Happy Poetry Friday!
I’m happy to share with you my joy filled poetry swap package that I received from
Margaret Simon! Margaret sent me a collaged writing journal infused with summeryness!
Margaret’s poem borrowed words from a recent poem of mine that she found on my blog, and that she wrote “after Nikki Giovanni.”
CUTTING THE ALSTROEMERIA
© 2021 Margaret Simon
Cascading the garden…tinged with trepidation…
I breathe sweet sauce and eat scented air…
convolute the question…tangle like
a rope swing…willy-nilly whirling round…
giggling gallon of bubbles…capture starlight…
dizzy with dragonflies…dance with fairies
and place you in the window
to show the world
you make me crazy!
And here’s a responding poem for Margaret, with some words borrowed from her poem.
CASCADING THOUGHTS…
Willy-nilly whirling round
samony pinkness flew into town,
on humming bird wings
with dragonflies multi-eyes,
carrying nature’s invited lines
with poetry collage-covers sublime…
Crooker calls: write, write, write,
follow your instinct despite lost plight.
Fill those lines
with your heart
light or dark
morn or night
lose yourself
as you
write…
© 2021 Michelle Kogan
Thanks for your lovely poem and writing journal Margaret!
These poems made me think about water, and my city, Chicago’s big Lake Michigan which has recently been in the news in relation to Climate Crisis, and our surging and plummeting levels of the lake—Hope we can figure out a way to help this dilemma . You can catch a piece of the story here: nyti.ms/3xqLJ3Z My apologies in advance that all might not be able to view the entire story, but those who are subscribers to the NY Times will have access.
Sending out heartfelt thanks to Tabatha Yeatts who created and carries on our Summer Poem Swap! xo
Margaret Simon is also hosting this week’s Poetry Friday Roundup, thanks Margaret! Be sure to stop by her blog Reflections on the Teche she’s filling our poetic yearnings with a new poetry anthology, that she’s included in, Bridge the Distance, Teacher-Poets Writing to Bridge the Distance: An Oral History of COVID-19 in Poems,
and also an additional poem.
Michelle Kogan Illustration, Painting, & Writing 
ooooooooooh! I love your journal! So pretty and thought-provoking. And, what a great place for poetry and sketches, and collage and creativity of all sorts. That’s a nice swap. Lovely.
Oh, what a lovely response to my gift! I will print your poem and add it to my own notebook, a reminder that whatever we give comes back to us. Thanks!
Michelle, your new journal will hold poems of summering in Chicago. Margaret created a beautiful place for you to sketch and write. Your response to her creative poem makes a wonderful combination. What a great partnership. I hope your water problems lessen. We are frying in the heat here but at least today’s rain gave our plantings the necessary water to thrive.
What a beautiful gift – the journal, the poem and then your gift in return, in your response. And now, a gift for us readers. It’s a gif tthat keeps on giving.
Oh what joy. Love the poetry treasures on your blog – the gift and response. ‘And place you in the window’. 💝
Michelle, I read the NYT article yesterday about Chicago’s water woes. Thank you for sharing the beauty from Margaret — i love the word poetry as a leaf on that flower’s stem! So much beauty, and yes, SwapMama Tab gives so much to our community… as do YOU! xo
Wow, Michelle, I have been here awhile enjoying the richness of these poems and the shared loved of all the poets–Margaret, Nikki Giovanni, Barbara Crooker, and you. Just beautiful. I love the last stanza, and the rhymes that reminded me of Crooker’s ending. Enjoy the new journal and “Fill those lines…as you write…”
Thank you, Michelle, for such a beautiful post. Lovely in every way. I love the poems, both yours and Margaret’s, and your painting is gorgeous. Summer wishes to you…
You can just feel how much fun Margaret had crafting that for you, Michelle–both the covers and the the poem inside. Now it’s just to you to eat it alive! I think it’s sherbet-flavored, not salmon….Thanks for the link to the Lake Michigan story. I’ll be posting climate-related stuff next Friday.
What a wonderful gift from Margaret…and a wonderful response poem, too! I saw that Chicago lake/river article in the NYTimes and thought of you…
This post is a sensory delight! So many beautiful images in pictures, words, and music. Creativity popping off the page!
I think its amazing to be able to share the gift of writing and reading with others and use that collaborative energy to push yourself into new territories. Also thanks for the article well written shed a lot of light on issues. The zooming in graphic was really cool too. Thank you for sharing!
Charming swap and response! I also really like your “Thanks” fish painting, Michelle 🙂
What a beautiful summer swap, Michelle. Margaret was so thoughtful and creative, as you were in your response. Thanks, too, for the NYT link.