Slice of Life/Day in a Sentence: In That Moment, A Poem

(The Slice of Life Challenge in March is hosted by Two Writing Teachers as way to encourage teachers-as-writers. You can join in, if you want. There is also a monthly call for Slices on Tuesdays. You can write then, too)

In the moment in which that solitary snowflake landed in her outstretched hand, as if she were capturing a bit of loosened magic from the sky, the start of a small poem, too, tumbled into my head.

HandScratchPoemDraft(A draft started in freewrite time with students, revised during the day)

Peace (falling),
Kevin

Little Geometry

One single silent
snowflake, loose
– a goose lost from
its group – slow-motion
tumbler

Its landing softened
by her outstretched
hand: melted time

then, her lips
on skin
on ice
on sand

We’re lost in a
moment we may
never understand

14 Comments
  1. Wow, I so admire how you’re taking on the challenge this year. The craft of the sentence with the details tucked in and the poem… I am picturing the energy in your classroom with students considering and concocting details and word combinations. What memories they must have from sixth grade!

  2. Wow! I love “that loosened magic from the sky” and your poem. Your post is a model of virtuoso writing craft.

    • I had an entire line.stanza that began with that phrase and then felt it didn’t belong to the rest, so I dropped it but the title still tugged at me — the math of snowflakes and the uniqueness of the design … and how temporary … so I returned and kept it …
      Thanks for asking
      Kevin

  3. Lovely poem, inspiring such peace and grace. That phrase “loosened magic from the sky” fills me with joy. Thank you for sharing.

  4. Beautiful poem – indeed, it inspired such peace. I love that you wrote alongside students and then used the work later. Thank you!

  5. This is so beautiful! Your introduction to the poem was beautiful, too (the image of the snowflake in the hand, the comparison to magic from the sky, the link to a poem in your head)–enough so that I wondered how the poem could live up to that. Clearly, I haven’t read enough of your writing. Ever bit of the poem feels perfect. It’s hard to pull out one thing that stands out, but I do really, really like the image of the one snowflake as a goose lost from its flock.

    • Such kind words, Natasha. Thank you! I was worried the goose was a bit too much … but this one snowflake falling into her hands was too interesting not to write about ..

  6. Its landing softened
    by her outstretched
    hand: melted time

    I love that line–the colon and then melted time
    so beautiful. Do you still have snow?

    Kim

    • Yep. Still snow here. That poem was a moment where a single snowflake descended and a student opened her hand, caught it. Pretty cool moment in time, and perfect for a poetic slice
      Kevin

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