Happy Poetry Friday!
Heidi Mordhorst, poet, teacher, and activist extraordinaire is hosting this weeks Poetry Friday roundup at her blog my juicy little universe, thanks for hosting Heidi! Be sure to stop by for lots more poetry…
This week we in the Poetry Friday community were given a prompt by the Poetry Princesses, Poetry Sisters. The prompt was to write on Hindsight or Foresight. Thank you to all the Poetry Sister’s, Laura Purdie Salas, Tanita S. Davis, Liz Garton Scanlon, Tricia Stohr-Hunt, Kelly Ramsdell, Andi Sibley, and Sara Lewis Holmes for inviting us to write! If you’ve written to this prompt you can tag your poems #poetrypals.
U.S. HINDSIGHT
With hindsight we are where
we are today…
With hindsight we have failed
to quiet covid-19
With hindsight we have failed
to require wearing face masks
With hindsight we have failed
to extend stimulus covid-19 funds
With hindsight we have failed
to provide health care for all
With hindsight we have failed
to put education first
With hindsight we have failed
to help save our planet
set hindsight aside and
quiet covid-19
require wearing face masks
extend stimulus covid-19 funds
provide health care for all
put education first
help save our planet and
begin change now!
© 2020 Michelle Kogan
In just shy of two weeks on September 14th my Fall Online Art Classes begin via the Evanston Art Center. You can find all my classes with detailed descriptions and registration info at the Evanston Art Center.
I’m offering the following 6 week classes the first session starting the week of September 14th and the second session starting the week of October 26th:
Online Adult Classes
Figure and Nature Drawing and Painting
Monday 9:30 am – 12:30 pm Six-week Online Class
Begins Monday, September 14, 2020
Watercolors: Materials, Compositions, & Technique
Tuesday 9:30 am – 12:30 pm Six-week Online
Begins Tuesday, September 15, 2020
Children’s Picture Book illustration: New & Continuing Students Ages 16+
Wednesday 9:30 am – 12:30 pm Six-week Online class beginning
Begins Wednesday, September 16, 2020
Pen & Ink & Watercolor
Friday 9:30 am – 12:30 pm Six-week class
Begins, Friday, September 18, 2020
Watercolors for All Levels
Saturday 10 am – 1 pm Six-week class
Begins Saturday, September 19, 2020
Figure and Nature Drawing and Painting
Monday 9:30 am – 12:30 pm Six-week class
Begins Monday, October 26, 2020 (No class November 23)
Watercolors: Materials, Compositions, & Technique
Tuesday 9:30 am – 12:30 pm Six-week class
Begins Tuesday, October 27 (No class November 24)
Children’s Picture Book illustration: New & Continuing Students
Wednesday 9:30 am – 12:30 pm Six-week class
Begins Wednesday, October 28, 2020 (No class November 25)
Pen & Ink & Watercolor
Friday 9:30 am – 12:30 pm Six-week class
Begins Friday, October 30, 2020 (No class November 27)
Watercolors for All Levels
Saturday 10 am – 1 pm Six-week class
Begins Saturday, October 31, 2020 (No class November 28)
Sending hopeful thoughts to all those in harms way of Hurricane Laura, be well, be safe!
Visit Renée LaTulippe’s site No Water River to find out more about what Poetry Friday is.November 24)
Michelle Kogan Illustration, Painting, & Writing 
Beautiful art, Michelle & wow, you have been busy prepping for your classes. What a lot of choices you’ve given! Hindsight, I have read, is always 20/20, but sadly the powers that be are not even looking back except with their damning rose-colored glasses. Wishing it was different and love your call for action ending. Have a lovely weekend!
It is so exciting seeing all the classes you are offering, Michelle. Your take on the hindsight poem is a call for action. Thanks for sharing the poetic goodness and beautiful drawing for this week’s feast of sights.
Wow, what a great hummingbird!
Hindsight is certainly not 2020 this time, but here’s hoping we can all learn from this…
Holy wow, you are a busy woman! That is quite the smorgasbord of art courses you are offering, Michelle. I love both the drawings you featured this week. And your use of, then removal of ‘hindsight’ is extremely effective in your poem. 🙂
What a gorgeous painting to bring us into this sobering post…the things we know in hindsight. Yikes. It’s all true. Every day, it gets harder to change the mountain of failure we are going to have to tackle. But, I know we can. Your use of repetition is very effective in your poem. I really do love how you combine your sketching and painting with poetry.
I do love your twist in the tail with this, Michelle, taking the overwhelming and turning it into hope. Mistakes are inevitable the world over, dealing with this crazy thing – but the thing with mistakes is that we need to learn from them! Wow. You are going to be super-busy with all your online classes. I hope it is rewarding for you!
PS I especially love your watercolour art – and seeing it in progress. Thank-you for sharing like this. 🙂
If hindsight were 20/20…Your flowers are amazing. I like the incompleteness of it, how there are flowers that fade from view. I’ve made it through Laura safely. We had minimal tree damage and only 12 hours without power. Others to the west of us were not so lucky.
I’m so glad you are all okay, I’ve been thinking about you and Robyn too—I don’t know if Laura hit her area. I’m afraid we are in for more destructive weather due to climate change. Thanks for stopping by, be well and safe, xo.
I do so love your art! And your poem…yes. We need to stop with the hindsight and kick visionary thinking into high gear!
Excellent idea Mary Lee, there’s probably a group with that name, Visionary Thinkers, or close to it, thanks!
I agree, holy wow! That’s a lot of classes, but I see that you use that time with students to make your own 20/20 artwork! I am really ready to order some Happy Journey cards. Thanks for posting so faithfully, Michelle.
I agree we have to get to work! Your poem is a call to action. So many disagree on the facts that direct what we need in the future yet the future is here every new day. Good luck with your art classes. I’m a fan, Michelle. I love your artwork!
Michelle, I love how the changing rhythm and line length in that last stanza emphasizes the simplicity (not ease, but simplicity) of what we need to do.
Thanks for sharing this powerful poem. It certainly points out our country’s lack of foresight! And thanks for sharing your wonderful artwork, too. Good luck with your fall classes.