Hello and Happy Poetry Friday! Be sure to visit poet/collage artist/kind person Cathy Stenquist for Roundup.
Did you hear that Derby 152 gave us the first woman trainer to win the Kentucky Derby? Yep, Cherie DeVaux made history when Golden Tempo won last Saturday. So exciting, esp. for the ten-year-old in me who dreamed of training a horse that my sister would ride to victory in the Kentucky Derby.
Also this week I got to hang out with my Garden Girls & learn & dream about all the green, growing things we've planted or will plant in our own gardens. So what if it was raining? It was still inspiring... All about beauty, sustenance, and friendship with each other & the earth!
Denise, Irene, Donna, Melissa
(not pictured: Shannon)
Coming next week: interview with Amy Hevron, illustrator of Come In! Come In! Wordspinners to Welcome You Home. The book includes 66 "wordspinner" poems written by me about homes and things found inside homes, like spoon, room, and dog! Coming from Astra/Wordsong, Oct. 20, 2026.
Today's ArtSpeak: WOMEN poem features the next artist from the Harper's Bazaar article. I am loving learning about all these amazing women artists! And wow, what a force Jaune Quick-to-See Smith was (she died last year). A member of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Nation, Smith also created book illustrations, often for poetry books...like The Telling of the World by Joy Harjo. Click to learn more about Smith and her "Trickster" pieces. Thanks so much for reading!
coyote sees the world clearly without looking
snow-seasoned stream
tastes of mountains
far away & long ago
pillow of his paws
padding the pinestraw path
reveals rain
or no rain
hare hiding behind
twining honeysuckle vine,
o how its sweetness
moon howling fat
& golden, reminds him
he's not alone
never has been
Oh, that Derby win was FANTASTIC! I was with a group of Casting for Recovery Alumni, and we did a little impromptu fundraiser with $5 bets. The winner would spit the kitty with CfR. No surprise that NONE of us picket the come-from-behind horse, but ALL of us were cheering our heads off for the first woman trainer in the history of the Derby. (And CfR got all $85!! Win-win!!)
ReplyDeleteI love your coyote poem, both for what is says and how you said it. So much delicious alliteration!!!
Yes to female trainers winning the Derby! Love your coyote poem; "pillow of his paws" is adorable and makes me want to hug myself. And congrats on the upcoming wordspinner poems book! Looking forward to Amy's visit next week.
ReplyDeleteAmy Hevron's round cuties carry such appeal!. BRAVA! for this news of yet another groovy twenty-twentysix Irene Latham book fix for us fans. [Confession, haven't read your celebrated + I know excellently written + very creative starry book; can't bring myself to the idea of toying with ED's real life this way.] BUT I wish you constellations of more Joy with it.] The artwork of Jaune Quick-to-See-Smith is new to me & I appreciate knowing of it. Those paws over eyes make me sympathetic to this fearsome predator of precious Bun-Buns, a natural order of things, prey. Your poem + Jaune's art almost make me want to cuddle this coyote. And, I saw what you did there: "Moon howling fat." You are The Word-Whisperer, dear irene. Your fan, JAN
ReplyDeleteIrene, fun post! The Derby, the gardening, the artwork, the coyote. So many interesting oarts. Some favorite lines from your poem: "...sweetness / sets his nostrils quivering!"
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"moon howling fat
& golden, reminds him
he's not alone"
What a sweet coyote! Those pillow paws and quivering nose. I think that's what snow scented rivers do to me too! Happy Mother's Day!
ReplyDeleteI love the stanza of p-sounds! That coyote is pretty cute for being a predator of cats. (We think a coyote murdered one of ours.) Happy Mother’s Day.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Irene! "pillow of his paws" is a lovely phrase. And yay for the female trainer! I was watching and cheering.
ReplyDeleteMary Lee called your alliteration delicious and I must agree! This is a poem that begs to be read aloud.
ReplyDeleteThanks for introducing us to Juane Quick-to-See Smiths art. It was very interesting. I enjoyed how your poem showed us how the coyote "sees" his world with all his senses. And that title! Wow!
ReplyDeleteIrene, so much joy in this post:) Enjoyed "coyote sees the world clearly without looking," it reminds me of Kevin Henkes, PB, Kitten's First Full Moon, with its lovely imagery and the final, aha moment beats, "he's not alone, never has been." Beautiful! Congratulations on Come In! Come In! Word Spinners to Welcome You Home. Sounds perfect for young readers as a fun read and for teachers to connect to studies in the classroom!
ReplyDeleteYes! I saw we had a woman horse trainer win the derby! Whoo-hoo for that! We had coyotes in the coulee behind our last house in Wisconsin's Driftless area. They are interesting animals which your poem glorifies in a great way. Congrats on the new book - you are one prolific author! Awesome!
ReplyDeleteI like those "pillow of his paws" too. Congrats on your new book coming out his fall, and all the goodness in your post, thanks!
ReplyDeleteAnother adorable book! You are such an inspiration to this budding poet. :)
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