Some ideas just evolve. For maybe 10 years I had a just right writing assignment for several grades before Spring BreaK I used it with fifth through eighth grade, and they and I were always pleased. It was designed to introduce free verse which took away the stress of rhyme. No moon, June, tune. It had parts that were work alone and chatty shared idea times. They could end up typing in the font of their choice (very important) and add a picture (maybe more important.)
In a nutshell, the title of the poem was I am a ……. Each child chose an animal, an object, a natural formation, a flower and listed all the ways that choice matched what they thought of themselves. Boys could be a bear, a lion, a waterfall and girls were a rosebud, a beach, a parakeet. By the time they finished the sequence of development, the way what we knew of them matched to their choice in a mannner breathtaking to both them and me.
Monday morning I got up thinking, “What do I need to be today to make everything work.” A plain ordinary female couldn’t bring it off. I started thinking maybe I needed to be a turtle carrying everything in my shell. That image didn’t quite go far enough. I had a 7:30 appointment to get my car serviced 2.5 miles from my house. I could get a ride back home, but then I needed to get back to pick it up. I had learned I could take a book and wait. That day I had two more tasks to be completed and delivered before noon. My only choice was to be a kangaroo with varied necessities in a tote bag that served as a pouch. I had letters to finish: paper, addresses, pens, and stamps. I had a meal to plan and a shopping list to organize: cookbook and a different paper. That early, I took the morning paper to read and toss. My phone, of course, for two calls after 9:00. The book was tucked in as last minute wrap up.
You have made a choice like that. For this day and this moment I need to call on special traits to meet this time. We already know the phrases that define our choice: strong as a rock, busy as a bee, feel like a fish out of water, or it is your turn to swim with the sharks. When the day settles, and the emergency is past, we can return to that match so perfect for each of us.
I’ve kept my feet on the ground,
I’ve cultivated a quiet heart.
Like a baby content in its mother’s arms,
my soul is a baby content. Psalm 131:2
Let Me Tell Ya 