It’s PoetryFriday!
Want to know more? Click here.
My Nevermores poetry partner Marcie at Marcie Flinchum Atkins
hosts the round up this week! Please hop over to her website. It is a
PLETHORA of poetry and kidlit resources!
I have a very special thank you for Marcie. She often shares poetry submission opportunities with the Nevermores. A couple short months ago, she sent us a link for Consilience, an online journal that explores “the spaces where the sciences and the arts meet.”
I took a chance, and submitted a poem. And it was accepted! I’ve included the link to it here. The issue is full of incredible work. I was honored to have my poem included. THANK YOU, MARCIE!
Many of you know that 2024 was, for me and my family, #YearOfTheWeddings. Full of joy. Full of time with kids, siblings, nieces, nephews, friends. When we weren’t in California to celebrate new marriages, we were in Arizona – packing for California!
At this writing, I am far away from both homes. I am sitting in the Phuket International Airport, beginning the long trek home. March 2025 inaugurated my #YearToPlay.
A month ago, after time with my parents, Tom and I flew to this other side of the world to play in Southeast Asia –Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, Singapore, and Thailand.
A month of cycling, scuba-diving, exploring, and EATING!
The food, the flavors, the very foreign –think crickets! And frogs! I had to try them (and I won’t be partaking again).
This trip was wonderful on so many levels. I’m participating in the Stafford Poetry Challenge, so I had tons of inspiration for daily writing. And the handful of times I checked in on email, I received news: a rejection from Tyger, Tyger (again!) and notification of one of my adult poems published here.
I’m thinking this is a lot like life: good news/bad news. Give and take. Push and pull. Work and play.
I’m looking forward to more play!
And, if you’re not tired of reading, here is a different poem (not the one I got published) –part of my Southeast Asia memories.
Cambodian Water Blessing
Wrapped in saffron robes, eyes alight, burning
as brightly as the flame on the end of the stick he held,
the old monk waited patiently for us to settle
on the steps leading up to the pagoda. Who blesses
steamy, sweaty cyclists? Seriously. A tourist indulgence?
Perhaps. What does holiness know of political strife,
of business deals, or writing picture books? Yet he knows
human yearning -for happiness, for a good life, for peace.
Perhaps this old monk understands it is us, the spiritually
unenlightened –we who think we need it the least – in fact,
need this blessing the most. And so we enter into a seven-minute
bargain. He chants over us, dousing us with basketfuls of water.
In turn, we press hands together, bow heads, close our eyes
and give thanks. Because when it’s a hundred degrees
and 80% humidity and you’ve been cycling for 30 miles,
Patricia Franz writes picture books and poetry. She believes children, dogs, and sourdough have a lot to teach us about life, joy, and wonder. She has raised two boys, four dogs, and holds a master’s degree in Theology with a focus on children’s spirituality. Patricia, her husband, her Bernese Mountain dog, Bonny, and her sourdough starter split their time between the Arizona desert and the Sierra Nevada mountains. 
Welcome home, Patricia! And congratulations on your poem publication! There’s something about just saying the word “chickadee” that offers “the tiny life that reconnects you to the world.” Looking forward to maybe more posts about your trip!
Wow! What a trip! And congratulations on the publications.
Great to hear of your travels through Asia, Patricia. Each time I am fortunate enough to visit this fascinating region I find the writing inspiration comes in torrents -a bit like the monsoon. I love the whimsy in your resultant poem. I also admire your stickability to cycle in such oppressive conditions. They say one of the reasons we travel is to bring back stories. The one you have captured in your poem is a shining example of this truism.
YAY!!!! So glad you got a poem in Consilience. Their journal is really beautiful! So glad you made it home. Just in time before the earthquake. My dad got lots of aftershocks in northern Thailand.
What an incredible trip, Patricia!
And I was incredibly moved by “Chickadee Ridge.” My deepest sympathies to your sister.
What an experience!! Life truly is like that – up and down, yes and no, push and pull, and once we can come to terms with that, I think it becomes a bit easier to ride the waves! As much as I’d love to be on vacation, I don’t think I could handle that weather, I’d definitely have wilted!!!
Hmmm….not sure if my previous comment went through, or if the mighty internet ate it – but just in case, I’ll just say again how incredible your experience sounds, though I don’t think I’d handle that weather very well, yikes!!
So glad you had a safe and wonderful trip! Congratulations on your poem being accepted! Yes, some don’t but the doesn’t matter. That some do matters. I like pondering the spiritual nature of things, as you do in your poem, that makes organized religion rather beside the point.
I’m so glad I didn’t miss your post, Patricia, so full of goodness! Congratulations for your poem’s acceptance & thanks for sharing your awesome trip with us, full of both serious thoughts and a bit of a kickback in that ending! I especially love “need this blessing the most”!, wise introspection!
Patricia, Congratulations on your Chickadee poem being published! Perseverance pays off! I’ve stopped submitting for now – Tyger Tyger seems difficult to get into. Your trip sounds fabulous! We have a few US based trips planned from now until early June but I’m deciding on what to do this fall. Glad you are home!