4Real Forums: Poetry - The Life I Live

Oh, Dearest Mother, Sweetest Virgin of Altagracia, our Patroness. You are our Advocate and to you we recommend our needs. You are our Teacher and like disciples we come to learn from the example of your holy life. You are our Mother, and like children, we come to offer you all of the love of our hearts. Receive, dearest Mother, our offerings and listen attentively to our supplications. Amen.

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Topic: Poetry - The Life I Live

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Mackfam
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Non Nobis

Joined: April 24 2006
Location: Alabama
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Posts: 14656

Posted: Jan 31 2011 at 9:54am \| IP Logged

I stumbled across a real treasure from our library discards and it has been such a joy to read from and share with my younger learners I wanted to share it here.

The Life I Live :: Collected Poems by Lois Lenski, originally published 1927.

It's a dear collection of poetry which Lois Lenski both wrote and illustrated. In the introduction she calls it "the happiest of all her books".

Lois Lenski, The Life I Live wrote:

This is the happiest of all my books. Into it has gone a lifetime of love and devotion to children.

Most of my poems have been spontaneous outpourings, only a few have been devious contrivings. They have sung themselves to me at odd times and in unexpected places - at the supermarket or the kitchen sink, in the garden while weeding or in bed at night, and during illnesses at home or in the hospital when I have been kept from my regular work.

My poems are the very essence, the basic fabric behind all my work for children. The themes in them are my life's blood. They are the legacy to the children I love.

This delightful book of poetry would be wonderful to read aloud while studying Lois Lenski as a poet for a term. You could also read aloud one of her other wonderful books at a different time. The poems are short enough and have such an enjoyable meter and rhyme that they lend themselves very well to poetry memorization for young children.

The chapters in this book are as follows:

:: My Little World
:: All Through the Year
:: A Larger World
:: Go Travel a New Land
:: Hymns and Prayers

A couple of favorite poems:

Quote:

FAMILY

My mother cooks
     and cares for me;
There's no one else
     as good as she.

My father holds me
     in his arm;
He keeps me from
     all kinds of harm.

My brothers, sisters
     like to play;
With them I'm happy
     all the day.

Quote:

IF LOVE IS THERE

Clothes on the line,
A pot on the stove -
A home is there
With kindness and love.

A cup to sip,
A loaf of bread,
A home is where
Kind words are said.

It may be a tent
That leaks in the rain;
It may be a trailer,
Old and plain.

It may be a mansion
With lawn spick and span,
And every convenience
Known unto man.

A room or two
On a noisy street;
A bed to sleep on,
A place to eat.

No matter what,
No matter where -
It will always be home
If love is there.

__________________
Jen Mackintosh
Wife to Rob, mom to dd 19

, ds 16

, ds 11

, dd 8

, and dd 3

Wildflowers and Marbles

JennGM
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Joined: Feb 07 2005
Location: Virginia
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Posts: 17702

Posted: Jan 31 2011 at 9:56am \| IP Logged

Oh, looks wonderful! My library doesn't have it. We just LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Lois Lenski!

__________________
Jennifer G. Miller
Wife to

& ds1

'03 & ds2

'07
Family in Feast and Feria

Grace&Chaos
Forum All-Star

Joined: June 07 2010
Location: California
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 1261

Posted: Jan 31 2011 at 11:36am \| IP Logged

Sounds wonderful Jen, we enjoy Lois Lenski too!!

I love finding treasures at our library's for sale shelves

.

__________________
Blessings,
Jenny
Mom to dds(00,03) and dss(05,06,08,09)
Grace in Loving Chaos

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