April 5: Birthright Claim your birthright: time.  Brutal, shaking truth is a refuge.  Truth clings to the hours  and minutes. In the lit cave  of too much and...

Poem 5: "Birthright" was written beside a poem by Ada Limon. Writing beside #mentortexts is so important, because you never know what might emerge when you do! #surprisedbywriting #AmWriting #NationalPoetryMonth #PoetryasPractice #WriteforYourLife

poetryaspractice.blogspot.com/2026/04/apri...

April 4: At Galway Lake I want  to remember kayak’s oar  lapping languid descent algae deep sweet shoulder ache  waist unlocked breathing respect awe pausing glim...

Poem 4, "At Galway Lake" captures a mindful moment in nature. #mindfulness #writingaswellnesspractice #AmWriting #PoetryasPractice #WriteforYourLife #NationalPoetryMonth

poetryaspractice.blogspot.com/2026/04/apri...

April 3: Ironing In 1987, before she headed back to work, Mom taught me to iron a button down shirt holding the scalding iron over damp cotton she commande...

Poem 3, "Ironing," is an homage to my mom. When I began to type it, it took the shape of an iron! Not in the initial notebook draft, but ❤️ how we can be #surprisedbywriting #writingjoy #AmWriting #PoetryasPractice #WriteforYourLife #NationalPoetryMonth

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April 2: Ultrasound, October 2005 All there,  the evidence a boy, a boy I couldn’t believe the appley head arms curled fighting Irish snapshot saved ultrasound a funny soun...

Poem 2 is "Ultrasound, October 2005," a snapshot of pure joy! #AmWriting #PoetryasPractice #WriteforYourLife poetryaspractice.blogspot.com/2026/04/apri...

April 1, 2026: Chiminea Before Saturday sunrise  before syrupy pancakes we sit outside  lighting, igniting  a silence, substance  of love: blazed brilliant  blade...

Poem 1 is "Chiminea," a poem about the simple practice of making time and space to be together. #AmWriting #PoetryasPractice #WriteforYourLife poetryaspractice.blogspot.com/2026/04/apri...

THREAD: It's April! Which means #NationalPoetryMonth. This year is less about volume & more about mining notebooks to write "micro" pieces. I’m prioritizing wellness and discovery over a polished product with short, sustainable daily poems. #AmWriting #PoetryasPractice #WriteforYourLife

Third and final #ThesisoftheWeek for December is inspired by Stuart Kestenbaum's poem "Prayer for the Dead." Use it if you'd like. Share it if you'd like! #PoetryasPractice #FormativeWriting #WritingtoLearn #celchat #nctechat #2ndaryELA #Poetry poetryaspractice.blogspot.com/2025/09/intr...

The second #ThesisoftheWeek for December is based on "Myth of the Vanishing Indian" by Rena Priest. Use it if you'd like, and share it if you'd like! #PoetryasPractice #FormativeAssessment #WritingPractice #2ndaryELA #celchat #nctechat #poetry poetryaspractice.blogspot.com/2025/09/intr...

December's first #ThesisoftheWeek is inspired by "Kindness" by Anya Silver. Use it if you'd like. Share it if you'd like! #PoetryasPractice #2ndaryELA #CELChat #edchat #formativeassessment #writingpractice #poetry #formativewriting #writingtolearn poetryaspractice.blogspot.com/2025/09/intr...

Last #ThesisoftheWeek for November is inspired by "It Matters," by Laura Foley, which pays homage to Mary Oliver. Use it if you'd like, and share it if you'd like! #PoetryasPractice #FormativeAssessment #2ndaryELA #WriteBesideThem #PracticeMakesProgress
poetryaspractice.blogspot.com/2025/09/intr...

The third #ThesisoftheWeek for November is inspired by Natalie Goldberg's poem "Home." Use it if you'd like. Share it if you'd like! #2ndaryELA #PoetryasPractice #WritingPractice
poetryaspractice.blogspot.com/2025/09/intr...

The first #ThesisoftheWeek for November is up on the #PoetryasPractice Blog. This week's poem is "Gate C22" by Ellen Bass. #writingpractice #formativeassessments #writetolearn #writetothink #createtolearn poetryaspractice.blogspot.com/2025/09/intr...

October's final #ThesisoftheWeek is up! This week's poem is "Dust" by Danusha Lameris. #PoetryasPractice #FormativeAssessment #WritingPractice docs.google.com/document/d/1...

We invite you to join Lorraine A Padden & David Levy for an inspiring workshop:
Through a Haiku Lens: The Ten Thousand Joys and Sorrows

📅 Wednesday, October 1st
🕛 12:00pm US Eastern Time
📍 Online

👉 Register here: buff.ly/WKtslls

#ZenPeacemakers #BearingWitness #Haiku #PoetryAsPractice #

We invite you to join Lorraine A Padden & David Levy for an inspiring workshop:
Through a Haiku Lens: The Ten Thousand Joys and Sorrows

📅 Wednesday, October 1st
🕛 12:00pm US Eastern Time
📍 Online

👉 Register here: buff.ly/WKtslls

#ZenPeacemakers #BearingWitness #Haiku #PoetryAsPractice

Poetry as Practice To challenge myself as a writer, I compose and write one poem a day every year during National Poetry Month.

I've made it to the end of #NationalPoetryMonth & met the goal of writing a poem each day in April. It meant making dedicated time VERY early in the AM to do this, but it was worth it! 🥳 🎉 #WriteBesideThem #PoetryasPractice #AmWriting #WriteForYourLife #edusky
poetryaspractice.blogspot.com/2025/04/

April 30: Folded When I arrived home on school days,  Mom was doing laundry. I’d peer down the cellar steps to greet her, I guess, and she’d call back. I w...

We have arrived at the final day of #NationalPoetryMonth here is poem 30, written beside “In Memoriam” by Leo Dangel. ✍ 📓 📜 📝 💻 💕 #WriteBesideThem #PoetryasPractice #AmWriting #WriteForYourLife poetryaspractice.blogspot.com/2025/04/apri...

April 29: Diagnosis Snow and ice were imminent,  so when he complained of pain,  named the discomfort in words,  and after failed phone calls,  we just went, ...

2nd to last day of #NationalPoetryMonth & I don't want it to end! Wait a sec... it doesn't have to! Today's poem memorializes a small something in my maternal memory to treasure in my heart #PoetryasPractice #WriteBesideThem #WriteforYourLife #AmWriting

poetryaspractice.blogspot.com/2025/04/apri...

April 28: A Ribbed Tank Top When my eighteen year-old son steps into the kitchen  in a tight ribbed tank top and reaches into the pantry  I think of my grandfather more...

Only three days remaining in #NationalPoetryMonth and here is my 28th poem of 2025, written beside “A Drink of Water” by Jeffrey Harrison. #PoetryasPractice #WriteBesideThem #WriteforYourLife #AmWriting poetryaspractice.blogspot.com/2025/04/apri...

April 27: She Taught Me To Sing She taught me to sing,  showed me first to breathe deep  from the toes,  to expand  capacity… So much  shame abiding, I never held  my voice...

April 27th! How is #NationalPoetryMonth almost over? Today's poem is dedicated to my voice teacher from Old Town School of Music in Chicago. She is still going strong all these years later! #PoetryasPractice #WriteBesideThem #WriteforYourLife #AmWriting poetryaspractice.blogspot.com/2025/04/apri...

April 26: On a Riverside Walk On a riverside walk, I spied a muddy slab  of ice, glistening wet, melting a bit for the sun,  wandered there on that path and made a wish  ...

Day 26 of #NationalPoetryMonth & this was written beside “Taking a Walk Before My Son’s 18th Birthday” by Mary Elder Jacobsen. Made edits to it just now. Poetry revision = agency. #PoetryasPractice #WriteBesideThem #WriteforYourLife #AmWriting

poetryaspractice.blogspot.com/2025/04/apri...

April 25: Slippers My father would, on Saturday mornings,  go purposely on errands in his slippers,  which covered his feet entirely, so  you’d be likely to mi...

Poem 25 of #NationalPoetryMonth was drafted beside Kooser's "Those Summer Evenings," but started w/ a quick write I did in 2021 in a summer writing group led by @heatherrocco.bsky.social #PoetryasPractice #WriteBesideThem #WriteforYourLife #AmWriting poetryaspractice.blogspot.com/2025/04/apri...

April 24: Soda Bread my mother would  in mid-March  when gray hinted  at fading take out  a ceramic bowl  measure flour sugar  salt and soda flat  in the measuri...

Day 24 of #NationalPoetryMonth and I’m rounding the home stretch! This one was written beside “Those Summer Evenings” by Ted Kooser. #PoetryasPractice #WriteBesideThem #WriteforYourLife #AmWriting
poetryaspractice.blogspot.com/2025/04/apri...

April 23: Lady She kept hopping the fence,  running off to Asha and Ramesh  five houses down the road. It’s true:  she loved them more.  They were a childl...

23 days of #NationalPoetryMonth! Today's poem is about one of the pets I had as a child. It's modeled after "Lily" by Ron Koertge. Short and bittersweet: poetryaspractice.blogspot.com/2025/04/day-... #PoetryasPractice #WriteBesideThem #WriteforYourLife #AmWriting

April 22: It Can Happen Like That It can happen like that  standing in a grocery line  noticing the book nested  next to the register  for the checker to read  between cust...

Day 22 of #NationalPoetryMonth & today's poem, "It Can Happen Like That" was written beside & gets its first line from “Everyday Grace” by Stella Nesanovich. Both open in the supermarket. #PoetryasPractice #WriteBesideThem #AmWriting #WriteforYourLife poetryaspractice.blogspot.com/2025/04/apri...

April 21: For What It's Worth Well, for what it’s worth, he said on the phone Happy Valentine’s Day. I wanted to say then but didn’t: It’s not worth much, and neither is ...

3 weeks into #NationalPoetryMonth & today's #PoetryasPractice is about my worst Valentine's Day 🤣 drafted beside "After You Get Up Early on Memorial Day" by Susanna Lang. Holiday memories can prompt poems! #AmWriting #WriteBesideThem #WriteforYourLife poetryaspractice.blogspot.com/2025/04/apri...

April 20: Stone Fruit I didn’t know they’d turn out so bad, those peaches ripening in a paper sack. Later that week I sliced one.  Halved, it gave not a drop, rel...

A full two thirds of the way through #NationalPoetryMonth! My poem for Day 20 is "Stone Fruit" and it also doubles as a cocktail recipe! 🍑🍹 #WriteBesideThem #PoetryasPractice #WriteforYourLife #AmWriting poetryaspractice.blogspot.com/2025/04/apri...

April 19: Revue His part is baritone, mine soprano.  our senior duet from that musical  set in a Scottish village hidden in time.  Spotlight strong, we cl...

Day 19 of #NationalPoetryMonth & today's poem evolved from a Golden Shovel poem in my notebook, using found words from "Empath" by Heather Swan. You never know where some words will lead! #WriteBesideThem #PoetryasPractice #WriteforYourLife #AmWriting poetryaspractice.blogspot.com/2025/04/apri...

April 18: Quesadillas At the kitchen island my son and I shred cheese, chop chicken. He showers it  with adobo, lime, chili powder.  At first, we’re silent, syn...

It's Day 18 of #NationalPoetryMonth and this poem was written beside Natasha Trethewey's "Gathering." When we renovated our kitchen 4 years ago, it created space for moments like this one. #PoetryasPractice #WriteBesideThem #WriteforYourLife #AmWriting poetryaspractice.blogspot.com/2025/04/apri...

April 17: Malaprop I didn’t know they were spring’s first harbingers, soft grey and spindly  on March’s flat backdrop. They grew near a stream running beside o...

🎶She was just 17 🎶 days into #NationalPoetryMonth & today's poem is anchored in one of those childhood memories that her family never lets her forget: a word she mispronounced as a kid 🤣 #WriteBesideThem #WriteforYourLife #AmWriting #PoetryasPractice poetryaspractice.blogspot.com/2025/04/apri...