Poetry Challenge #74-Where I'm From
A few weeks ago, at the Kindling Words gathering author VCFA Faculty Uma Krishnaswami turned me onto the I Am From Project , celebrating our unique voices through poetry (my summation of the project, not the official word.). The project’s goal is “to create a national river of voices, reminding America that diversity is our origin and our strength.” Uma shared a poem and invited us to join it. I’m inviting you to do the same.
Poetry Challenge #74
The Stuff of Me
Write a poem describing where you are from, your ancestors, roots, family, and or your own personal journey. Scroll down for one shining example by and the link to #iamfromproject.
Begin with the words:
Where I’m From . . .
“Where I’m From” by George Ella Lyon
I am from clothespins,
from Clorox and carbon-tetrachloride.
I am from the dirt under the back porch.
(Black, glistening,
it tasted like beets.)
I am from the forsythia bush
the Dutch elm
whose long-gone limbs I remember
as if they were my own.
I’m from fudge and eyeglasses,
from Imogene and Alafair.
I’m from the know-it-alls
and the pass-it-ons,
from Perk up! and Pipe down!
I’m from He restoreth my soul
with a cottonball lamb
and ten verses I can say myself.
I’m from Artemus and Billie’s Branch,
fried corn and strong coffee.
From the finger my grandfather lost
to the auger,
the eye my father shut to keep his sight.
Under my bed was a dress box
spilling old pictures,
a sift of lost faces
to drift beneath my dreams.
I am from those moments—
snapped before I budded —
leaf-fall from the family tree. ”
Help expand the river of voices. Send your I Am From poems and other creations to: http://iamfromproject@gmail.com
Find it on Facebook at iamfromproject
An interview with I Am From Project founders George Ella Lyon & Julie Landsman
*Cindy Faughnan and I began this 7-Minute Poetry Challenge 1027 days ago and counting . . . We now take turns creating our own prompts to share with you. If you join us in the 7-Minute Poetry Challenge let us know by posting the title, a note, or if you want, the whole poem in the comments.