4.29.2013

From Where She Comes

Nearly two months ago my daughter and I submitted poems to the local paper for their Poetry Month competition (From Soul to Paper). My submission was not selected this year (though I have placed it here). Mallory's was published. I am so proud of her.

Where I am From

Mallory Jaeger, 14, Atascadero

I am from marketers,
from dead winters and dry summers.
I am from grandma’s green beans
(buttered and sprinkled with breadcrumbs)
I am from the birds chirping, the dogs barking, whose voice echoes
throughout the neighborhood, bouncing off of garage doors.
I’m from possums and wine,
from Cuba and Germany.
I’m from the “leave me alones” and the “you don’t understands,”
from earthquakes and droughts.
I’m from the In-N-Out Burger
with the smell still lingering, attached to my tongue.
I’m from charm bracelets and notebooks,
classic rock and Jason Mraz.
From my father’s famous hand flip,
my mother’s fingers tapping a keyboard.
In the back cottage is a bookcase,
filled with notebooks and old memories to reminisce everyday.
I am from those journals —
wrote into my life —
I am the last entry.

Read more here: http://www.sanluisobispo.com/2013/04/26/2485885/from-soul-to-paper-a-celebration.html#storylink=cpy

Silence

Quietness echoes in soft morning light,
Showing the coming day with stoic poise.
Appearing cautiously not to excite,
This time is not about clamor and noise.

Silence is water and hope and routine,
The practiced calm of one's personal space.
Stillness is self-sought solitude. Serene.
A landscape and comfortable sense of place.

At an unpretentious level, one asks,
Might I ought to be getting on with it?
Successful men's days are raucous with tasks.
Captured noise is defiantly earsplit.

True silence is found in the ability,
Of claiming elusive tranquility.

4.26.2013

Mondegreen

I learned a new word today. It is a noun: "Mondegreen". It means a word or a phrase resulting from mishearing another word or phrase. Specifically, I put this with lyrics. For example, I've always loved the rock band, The Who. One of my favorite songs is about a doorman named Milo ... "Let Milo Open the Door".
 
Now there is a term for it. Mondegreen. Here are a couple of other Mondegreens of note:
  • The Police still sing, "A year has passed since I broke my nose."
  • The Beatles wrote, "The girl with colitis goes by."
  • CCR sings, "There's a bathroom on the right" instead of "There's a bad moon on the rise."
 
What are your Mondegreens?