QuickwriteCollection 7A Blessing

Close your eyes, and try to visualize something in nature. Describe what you are seeing. You could be describing something as big as the sky or as small as an ant, as soft as a rabbit or as squishy as a swamp, as . . . Well, you’ve got the idea. Explain how what you are describing makes you feel.

QuickwriteCollection 7Woman Work and Daily

Make a list of the things that you do during an ordinary day. What is the first thing you do in the morning? What is the last thing you do before bed? What is your favorite part of the day? The following two poems tell about the things that people do every day. As you read, think about your list. How does it compare with the poems?

QuickwriteCollection 7in Just-

Jot down some of the things you associate with your favorite season of the year. Think of activities, sights, smells, tastes, sounds—even special people you see during that time of year.

QuickwriteCollection 7Haiku

Pick a special day of the year. Write down what you might hear, see, taste, smell, or touch on that day. Try to find images that reveal the way you might feel at a particular moment on that special day.

QuickwriteCollection 7Tiburón

Think of something manufactured. It can be something large, like a snowmobile or a jet plane, or something small, like a pencil sharpener or a cell phone. Jot down some notes about how this item looks, sounds, and smells (if it has a smell) and what it feels like. Does it remind you of anything?

QuickwriteCollection 7Folding Won Tons In

Think of something that another person taught you to do, such as dance, mow the lawn, rock climb, play a game, surf the Internet, build a campfire, or cook a special food. Then, list all the words and phrases you can think of that are associated with that activity. If you choose cooking a special food, for instance, you might start with winter night, Dad, radio playing, sausage, sizzling onions, pasta.

QuickwriteCollection 7“Hope” is the thing with feathers

Think of an emotion or a state of mind. You might choose feelings like grief, joy, anger, dreaminess, selfishness, or ambition. Then, jot down three metaphors in which you identify your subject with something else. Open like this: “Joy is . . .”

QuickwriteCollection 7Fog and Fire and Ice

The titles of these two poems cite three natural conditions: fog, fire, and ice. What thoughts and pictures come into your mind when you hear those words? What do you associate with each word? Jot down your ideas.

QuickwriteCollection 7The Seven Ages of Man

Seven acts—that’s how long this poet imagines the play of your life is going to be. According to Jaques (pronounced jā’ kwēz), a character in Shakespeare’s comedy As You Like It, you’re now in the middle of the second act of your life. Before you read what he predicts about the rest of your life, try to second-guess him. Write down what you think are the seven stages of a person’s life.

QuickwriteCollection 7Women

Make notes about people whom you consider heroes because they helped you become the person you are today. You’ll probably think of relatives, friends, or teachers, but you might also include people you’ve never met—people in the news or people from the past, for instance. What makes these people heroes to you?

QuickwriteCollection 7I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud

Recall a scene you once saw that made a strong impression on you. Perhaps it was the earth seen from a plane window, the ocean just before a storm, the desert at night, or a sky filled with migrating birds. Close your eyes, and be there again. Make notes about what you see.

QuickwriteCollection 7The Courage That My Mother Had

Is there something in your family that you would like to inherit? It could be something material, like a picture. (In this poem the speaker has inherited a brooch, or large decorative pin, from her mother.) It could also be a wonderful quality or talent—like the ability to play the piano. Jot down your thoughts.

QuickwriteCollection 7Ballad of Birmingham

Think of an event that has taken place in your lifetime that tells a story. Jot down your ideas. Now imagine your story as a song. What type of song would it be?

QuickwriteCollection 7The Gift

Try to recall a time when a parent, a teacher, or a friend did something special for you that you would like to be able to do for others someday. (Maybe you have already done it.) Write down what you remember about that person’s actions and your feelings about them.

QuickwriteCollection 7Legal Alien/Extranjera legal

Think of all the worlds you belong to: the worlds of home, family, school, sports, and friends, for example. Make a chart like the one here, in which you list at least three ways you feel or behave in two of your worlds:

My Worlds

School Sports

average student; good in math; quiet, shy

great pitcher; OK fielder; confident

QuickwriteCollection 7The Base Stealer and American Hero

Take a few minutes to imagine that you’re a sports hero. You pick the sport—one that you’ve played or one that you’ve watched a lot. Imagine that you’re at the critical point in an important game. The pressure’s on. You go into action. Jot down what happens and what you are feeling.