Welcome to Poetry Friday, everyone! I am excited and honored to host the roundup today for only the second time. Once again, I’m sweating it out and crossing my fingers, eyes, and toes that the link up works!
Before we get started, here’s an important announcement about next week’s roundup from its host, Amy Ludwig VanDerwater. “Please note that on Poetry Friday August 23 we will celebrate the life of Lee Bennett Hopkins here at The Poem Farm. At Jone MacCulloch’s great suggestion, I invite everyone who wishes to write and share a poem inspired by or including a line from a LBH poem. Tag with #DearOneLBH. Thank you. xo, Amy.” I, like many of you I’m sure, have been thumbing through the many anthologies Lee graced us with, trying to decide which poem and which line. How to choose?
And now for this week’s roundup. I tossed out a tree theme for this week, and I can’t wait to see what some folks might share. Since I was a child, I’ve always loved trees — sitting under them, swinging from rope swings tied to them, marveling in their varied bark, leaves, and blossoms, and of course climbing them. My very first beloved poet, David McCord, unknowingly gave me permission!
I featured Mr. McCord’s work in a previous post, and had completely forgotten that I referenced a video of Renee LaTulippe interviewing Lee about McCord! That has a very “six degrees of separation” feel to it at the moment!
Mary Oliver adored and was inspired by trees, too. What do trees call out to you?
As a writer, poet, and sometimes artist, trees continue to inspire me.
Even tree cookies (my Kindergarteners love this term!) speak to me — literally and figuratively!
During our trip to the UK in July, my husband and I fell completely and utterly head over heels in love with a stunning and very old linden tree on the grounds of Salisbury Cathedral, where we were staying. We had no idea where the intoxicating perfume was coming from as we walked the sacred grounds. We followed our noses and eventually spent many happy hours on the bench below it’s delicate branches throughout our stay in the cathedral close that week. The cathedral was built between 1220 and 1258, and lindens are rumored to be able to live up to 1,000 years, so who knows how old our lovely linden is!
Thanks for joining me in this arboraceous roundup. Click the link and bring on the poetry!
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Wondering and Wandering 
What a lovely post, Christie. You’ve shared a veritable forest of poems celebrating trees. I’d hoped to join in the fun this week but was sidetracked. I think Mary Oliver’s poem speaks to me the most right now, but I’m fascinated by your linden tree and its intoxicating fragrance. Thanks so much for hosting this week!
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Thank you, Molly. I love the forest image! Life sidetracks us, indeed. Thanks for stopping by, if only for a quick visit. Best, Christie.
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Christie, I am so delighted that I was on time for Poetry Friday this week. It has been a difficult week; a close friend passed on. I am working on a poem for a celebration gathering of friends I have for her. It is about the leaves from trees in the cemetery that danced in front of my eyes-a sign that Diane was at peace. Your celebration of trees moves me from mentor text to your own poems. I love the photo with your early spring trees poem. I would like to capture that one for the Spring Splendor Gallery collection. The tree cookies are unique. You rounded everything us into one glorious arboraceous posting. Thanks for hosting.
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Thank you, Carol. I am so terribly sorry for the loss of your dear friend. How lovely that the dancing leaves spoke to you, and hopefully brought you a bit of peace as well. Best, Christie.
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So much tree love and loveliness in this post, Christie! Alas, I already had another, non-tree post scheduled for today, but in 2015 Corey Rosen Schwartz challenged TLD readers to write treehouse poems, so I link to that wrap-up celebration at the end of my post. Thanks for hosting this week!
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Thank you, Michelle. I look forward to exploring the treehouse poems in addition to your planned post. Thanks for stopping by! Best, Christie.
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Oh what a glorious post about trees Christie–it brings a sense of calm as trees often bring me. Love the story and poem about the Linden tree that you and your husband where determined to find near the Salisbury Cathedral–history and nature combined, it’s perfect and how grand a tree, it’s like stepping back through the centuries. Thanks for all here and for hosting the Roundup!
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Thank you, Michelle. I was excited to bring all of you along for a wander through the cathedral close and enjoy the aura of our lovely linden. Best, Christie
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Love the poems, Christie – trees (and all of nature) continue to inspire me everyday. Thanks for hosting! (My post goes live shortly after midnight)
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Thank, Matt! I’m looking forward to hearing what you’ve been up to. Cheers! — Christie
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Wow–that is a lot of trees, from a lot of perspectives! They really are our buddies, trees, and not just for breathing. It’s something more…perhaps companions, as in my favorite of your poems. Thanks for hosting!
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There are indeed occasions when I prefer their companionship, Heidi. Many thanks for visiting. — Christie
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A full and rich celebration of trees! I love each and every leaf you shared about trees, your companions and my companions. Because I know trees talk to each other, I hope that your tree friends say hello to mine sometime. My friends have kept many a secret, a few heartaches and lots of joy. I do believe I will savor the tree cookies and find out some more about the Linden Tree. Thank you, Christie. You’re a marvelous host. Nothing to worry about.
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Thanks for stopping by, Linda. I’m certain you’ve enjoyed a wee bit of shade under the protective branches of a beloved tree in your lovely, but toasty part of the world. Do explore the lovely linden. You won’t be disappointed! Best, Christie
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Thanks for hosting with this invitation to notice the trees. Your gallery of poems is lovely and inspiring.
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Hi Christie! I have heard linden tea referred to as “a hug in a mug.” Have you tried it? Thanks for being such a lovely, leafy host!
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Thank you for all the tree love, Christie… and tree cookies — delicious! Thanks also for hosting, and happy summer. xo
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Thank you for hosting this “arboraceous roundup” today, Christie! I was also a tree climber when I was a kid, and still have several trees in my yard that are special to me. In fact, I realized not long ago that when I sponge-painted my bedroom, I chose colors that make it seem like I’m inside an apple tree loaded with blossoms. I love all the poems you shared, especially the Mary Oliver. Shine on!
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A lovely copse of trees you have here, Christie! David McCord was the very first NCTE winner and of course the very first video Lee and I did together for that series. He’d be so happy to know that you referenced it in your previous post (and in this one!).
I have no trees in my post, but there are ducks and otters and fiddleheads!
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I am so happy with this theme. I, too, am rather obsessed with trees. Did you know that the Linden tree is a symbol of peace? I love each season of the trees and am thankful to be living where the trees show each season.
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Thank you for all these tree poems and images. We all need to spend more time surrounded by trees. My post today connects to my experiences with trees in the past couple of weeks and from my earliest days. I hope you also enjoy the snippets of poetry I’ve shared by BC logger poet, Peter Trower.
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Thank you for sharing all your tree poems. And thanks for the inspiration, too. I’ve had an exhausting (but good!) week and didn’t know quite what to write about today–but thanks to your invitation, I wrote about aspen trees. I really enjoyed all of your poems, but I think my favorite is the first one–“In this sacred space”. I also really like Mary Oliver’s poem. Thanks for hosting, too.
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Thanks for hosting this week! You post is so rich, so full of all kinds of trees and your deep love for them…which I totally share! Some of my best friends as a child were the trees in our yard — the crabapple outside my bedroom window, the maple I climbed, the weeping birch where I hid amongst the dangling fronds.
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