A seasonally adjusted poem is my offering this week. I found a poem I had written during my time living and working in New York called Raw Beauty. It encapsulates a stranger's Christmas gift in the depths of a miserably cold day, in a rather dreary location.  Inspired by Linda Mitchell's mash up poem last week, I decided to mash my poem with a short, evocative Christmas poem by UK poet, Wendy Cope. I enjoyed the weaving process. Season's greetings all. Vanderbilt Avenue bus shelter Raw Beauty - A Christmas Poem After Wendy Cope At Christmas little children sing and merry bells jingle I'm standing at the bus stop On Vanderbilt Avenue Stick trees line the street Silent soldiers on a bleak avenue   In a feeble shelter Three women stand I huddle in my flimsy coat Nearby An icy wind Rampant, raw Slaps my face With a bully’s rage The cold winter air makes our hands and faces tingle Above the wind And the ugly song of the traffic I hear whistl...

  Hi, Alan here to alert you to more support and ideas for the teaching of poetry are available on my web page:   https://www.alanjwrightauthorpoet.com/ A quick click and you can access even more information to make your teaching of writing and in particular, the teaching of poetry more expansive and rewarding. A visit will provide you with information regarding poetry resources and the latest news on all manner of literary related matters. Matters like  my new anthology of short verse, available in January 2026. Here's a glimpse...

I was gifted a small, leather bound notebook and it felt right to designate it as a place to gather short form poetry. I have commenced with haiku. I write in this notebook irregularly. I usually find myself compelled by natural phenomena like weather events, seasonal changes and related observations of the natural world.  I am finding this haiku harvesting contemplative, calming and reflective. It represents a form of limbering up for further writing across my day.  I am in no rush with the addition of entries. They arise when the mood strikes - singularly, or in numbers. My collection stands at 42 and rising.  So, here is a glimpse of my gathered harvest of haikus. I In other news... It is Poetry Friday and our host this week is Linda Mitchell from A Word Edgewise.   Linda offers readers a Christmas Mash Up Poem combining song lyrics and a poem.