Poetry Notebook - April 2011: Frozen Snowflake

Frozen Snowflake

Description:
The poems I've selected all share the same theme of the hopelessness and loneliness of winter, but also the importance of family, portrayed through the Holiday Season. Some years it may feel like winter never ends and you can't wait to see the sunshine once again, but this season is all about sharing with your loved ones, your friends and family.

Synopsis:
Poems about the Holidays and winter season.

Theme:
Winter, the Holidays, and Family.

Poems:

Christmas Spirit by Paul Moosberg

Winter by Joanna Hamilton
Winter Nightfall by Robert Seymour Bridges
Winter by Courtney Beaudry

A Christmas Tree! A Christmas Tree! by David Keig
In Winter by Marchette Chute
Holiday Season by Mittur Ramprasad

Winter Rain by Georgina Rossetti
Christmas Cheers by Karon Yan

Traffic Light Green - Benjamin Moore 2032-20

Traffic Light Green – Benjamin Moore 2032-20

He looks through the taxi cab’s window,

Raindrops rolling

Down the glass.

The stoplight illuminates the rain

A red,

Light that prevents

progress.

Looking beyond the window’s surface,

He sees the same sight he had seen for so many years.

The buildings,

Lifeless,

Monotonous,

A dull grey color.

The rainy days,

Interminable storms,

Washing away hopes

Of a sunny day

A brighter future.

The stoplight,

Always on red,

Never giving in,

Never giving him the green light.

Every day,

Is a bleak winter day.

His hands rest in his coats pockets,

Taking deep breaths

and watching the vapor assimilate in the air.

House on Mango Street: Book Review

House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros

Publisher: Arte Publico Press
Genre: Coming-of-age

Where I got it: It was a recommended to me by Mrs. Meadows and my classmates.
One sentence summary: Esperanza talks about one of her homes, the house in Mango Street, and shares vignettes the show her coming-of-age and hopes of a better home.
First sentence: We didn't always live on Mango Street.
First chapter review: The first chapter introduces Esperanza's meaning and importance of home and how she desires a real home for her family to be proud of.
Verdict: I enjoyed reading this novel, although it doesn't rank up there with my favorite books.
Cover comments: The cover shows three women, one of them shinning light above the one on the front.

Lord of The Flies

He saw something

big and horrid

moving in the trees.

The Beastie.

There is no Beastie...

Fear cant hurt you more than a dream.
The snake,

The fire,
The frightening Beast.

There is no Beastie...

He says the Beastie comes from the sea
the unknown indigo of infinite possibilities.

There is no Beastie...

It feels like
things don't make sense
not here,
in this island.

Where I'm From

I am from flour.

From bread and butter.

From the tree with a swing in the yard,

From the small red palm tree that refuses to grow.

I’m from my uncle’s lake house,

From my grandmothers apartment,

The only places where my family reunites.

I am from the jokesters and the pranksters,

From Juan Carlos, and Jorge, and Eduardo.

I am from my dad’s side of the family,

From long dinner tables at family trips,

From passing the salt all the way down,

And then back up.

I am from going to church on Christmas Eve,

And not returning until the following year.

From Medellin and Bogota,

From Ajiaco and Bandeja Paisa.

From moving away from our home

Into a different house.

I am from the shelves of photo albums,

Filled with colorful memories,

Waiting to be looked at and remembered.

I am from those moments.

A tree that continues to grow,

Despite not being watered often.

Terrible Catastrophe

Copious Amounts of Japanese citizens have been killed by the sequence of natural disasters. On March 11, 2011, a 9.0 magnitude earthquake rocked the island country. This tremor preceded a tsunami, also in Japan, that affected the northeastern portion of the nation.
At 2:46 local time the three-minute quake began. Tsunami warnings where sent out immediately to the entire Pacific coast of the Americas, and Japan. The inevitable happened and not even an hour later the ten-meter high tsunami washed away the city.
As if it weren’t bad enough, the quakes produced malfunctions in nuclear power plants that are bound to meltdown and release lethal radiation. Adept, fastidious scientists have been working together in order to figure out how to safely contain the radiation and eventually shut down the plant in order to repair it.
Relief efforts have already been put into action by over 70 countries around the globe, deploying crucial equipment, temporary homes, clean water, clinics, and blankets, in order to facilitate the people of Japan after the fitful event.
The entire world as been moved by this incredible catastrophe, and people feel pang of sorrow for the thousands of affected citizens.

When You Are Engulfed in Flames - Book Review

Book: When You Are Engulfed in Flames

Author: David Sedaris

David Sedaris's memoir, When You are Engulfed in Flames, is a comical piece that will keep you laughing every chapter. However, if you just focus on the thin, comedic meaning you will miss most of the book.

David Sedaris is a forty-year-old man that tells about his childhood, and his young adult life in a collection of short essays arranged in a non-chronological order. David lives in France with his longtime partner, Hugh.

The title of this book is derived from a chapter where David begins his efforts to quit smoking. He takes a trip to Japan and is amused by the broken english around the hotel room. One example is on a fire safety sign that says:

"When you check in the hotel room. When you find fire. When you are engulfed in flames"

The significance of the title is that sometimes there is nothing you can do about something. When you are engulfed in flames there almost nothing you can do. This could shift the focus into prevention, for him it was quitting smoking.

Numerous chapters have David speaking about death, whether it was to someone really close to him – his mother – or a complete stranger. David realizes that everyone dies sooner or later and that no one escapes it. He learns to acknowledge his mortality and accept it.

Lines I loved:

"Ive often hear cigarettes compared to friends. They can't loan you money, but they are, in a sense, there for you, these mute little comfort merchants always ready to lift your spirits. It's how I now feel about macadamia nuts, and these strange little crackers I've been buying lately."

"I was awoken at dawn by my uncle's hacking, which was mucky and painful-sounding and suggested imminent death."