Poetry Unit

1. Poetry Unit Natalie’s Poems

2. Table Of Contents • What is Poetry? • First Day of School • On Turning Thirteen • Epitaph • Snow Charge of the Seventh Grade • Nonsense Poem • The Crush • Spring • Tanka, Senryu, Cinquain, Haiku • Flower Petals • Failed Test Sestina • Limerick • Poetic License

3. What Is Poetry? Poetry turns nature into people And makes you see things that aren’t there. But they are there in words. Those words simply call things from thin air. Poetry can confuse you Yet it has meaning It is there, It’s just not able to be seen. People have tried to define it, It just wants to stay a mystery. Yet everyone knows it, Even those who cannot define it. 10/10

4. That First Day Of School The street is silent. The rest of the chatting has gone. As I walk towards home, The trees rustle their secrets. The frog beside me disappears. When is the last time I’ll see him? Winter is coming fast Now that I’ve had my first day of school And that autumn chill is here. Poet Laureate Poem 10/10

5. On Turning Thirteen The whole idea of it makes me feel Like the weight of childhood is gone. All of those days of imagining myself As something I’ll never be Are gone with those other twelve years. Now I am almost thirteen, The gateway to teen years. For now, I’m still twelve, Trying to get the most out of it. I know if I even blink, I’ll miss some of this day, And it will be year thirteen. I can’t stop it, But I can delay it. If it is too early to be looking back, Why do I do it? All of those birthdays I still see, All of those long years, They can still be replayed in my head. They were nothing compared to this. I have a strange disease of thirteen years, Only curable by turning fourteen. And suddenly, I am ready. Thirteen won’t be so horrible. Maybe I won’t lose myself. It may just be like a one-day flu. So now I say, come! Thirteen, I will face you! I can do it, I can turn thirteen. 10/10

6. Natalie Alexander 1998-2012 My sister and I played By the old stone well. She pushed me in And down I fell. I fell for so long, And then I was here. It’s not so bad (but Madilyn’s buried near). No one remembers me, But I don’t care. It doesn’t matter, Because I’m not there. 10/10

7. Snow Charge of the Seventh Grade Seventh grade, seventh grade, Three hundred of them. All in their classes at school Watching the snow fall. “Forward, the seventh grade! To the courtyard!” they called. Into the ERH halls Ran the three hundred. They filled all the halls up, Waving their snow jackets At the ones who opposed. Running and shouting With teachers behind them. All the stragglers were caught, In trouble they were. The rest didn’t stop, The fast seventh grade. Students were pushing, And then they were in it! The snow and the ice! Then they just played, happy, In the courtyard snow. Then the teachers converged, Coming from the left door, Coming from the right! Detention for lunch! And after school for you! The students all fell, Not even one survived. Detentions were given, More homework on the side. The poor seventh grade. The students all ran With their eyes on the prize. Not one of them saw them, Those teachers who watched. The snow was too tempting, Too nice to look away. They just kept on running, The poor seventh grade. The doors were in plain sight, The charge would turn out right! There was no catching them, The future was not grim. The teachers were gone! The doors were thrown open wide, No bothering with lines.

8. Snow Charge of the Seventh Grade That one day will not fade, Remembered forever. The seventh grade charge, That one snowy day. Honor the seventh grade, Noble seventh grade. 8/10

9. That Octoseahorseopus Beware of that munster Near the Wangalang Sea. She lives in the poris caves Near which she roams free. She is fierce, She is monstrous, I know she can eat us, That Octoseahorseopus. We’ll swim to her cave, It’s just past the jelpo weeds, Then follow the sand path, (I think that’s where it leads). I can see her caves, And I think she sees me. So let’s drive her away, And then we’ll be free. Lead her past Mt. Unjear, To the kingdom of Kearo. When you come back, You’ll be a hero. 10/10

10. You sell people parts, But I sold you my heart. Every second, minute, and hour, I think about giving you flowers. Nasturtiums, zinnias, asters, We’ll live happily ever after. Cornflowers, marigolds, four o’ clocks, You see them whenever you unlock. Those Mason jars you see They are all from me. I try to be discreet With those flowers oh so sweet. Nasturtiums, zinnias, asters, We’ll live happily ever after. Cornflowers, marigolds, four o’ clocks, You see them whenever you unlock. Someday you will know me, This is a love that’s meant to be. When you smell how sweet a flower is, It means Ernie loves Dolores. Ernie and Dolores 10/10

11. Swirls of seeds from a dandelion Fly up as I run right through them. This is spring, so sweet smelling. So warm, with no hint of snow. The sun is shining, throwing its rays, Heating the earth with its warmth. The bugs are buzzing on the breeze, And spring flowers spread colors. Soon summer will come and spread sunlight, And spring will be no longer here. Next year it will come back, though, And its beauty comes back as well. 10/10

12. Cinquain Summer Must be coming With its roasting weather And its booming bright thunderstorms And bugs. Tanka The mornings are warm, The afternoons are scorching. This must be summer, With its days like hot ovens And its cool, relieving rains. Senryu The days are longer, The air is so much warmer, But Dad only sleeps. Haiku The sun throws down heat Making the soft summer breeze Like an oven’s blast.

13. 10/10

14. Failed Test The problems are there in my head, But they are hard to understand. X and Y? What? When I am solving the problem, Something malfunctions and I forget. Geometry, equations, and algebra. My teacher says, “Do your algebra!” I say, “Yes” but I’m not connected to my head. What did he say about this!? I forget. I try and try again to understand. I stare hard at the problem, Willing it to solve. Eight times Y is what? No, no, no. My teacher says something. “What?” “Time is up,” he says. “You did not do your algebra.” No! Nothing done! Not a single problem. Half finished equations fly around my head. Why do I not understand? This is a failed test. I will try to forget.

15. But I won’t forget. I will be doing who knows what, And I still won’t understand. I will still think about algebra. This test will float into my head. I didn’t finish a problem. Not one single problem. It is impossible to forget Or erase from my head Anything of what Happened today in algebra. I won’t ever understand. Since I don’t understand I won’t graduate. That’s a problem. Since I don’t know algebra, I won’t work. I would forget Everything. I won’t know what To do. There will be nothing in my head. I can’t do the problems. Dumb head. Dumb math. Eight times three is what? Why do I always forget? 10/10

16. There once was a fat bumblebee. He could not fly, you see. This was because All he heard was a buzz When he tried like the other bees. 10/10