Christmas Paradise

Sitting on the beach,
lazing in the sun.
Children dash in the waves.
 Fun,      fun,      FUN!


   Can you believe it was 77 degrees in Kauai yesterday?  My friends are all sending me pictures of snow and talking about how cold it is.  They write about sweaters, snow shoes and sitting by the fire drinking hot chocolate.  I love those things, but I'd rather read about them than be in the cold.  I'd rather see pictures than live it.  After living on Kauai for a year, now when I put on a coat it seems to weigh my whole body down.
   I can remember visiting my sister in Australia one January.  All the children were on the beach having a water rodeo, with swimming and life saving competitions because it is summer south of the equator.
   What is the holiday season like in your part of the world?  What holiday traditions do you treasure?  Can you write a poem today about what Christmas means to you?  This might make a fun list poem.  Have fun writing.

COME

copyright 2015, Joy Acey

Seagulls call to me,
come to the shore,
come to the shore,
come to the shore.

And so I walk on the beach,
feel the sand sift through my toes
the sea salt in my hair.
I look for sea shells
and perfect, complete sand dollars.

I call to you,
come along,
come along,
come along, too.

   Do you like going to the beach?  What do you do?  What do you see?  Have you ever flown a kite on the beach?  For your poetry challenge today, can you write your own poem about the beach?  Have fun writing.

I enjoy being me in all kinds of weather.

Home on the Beach

On the beach waves break.
A sunset picture it makes.
Cool sand for a seat.
Foam rushes to seagull feet.
Salt sprays the air.
I want to rest there.
Palm trees on the cliff
sway to their own riff.
I do not want to roam.
The beach is my home.

BEACH DANCE

You may say I'm waltzing
to the music of the band.
I say I'm dashing to the shore
over hot beach sand.
OUCH! OUCH! OUCH!

   It is time for a beach poem.  Can you write about what you like about going to the beach, the shore, the lake, where ever you enjoy water sports? Have fun writing today.

Summer is a great time for children's poetry. 

PLAYING AT THE BEACH

Playing at the beach
with my sand pail
and a wooden boat
that floats with a sail.

Building a castle
all out of sand.
Leaving a hand print
of my little hand.

Watching the sand crabs
run out of reach.
Searching for seashells
all along the beach.

Do you like going to the beach?  What do you do while you are there?  Can you write a poem about that today? 

Come play with me.  Write children's poetry.

The Sandman

The sandman went out
on Halloween night.
The ghouls and ghosts
gave him a fright.
He dropped his bag
out of arms reach
and that's how we got
Miami Beach.

    You can fill in your favorite beach in the last line.  What makes a beach?  What can you do at the beach?  Would you like to write a beach poem today?  Have fun.

AT THE BEACH

Here at the beach,
I'm having fun,
playing my trumpet,
watching crabs run.

Waves crashing,
a gentle sea breeze,
monkeys screeching
from tall palm trees.

You're collecting seashells
in a sandy pail
you stop and listen
to my trumpet wail.


     I couldn't think of what to write today, so I opened a book--HOW TO VOID MAKING ART (or Anything Else You Enjoy) written by Julia Cameron with illustrations by her sister Elizabeth Cameron.  Jeremy P. Tarcher/Penguin, 2005.  The page I randomly opened to had this caption, "Under no circumstances make any art just for fun."  You can guess what the picture looked like from my poem.  What kind of art do you like doing?  Do you ever write poems just for fun?  That is your challenge for today--write a poem just for fun.  Enjoy the journey.

AT THE BEACH

Today I will
run on the beach.
I'll smile at each
runner I meet.
I'll count each smile
that comes back to me
when I am running
in the sand.

Today I'll listen
to sounds on the beach.
I'll hear the birds
and waves crashing.
I'll hear children
building a castle
in the sand.

Today I'll try to
smell the beach,
the scent of salt
mixed with suntan oil,
and sandy seaweed
while I'm at the beach.

Today I'll open my mouth
to taste the salt air
on my tongue
when I am at the beach.

Today, I'll feel
happy in the sunshine.
I'll try not to burn
while I'm having fun
running on the beach.


     Today's poem is a list poem.  Can you see how I've used each of the five senses to list what it is like through the senses when I'm at the beach?  Your challenge for today is to take something you like to do--dance, go to the movies, eat pizza, read a book--and write your own list poem using your own senses.  It is through our senses that we experience the world and so when you write using your five senses, the reader can experience your world with you.  Have fun writing today.

Walk Along the Beach

Walk along the beach,
feel sand between your toes,
watch a fiery sunset,
see the world turn to rose.

Smell plumeria scent
from a Hawaiian lei.
Learn to live aloha,
take the time to play.


    I'm obviously still thinking about leis.  I talked to some people in Minnesota that had snow this morning.  So I thought I'd send you some sunshine and flowers.  Enjoy today.

THE SAND

He discovered grains, definitely
an unlimited supply at the beach.

He brushed it from his feet
though it caught between toes
and around nails like a raspberry seed
between teeth, so he kept sanding.

Worried away Moro Bay, sunsets
birth, adolescence, graduation.

Kept trying to rid himself of the tiny
grains, an hourglass dropping time.
Unable to clear them all, he smoothed
the rough edges, like sandpaper.

     This is a free verse poem.  What images do you see in this poem?  today can you write your own poem that develops an image?  Have fun.

2013 DAYS OF MIRACLE AND WONDER

These are the days of miracle and wonder.  
  Paul Simon

New Year's Eve day
I'm sitting on the beach
watching the sun rise.

The chickens sing
their morning song.
Life is good.

I see a dragonfly
zip along.
Someone is plunking
a ukulele song.

Life doesn't get
any better than this.

A stunning rainbow
bright color and  energy
appears over the 
crisp salty waves. 

And I think
I am living
my best life.

What more
could I want
on this heavenly isle?

Then all in a flash
I see a whale breach
and I smile.

ALOHA.

      My thanks to the talented Sandy McMaster for this poem. She is the inspiration.  Sandy plays ukuele to accompany her husband Doug McMaster, slack key wizard,  who recently was declared one of Hawaii's island treasures.
     I hope your first day of 2013 is filled with miracles and wonder.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

    Your writing challenge for today is to write a short poem about the first thing you notice in 2013.

Missing You

I smell the fresh air

and flowers sweet--

primroses and snap dragons

line the street.

The colors are fresh

and super lovely.

They smell so sweet

and other worldly.

Sunshine and flowers

it doesn't get better than this.
You are the only

person I miss.

I wish you could walk

along the beach with me,

or we could sit

neath the tall pine trees.

     Happy Sunday.  Today is a great day for a walk outside.  Use all your senses and what do you see, feel, hear, smell and taste?  Can you use all of this information for a poem? 

At the Beach

Walking on the sand

what a good way

for the day

to begin--

watching the waves

rolling in.

This is the way

each day

should start

and end.