Merry Sea Gull, Merry Crow

If the white stuff on your ground comes from sand,

as happens here in North Florida, that’s a fair-weather trade.

We recently pulled lemons from our Meyer citrus tree.

Because we can do that we won’t be brushing snow off our red cedar.

No sticking out a tongue to catch snowflakes. Nor – making snow angels, riding the sled, making snowballs, snow forts or, snow families with coal eyes grabbed from the scuttle next to our pot bellied stove. No, no, no rushing to the window to call dibs on the first feathery flurries, as I remember from my woodsy, across-from-a-dairy farm Quakertown, New Jersey early child winter days.  Our daughter, who grew up in the 1990s in Florida, missed out on most of that & our Christmas visits up nawth didn’t make up for it – now she catches up, with Boston winters…

But O, thank you poets, who take us everywhere – to deserts,craggy volcanic islands, to rice paddy shores. And of course, into snowy days.

I share some snow-set lines of a favorite poet queen, Kathi Appelt, which she gifted to young readers with lovely illustrations by Jon Goodell, in the sweetly celebratory, MERRY CHRISTMAS, MERRY CROW. Along with THE SNOWFLAKE SISTERS by an equally favorite poet king, J. Patrick Lewis (illustrated by Lisa Desimini), these books top my picture book stack for sharing when I read in K and 1^st grade.

(If your snowflakes dropped you in here for Poetry Friday, it is collected this time, with my appreciation, by Anastasia at BookTalking. We join the poem story, finding Kathy’s crow to be a busy avian…)

 

copyright Kathi Appelt & Jon Goodell

Merry Christmas,

Merry Crow

by Kathy Appelt

…A button here

A feather there

A crow can find things anywhere!

A strand of tinsel

Twigs and twine

Berries from a twisty vine…

(The crow cruises in the village where shadowed buildings are night-lit and people are out & about…)

…Up and down the snowy streets

 Jangly tags

A tiny wheel

A luscious curl of orange peel…

 I know that isn’t enough so please listen here for the clue that you’ll want to know and to a treat of a reading of it. I hope you can find MERRY CHRISTMAS, MERRY CROW in your public library or school room, or home library, or local bookstore – it’s a treasure. Looks mighty fine in ribbon & wrap.

I am thankful for the Poetry Friday community & wish everyone lots of  Happy Holly Days & Happy Holidaze. Prepare to be dazzled in this season of peace & love.

~ j a n