~Gathering Words~
Shanyn's Personal Challenge Poem


Hi there real toads!! It's me Hannah, I was here two weeks ago with my Personal Challenge and I have chosen someone very near and dear to us to play in the poetical pond next. I've really been drawn to her style and the strong elements of faith and nature in her writing, it is our fellow toad, Shanyn of Sunflower Poetry!

My Challenge to Shayn is this:

There's so MANY words in our worlds today and sometimes finding the right ones to amuse the muse can be tricky. Here's an idea I thought of while I was at the grocery store the other day: We all have our daily routines and our day often will bring us into the public realm of people-hood and our lives are touched by strangers in passing. My challenge to you, Shanyn, is to go out into your world today with your wooden-lidded picnic basket and gather words from strangers in passing for fodder for this poem you'll write.


Her response is so authentic and such a beautiful glimpse into a day with Shanyn!! This is what she said of the challenge, "It was a day of a million questions with my little guy and all our farm work. There were lots of words in the air!"  I love that, I can just hear his little voice asking away!! 

Here it is! 

J

Gathering Words

My basket is lined with sticky tape.

My hands grip a handle slick with sweat.

Gathering words is dangerous, you know.

Some are poisonous, some are full of thorns.

Some are disguised as one and mean another.

Some are sweetly singing, lingering in my ears.

I’ve gathered as many Mama’s and Love You’s

As I have welcomed gifts from little boy hands.

I’ve gathered Smokin’ Hot Wife and Love You Dear’s.

Gathered in the instructions for the pump and tools.

Gathered words for recipes and for making do for now.

Gathered the words for praising and praying in the Word.

My basket caught words of worry and of fear today.

They found themselves empty in searching for the name

Of a lost dog who is making our yard and family his own.

My basket overflowed with leaf colors and shades of sunset.

We gathered words for Wii games and names for new kittens.

Gathered words for herbs and crops, hopes for the harvest.

Gathered and left silent the ‘grown up words’ by spelling them.

Words, to a poet, are fruit from wild and crazy trees!

It is getting onto night.  The basket is still full.

I need to empty it now.

Prayers to be said.

Hearts to be filled.

Good night.

Good night.

All rights reserved by Shanyn  Silinski Copy Right © 2012

Isn't this just a wonderful gathering of words!? This poem is so full of life and a day well lived! Thank you, for rising to the challenge, Shanyn!


Shanyn offers us these other two poems also that are word-gathering pieces!


The first is a game of gathering words while with friends:


Red Poem with Friends

This one is a virtual scrabble game, you create from the board pictured plus other fun:


Scrabble Poem

Be sure to hop around while you're there, toads, you'll find lots of  treasures!!


Thank you everyone and smiles to you all!!