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Laura’s e-letter for educators

Poem-a-Day: #4

regal lion suns,
soaks spring from weathered veldt:
beagle on the deck

–Laura Purdie Salas, all rights reserved

I love watching our beagle, Captain Jack Sparrow, sun on the deck right outside the window where I’m writing. He just soaks up the sun out of the planks of the deck.

Cheryl Wilke sent me the best email ever! It said, in part:

“My young daughter first opened your book, A Leaf Can Be, while waiting with me in a very long line at the post office at 4:30 p.m. (Yikes!) She started reading it aloud, and it wasn’t long before you could hear a pin drop. She and your story held the full house at standing attention. Beautiful!”

Those are the kinds of emails that make you chomp at the bit to get back to your writing, right? How nice of Cheryl to take the time to write me this note and to give me permission to share it. Thanks, Cheryl! And Cheryl’s daughter–oh, how I wish I could have seen her do this:>)

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26 Responses

  1. Oh my goodness! That email gave me goosebumps! What an image it conjures — really, that’s something I would not think possible nowadays. So glad I’m wrong.

    And a beagle named Captain Jack Sparrow? 🙂 Sweet haiku tribute.

    (Did you get my email re interview?)

    1. Thanks, Renee. Doesn’t it? Now *that’s* something I wish I had on video!

      I did get your ?s, and I’m aiming to get answers to you by Friday:>)

  2. Oh my goodness! That email gave me goosebumps! What an image it conjures — really, that’s something I would not think possible nowadays. So glad I’m wrong.

    And a beagle named Captain Jack Sparrow? 🙂 Sweet haiku tribute.

    (Did you get my email re interview?)

    1. Thanks, Renee. Doesn’t it? Now *that’s* something I wish I had on video!

      I did get your ?s, and I’m aiming to get answers to you by Friday:>)

  3. I like that ‘soaks spring’, Laura. And what an awesome story via e‑mail. Lucky to receive it. I wish more people would take the time to say thank you like that. The world would be a happier place!

    1. Thanks, Linda–and yes it would. I’m trying to get better at stuff like that. I’ve vowed that every time I give a book 5 stars (or a strong 4) on goodreads, which doesn’t happen that often, I’m going to post my comments on my blog and/or Facebook and/or Amazon/Barnes & Noble, etc.

  4. I like that ‘soaks spring’, Laura. And what an awesome story via e‑mail. Lucky to receive it. I wish more people would take the time to say thank you like that. The world would be a happier place!

    1. Thanks, Linda–and yes it would. I’m trying to get better at stuff like that. I’ve vowed that every time I give a book 5 stars (or a strong 4) on goodreads, which doesn’t happen that often, I’m going to post my comments on my blog and/or Facebook and/or Amazon/Barnes & Noble, etc.

  7. Oh, that post office story should give you juice to run on for weeks! How very special, and thoughtful of that mom to share it. I like Renee’s poetry flash mob idea.… ;0)

    1. It really does, Robyn.

      And yes, now I have that flash mob poetry thing going through my head. Wouldn’t it be fun to do that with a group of junior high students or something? I’D have a hard time doing it, but I’d sure love to be in a room when a bunch of people came in and started performing poetry out of the blue!

  8. Oh, that post office story should give you juice to run on for weeks! How very special, and thoughtful of that mom to share it. I like Renee’s poetry flash mob idea.… ;0)

    1. It really does, Robyn.

      And yes, now I have that flash mob poetry thing going through my head. Wouldn’t it be fun to do that with a group of junior high students or something? I’D have a hard time doing it, but I’d sure love to be in a room when a bunch of people came in and started performing poetry out of the blue!

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