A Poet Among Us

Jan emailed me today to let me know that she published a few of Cassie's poems on her blog for National Poetry Month. I was so excited and couldn't wait to tell Cassie. I felt like my daughter won the Pulitzer Prize!! Crazy, isn't it? Needless to say, Cassie was very excited and when writing a comment on Jan's post, she wrote another poem...just like that. I wish I had that talent!! Here is the post.

Thanks Jan...you made her day...and mine too!!!

Back to School

School has started!!! We have been in full swing for the past 2 weeks now. Where did summer go? My alarm is set for "school time", I am making lunches, and we have started Homework Hell. What? You don't know what Homework Hell is? You have not lived until you have experienced Homework Hell....the tears, the anguish, the drama, the emotions, the threats, the insanity of it all. Why can't children just get their damn homework done and get over it? Why can't they realize that they will have play time after it is done and that the longer they whine and cry the less play time they get?? Ahh...School has started!!

Don't let that smiling face fool you...he is the king of Homework Hell!! But, in his defense, today he was awesome. All homework was done without any tears, whining, or threats. It was true Homework Heaven. It was so good that he was given back his beloved Pokeman cards that were taken away yesterday in Homework Hell. This little monster (whom I love dearly) is now in the 3rd grade. He has just signed up for the basketball team and is very excited about that. He also had his first cub scout meeting tonight and both him and his father (his den leader) are looking forward to a great scouting year.

This precious angel had her 9th and final "first day of school" at her current school. She is in 8th grade and will graduate this year. She has been attending this school since kindergarten....time flies!!! She just signed up for the volleyball team, is still doing karate (hoping to test for her next belt soon) and we had our first girl scout meeting last week. We are also looking forward to a great scouting year (I am her leader). The best part about her is that she is slowly weaning herself away from Homework Hell!!! We still have some setbacks but it is getting much better!! The end is in sight!!

Life is busy over here right now...but it is also good!!! You get an added bonus today...another poem from my budding 13 year old poet.....

My Parents

My parents are awesome.

They love me all the time.

They are so cool,

And tell me not to whine.

They help me with my homework.

They say I'm oh so smart.

They tuck me in at night,

And don't kill me with a dart.

They say not to be a bad person

They get mad at me when I lie.

I try to make it better

So I make them a pie.

They keep me safe from harm.

They always say they love me.

They tell me to do my best.

They are as nice as can be.

They always want a hug

I pay them back

With lots of

Love.

Written by Cassie

Ok...I have no idea about the dart thing....and a disclaimer....she picks the poems for me to publish, I don't pick them....but you must admit, this one has a good ring to it!!!

Poetry

Just for you, two more poems written by Cassie:

Prayer of the Duck

I live in a pond.

Where children swim

as I pray for

love from my family and friends

and to live to the end of the world.

Prayer of the Horse

I gallop in fields

where we rest all day,

I pray for protection

from mountain lions

while dandelions blow in the wind.

I promise to tell about our incredible weekend at the beach soon. I have more pictures and videos to share. I am still visiting Fun Monday posts....they are wonderful this week so it is taking me awhile.

Have a wonderful day!!

Milestones

Today was a milestone in my daughter's life. Her godmother picked her up for a little female bonding time. She took her to her house and showed her how to care for her skin and how to apply makeup. She had all the necessary supplies. Her and I have been friends since we were 10 years old and I remember her using Oil of Olay when we were kids....I had to laugh when I saw Cassie pull Oil of Olay out of her bag!!


Cassie had a wonderful time. She was gone for about an hour or so. She left our house a 13 year old and came home a 16 year old in a 13 year old body.

She walked in the house carrying herself differently. Her shoulders were back, a spring was in her step. She was gorgeous and her eyes were sparkling. She looked older, and acted older.

We had a glimpse into the future tonight. Her father was speechless when he first saw her. I don't think he is quite ready for this yet. We told her she was beautiful, and she is. With or without makeup, she is beautiful from the inside to the outside.


"It takes a village to raise a child". This has always been one of my favorite quotes, it is so true. I feel very blessed to have a village help us raise our children. Cassie is a very fortunate girl and we are very fortunate parents. I don't think Cass will forget this day, I am sure I won't.


Thanks Nina....


I will leave you with another poem of Cassie's


I Love To Sing

I love to sing,
It makes my heart ring.
Like the bells in a church,
Like a bird on a perch.
Any type of song,
I can sing all day long.
I love to sing,
It makes my heart ring.

Healing Words

In my previous post I shared a poem that my daughter wrote. I was unaware that she had a penchant for writing, or that she was so talented. Apparently she has been writing for about a year and just recently shared her poetry with me, and I immediately encouraged her to share them with her father. We were both very impressed. Realistically, I should not have been surprised. She is a very passionate child and she is very intuitive. She has always been able to share her feelings and emotions and she is very aware of her environment. I have always encouraged her to write, especially when she was knee deep in her pre-teen angst.


"Writing will release your emotions", I have told her. "It is very cleansing, you will feel better."


Apparently she was actually listening to me! Whenever she was overcome with emotion and couldn't speak coherently I would hug her and say "write, get it out". She did, unbeknownst to me. She showed me an anthology of poems she has written over the past year, she gave me a reading last month of all her poems. I sat there in awe at her raw talent, her raw emotions in black in white. I cried...and I couldn't help but wonder at her level of maturity. When I was her age I was incapable of this level of intuitiveness. She is only 13, but her soul is so much older.


Some of her poems are fun and light....some are heart wrenching. This past year was a very difficult year for her. She struggled immensely at school socially. She attends a small private school and she is just not like most of the girls in her class. She is not driven by popularity, she is not obsessed with fashion and clothes, she is not passionate about fitting into the mold. She speaks her mind, she is passionate about the environment, she is service minded and loves to help people, she is kind and accepting and has an open mind. I love the way she is, I would not want her to be any other way. I understand how the "system" works with girls though..and my heart broke last year seeing her in so much pain. I wanted her to fit in, but then again I didn't. I wanted her to be accepted, but I didn't want her to devalue herself. It hurt, she hurt....but somewhere along the way a change began.


Cassie began to hold her head up again. Her confidence level grew. Her self esteem was elevated a few notches. Her teachers noticed a change and commented to me the positive changes they saw in the classroom. What precipitated this change? I was not sure at the time - could it be karate? could it be our long talks? our encouragement to her to be true to herself? our desire and suggestion to pull out of the school and home school her 8th grade year? her decision to stay for 8th grade? I didn't know, but I suspected it was a combination of all the above reasons.


I have a different opinion now. While I do think all the above reasons played a pertinent role in her metamorphosis, I now know another reason that I feel played a major role in her change. Her writing. Her poetry. Her feelings and emotions flowing onto the page, flowing out of her soul, her heart becoming music and magic on a blank canvas. The words she could not find, could not orate....the words she found through her fingers, through her pen. Healing words.


Me
Cassie
Kind,
Loving,
Fun,
Wishes to swim with dolphins,
Dreams of becoming a marine mammal biologist,
Wants to make a difference in the world.
Who wonders what it is like in space.
Who fears death.
Who is afraid of war.
Who likes to have a great time.
Who believes in heaven and hell.
Who loves pizza and ice cream.
Who loves karate.
Who loves her family.
Who loves to help people in need.

reprinted with permission from author


I hope she continues to write...she has some tumultuous years ahead of her.

This and That....plus a Bonus at the End

I found more surprises in my mailbox this past week.....I love getting mail that isn't a bill, or junk....getting presents from blogging friends is the best!!!


The first one is from my friend Jan. She is a book lover, like me, and she is very generous. Last month she gave away a number of books and I was fortunate to win one. Here it is.....



Here is the inside flap...the book sounds very interesting and I can't wait to start it. Since I am relaxing now I plan on doing a lot of reading. Thanks Jan...you are so kind and generous!!

The second present came from Swampy, I think she dropped it off when she flew over on her broom. I opened the package and was so excited to see that it was a pair of shoes!!! I love shoes. I couldn't wait to try them on but when I tried to open the box I noticed that it was completely taped shut...odd....most shoe boxes are not taped shut. I ripped through the tape and opened the box and found....

...a note from Swampy. Hmm..what is she talking about...bumper sticker? t-shirt? towel? where are the shoes? Maybe they are under all this other stuff?

Here is the bumper sticker. I started to go outside to put it on my neighbor's car, just like Swampy said to do, but Cassie stopped me. Apparently she thought it was a bad idea, whose kid is she anyway? She decided it would make a good bookmark. It now resides in her current read.

Here is the towel. She said to mop my floors with it....Mop? who has time to mop? Where are the shoes??? still looking...

Here is the t-shirt I will wear with pride. I need to learn to stop opening these gifts in front of my daughter. Guess who appropriated the t-shirt? You guessed correctly.....my dear daughter, of course. I hope she wears it with pride. I think Baron is giving me a look of sympathy. I still haven't found any shoes....

Wait! The box is empty.....Swampy, you forgot to send the shoes!!

Thanks Swampy....I love my gift from your garage....even if you forgot the shoes.

Since my darling daughter stole my bumper sticker that I was going to put on my neighbor's car and the t-shirt I was going to wear with pride, I thought it was only fitting that she give something back. Here is a poem she wrote. She is becoming quite the budding poet and songwriter.

The Wind

The wind blows through as a sign of life.

The wind blows through my hair.

The wind blows through the field as it makes flowers sway from side to side.

I smile when the wind blows because I know

That when the wind is blowing

It is blowing through my soul.

And when it is in my soul,

I know that is where my soul will be

When I expire.

by Cassie