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January 7, 2016

Poetry Friday--Winter Swap Delight!

This year my swap partner in the Winter Poem Swap, organized by Tabatha Yeatts, was Robyn Hood Black. Tabatha sent along a prompt to give the swappers inspiration. It is a painting by Claude Monet, "Le train dans la neige" ("Train in the Snow") painted in 1875.

Robyn wrote a lovely ekphrastic haiku:

© Robyn Hood Black, all rights reserved.

Robyn also explained her poem's origins,
The bare branches on the right made me think of cross-hatching, and I started wondered about what tracks from wee creatures might be cross-hatched under the snow as well...That got me thinking about how those little animals are still moving themselves around, pretty much the same was they have for thousands of years, while the locomotive depicted in the scene helped lead humanity into a new phase of the Industrial Revolution.

She then proceeded to tell me about Bill Bryson's book, At Home: A Short History of Private Life, and Bryson's writing about how iron, and then the process of making steel, basically changed lives in the mid-nineteenth century.

The haiku, although seemingly short, incorporated a whole lot of learning and thought! A difficult task, masterfully done!

To encourage me to explore At Home, Robyn sent me a copy of the book, and a handcrafted bookmark to keep my place! If you don't already know about Robyn's Etsy shop, artsyletters, click here and prepare to be wowed!


Many, many thanks to Robyn Hood Black for the gifts and poem that so perfectly fit me! (The wings are a nod to my Sketchbook Project angels.)

Tabatha Yeatts, whom I mentioned above, is also this week's Poetry Friday Round-Up host!

I'm traveling today, so I may not get to your comments in a timely manner, I apologize ahead of time.


18 comments:

  1. Oh, what a kind post, Diane! It was an honor to get to be your partner again in a Swap. (And thanks again to Tabatha for organizing it all!).
    Thank you, and safe travels.

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  2. I am wowed by Robyn's haiku and gift! So thoughtful. You really get a powerful feeling of the advance of time with her haiku.

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  3. I love the winter swap! I did not use the image for my poem, but I love what Robyn did here. Haiku is a great form for cutting right to the heart of things. Thanks for sharing.

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  4. Love this, D! Jet

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  5. Yes, that lovely poem packs a lot. Love that book mark.

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  6. What a lovely gift! Loved hearing a little backstory about Robyn's haiku. :)

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  7. Beautiful, Robyn. That word "steels" packs much into the haiku with the picture. I got to visit a steel mill once a long time ago, amazing to see that liquid metal pouring out, and a lot intimidating, too. The Bryson book sounds good, & it is a new title to me. Happy Travels, Diane.

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  8. Lovely haiku - and what a fun book mark! I bought my girls some of Robyn's found art jewelry, which they absolutely loved.

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  9. Lovely haiku - and what a fun book mark! I bought my girls some of Robyn's found art jewelry, which they absolutely loved.

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  10. Many thanks for these lovely comments! And thanks again, Diane, for posting. [Appreciate the 'artsy' shout-outs, too!]

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  11. What a wonderful haiku. I love that Robyn took the time to explain the research and reasoning that went into her chosen words. You can't go wrong with Bill Bryson either. If you haven't read IN A SUNBURNED COUNTRY, you should.

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  12. Wow, it's a haiku day! And such a powerful one - love the play on words.

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  13. I loved hearing more of the back story of her poem.

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  14. You two were a perfect match -- so talented and thoughtful. Love it!

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  15. Love the haiku, and hearing the story behind it. Thanks for sharing your lovely gifts!

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  16. Thank you, everyone, for your kind words this week! Next week I hope to be back to responding individually.

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  17. Diane, I was immersed in Robyn's back story of the haiku since I am a lover of the past. I am still working on haiku magic and reading as much as I can to learn the art. Happy New Year to you.

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