Thursday, June 23, 2011

The Ebb and Flow of Good-bye and Hello!


Good-bye!
    I break the tie
       It's time to fly
          Who am I?
I was a kid
I ran
I fell
I got up
I danced
I went to school
I baked purple muffins
I pretended my bike was a horse
I learned anything that caught my fancy
I realized that people were watching me pretend
I loved the ocean and collected rocks and shells
I taught my dog to jump through a hula hoop
I was a singer of folk songs and hymns
I learned the names of butterflies
I was a dancer en pointe
I was a guitar player 
I was a gymnast
I grew up
I married
I was a college student
I was a mobile home dweller
I was on a farm far away from my ocean
I was a writer of stories and poems
I was a rider of Arabian horses
I was a terrible piano player
I was a gardener
I was an artist
I became a mother
I hid presents
I was a bread baker
I watched soccer games
I tucked little ones in bed
I made Christmas tree cookies
I made animal shaped pancakes 
I read The Tawny Scrawny Lion 200 times
I ran behind weaving two-wheel bikes
I applied ice and bandages
I sewed dance costumes
I cried at graduations
I was a teacher
I assessed
I tied shoes
I zipped coats
I talked to parents
I gave presentations
I saw fingers in noses
I cooked with 21 helpers
I read "Miss Rumphius" 22 times
I sang "I Love Mud" with enthusiasm
I wrote with colored markers and crayons
I cut snowflakes and hearts
I found lost snowpants
I read soggy notes
I wiped noses
I assessed
I retired
I will sew
I will write
I will draw
I will drink tea
I will bake bread
I will photograph beauty
I will make jewelry I like
I will be a happy grandmother
I will be a singer of soft lullabies
I will read "Miss Rumphius" again
I am still the someone I used to know
    But I will learn and grow
        In this new flow
Hello!

4 comments:

  1. Hi Donna, I haven't 'seen' you for a while; so glad you're back & with your wonderful & thought-filled words! I've been on vacation with my husband & grandson, & just started catching up with reading everyone's postings, etc., & there you were. Congratulations on your retirement. You seemed to have captured it very well in this poem, especially that 'who am I?' statement at the beginning. Now time to re-invent, right? Best of wishes.

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  2. It was sooo busy in the last month of school here...just got out the 16th of June...I couldn't spare a moment for writing anything but report cards, and DRA scores! Then the packing and tossing began. I'm all done now and hope to start writing again. Now to go back and catch up on my reading, too!

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  3. Congratulations on your retirement. I love your list of all you will do now. I hope you keep adding!

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  4. Your list poem is beautiful. I like the idea, the shape, and the flow of the poem. I wonder how much you played with the words before the poem was right for you. You approach the new beginning with such a great spirit. I hope that you will enjoy your retirement.
    Terje

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