“A poem is so brief. It’s not a practical thing like buying a loaf of bread. A poem is like a seed that can grow and enlarge in your mind. Poetry has become such an integral part of culture around the world. It’s one of the few things that is not pragmatic, perhaps, that speaks to the intuition and imagination, and it’s not linear. It takes a leap of understanding. It gives us a different dimension to our believing and our understanding.” Luci Shaw in an interview with Washington Times reporter Jen Waters
I don’t know if this poem “takes a leap of understanding.” Brown Bear Daughter, age thirteen, wrote this poem after a trip to the beach.
Beach by M. Early
Toes in the sand
Staring up
Staring down
Sinking slowly
Sinking down
Looking over
Blue waves are white,
On fire by the moonlight
It’s an iridescent, glowing peace.
And this Edvard Munsch painting may not be exactly what Brown Bear was writing about, but it’s close . . . and beautiful.
I like it! It has the effect of lapping waves, doesn’t it? And the painting is beautiful.
Maybe the painting isn’t what your daughter saw, but it matches her words perfectly!
That is sweet and makes me wish I had gone to the beach today. What a poet is your daughter!
Your daughter’s poem is lovely. The last line resolves so beautifully! I live right near Lake Michigan, and this is just what it’s like on a calm night.
I like it! It has the effect of lapping waves, doesn’t it? And the painting is beautiful.
Maybe the painting isn’t what your daughter saw, but it matches her words perfectly!
That is sweet and makes me wish I had gone to the beach today. What a poet is your daughter!
Your daughter’s poem is lovely. The last line resolves so beautifully! I live right near Lake Michigan, and this is just what it’s like on a calm night.