More Mistakes

Making mistakes and learning from them is an important part of life. Last week, I shared the beautiful new picture book anthology The Mistakes That Made Us: Confessions from Twenty Poets.  This week I want to share another anthology on the topic of mistakes.  Imperfect Poems About Mistakes: An Anthology for Middle Schoolers edited by Tabatha Yeatts.  I think they make excellent companion books and should be in every classroom library. 

Today's poem, which appeared in the IMPERFECT, was inspired by something I observed all too often when I was teaching middle school. Students liked working with their friends and sometimes were not happy when I chose a partner for them. Some students, like the speaker in the poem, made their feelings known. I'm hopeful some of them later regretted how they made the other person feel and learned from their mistake.

©Linda Kulp Trout

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Thank you to Denise for hosting today on her blog Dare to Care.

I hope you have a great week!

 

The Mistakes That Made Us

It is so important for young people to see that they are not alone in making mistakes. A couple of years ago, I wrote a poem about one of my childhood mistakes. It's included in my book Write With Me along with a short passage about how we can eventually look back on our mistakes and see them in a new light. Because I'm always revising my poems, this version is slightly different from the one in my book. 

The Swimming Pool

My friend invited me to cool off

in her brand-new swimming pool.

I was eight.

I was scared. 

I didn't know how to swim.

I knew I should say no.

But it was August-hot,

so I said yes.

Shoulder-deep in water

we tossed a beach ball,

laughing, splashing,

letting go of my fear

until--

I slipped and went under

swallowing a mouthful

of throat burning,

stomach churning

chlorinated water.

I stood up,

threw up

right there in the middle

of that brand-new pool.

My friend scrambled

out of the water

face full of fire

screaming,

You ruined summer!

She stomped away

leaving me standing

alone.

Wrapped in my towel

and shame,

I plodded home

knowing

I'd never be invited again. 

© Linda Kulp Trout

Have you seen this wonderful new anthology about mistakes? The poems in THE MISTAKES THAT MADE US: Confessions from Twenty Poets selected by the talented team of  Irene Latham and Charles Waters make great conversation starters. Readers will be able to identify with the situations and emotions the poets describe. The poems make excellent mentor texts. Every classroom library needs a copy!

A big thank you to my friend, the incredibly talented Laura Purdie Salas for hosting today. 

Thank you for stopping by. I hope you have a wonderful week full of love and magic!

I haven't posted in a long while, but every Friday I enjoy all of the offerings. I've been wanting to jump back in, but my mind has been filled with distractions. Each week, I intend to join in then talk myself out of it because I don't think I have anything worth sharing. Weeks and months fly by. The longer I'm away from something, the harder it is for me to start up again. But, lately I've been feeling like I need to do something to bring more light and kindness into the world. The Poetry Friday community does exactly that.  It is a group of wonderful people who are always kind and supportive. A place where everyone is welcome. So here I am posting two poems on Thursday evening before I change my mind. 

The past couple of weeks we've had what forecasters call "a parade of storms" with snow and ice. The snow outside my window covering the ground and trees is so beautiful. I haven't seen many birds lately, but several winters ago I saw a little bird in my yard. Although I'm not sure if what kind of bird it was, my imagination led me to write this poem. 

This next poem comes from my book Write With Me, a poetry journal for middle grade and young adults. Each poem in the collection is accompanied by a short vignette about the topic and an invitation for young people to write about their own experiences. This poem is about my first crush in seventh grade. 

My crush on the boy in the poem lasted the entire school year. My friend encouraged me to tell him, but I was much too shy. He never said anything, but I wonder if he knew. He'd always smile when we passed in the hallway, and of course my heart would melt. I was sure he was my one and only true love until that day in eighth grade when I moved on to a new crush. 

A big thank you to Linda for hosting today's Poetry Friday on her blog TeacherDance. 

I hope your Valentine's Day is filled with love and happiness!