Thoughtful Thursday is BACK!! I've missed sharing poetry and other words of inspiration with you and your children in our Thoughtful Thursday posts. I love how the words of a good poem can make you smile or laugh out loud, or feel sad, or angry, or just help you see things differently. Here we feature works from poets–mostly [...]
In today's Thoughtful Thursday we celebrate Spring. It's been a harsh winter for us all, and we are looking forward to the rebirth and renewal that comes with the Spring season. As the grass grows green and the flowers bloom, let's hope that the nation can slowly awaken from its long hibernation and look forward to what comes next. [...]
It's Thoughtful Thursday! On the last Thursday of International Women's Month, we celebrate with the work of some wonderful women poets writing about women. From Lucille Clifton we have "Won't You Celebrate with Me", Nikki Giovanni gives us "Legacies", and finally, Marge Piercy sends us a "Memo" to remind us to never give up. Enjoy. Won't You Celebrate with [...]
On this Thoughtful Thursday we celebrate Black History Month with poetry by and/or about Black people. (Actually, we celebrate pretty much every month this way, but we'll jump on the BHM bandwagon for February.). Today we offer a variety of poems which all nod to the theme of sharing Black History, including our cultural history, with our children. We [...]
Even if you missed yesterday's inauguration, odds are you've already heard about Amanda Gorman, the 22 year old poet who was a star at the inaugural ceremony. The amazing Ms. Gorman read her poem "The Hill We Climb" as the world watched in awe. Her words, her imagery, her poise, her eloquence, and the joy in her delivery captivated [...]
Eight days after the horrifying attack on the U.S. Capitol last week, today's Thoughtful Thursday offers "America", by the great African-American poet Claude McKay (1889-1948). In this poem, McKay notes the difficulty Black Americans have with balancing their love for this country with their knowledge of the way that it has treated them. This balance was particularly challenging last [...]
It's Thoughtful Thursday! Today we are celebrating one of our favorite poets, Kevin Young. In case you hadn't heard, Kevin Young has just been named as the new director of the National Museum of African American History and Culture. He will be leaving his position as the head of the Schomberg Center for Research in Black Culture, a division [...]
Today is my youngest son's 21st birthday! I am dedicating today's Thoughtful Thursday to him, and gifting him (and you all) with a poem to mark this very special occasion: "Invictus" by William Ernest Henley. I came to know this poem first through my older brother Paul, who at one point attended The (now closed) Henley School in Jamaica, [...]
Today's Thoughtful Thursday we celebrate Democratic Presidential candidate Joe Biden's choice of Kamala Harris as his running mate. As most everyone certainly knows by know, she is the first Black woman and the first person of Indian descent to be named as a vice presidential candidate by a national party. As exciting as Biden's VP choice is, it's true historical [...]
A bit of a hodgepodge for Summer 2020 poems in today's Thoughtful Thursday: two poems celebrating familiar visions of summer (Fireflies! Kool-Aid!) and one prayer/poem that reminds us that our focus this summer must include more sobering and critical visions. Jacqueline Woodson, who brings us "Firefly", is an award-winning of over 30 books for children and young adults, who served [...]