It's been a while since I participated in a poetry swap, so I was determined to get involved this year. Tabatha Yeatts at The Opposite of Indifference has been generously coordinating summer and holiday swaps for years. It's a lovely way to "meet" someone new that you may only know through blogging. This year I was paired with Carmela Martino, author, poet, teacher, and blogger at Teaching Authors.
I got home late in the evening and found her package waiting for me. Because I have been mired in grading, I decided to wait to open it until my grades were submitted this morning. So, at 9:01 am, after closing the semester, I sat down with a pot of tea (cacao chai from In Pursuit of Tea) and my gift.
One of the things I love about these swaps is that the participants write poems for one another. Imagine receiving a poem written just for you! There's something magical about it. When I learned Carmela had been a math major in college, I knew I wanted to write a Pi poem for her. For her part, Carmela took one of the recent Poetry Sisters' challenges to write a dansa and crafted this poem. (Click to enlarge.)
Thank you, Tabatha for organizing the holiday swap, and an even bigger thank you to Carmela for making this experience so special.
I hope you'll take some time to check out all the wonderful poetic things being shared and collected today by Karen Edmisten. Happy poetry Friday friends!
What a lovely poem, as you say! I like the art that goes with it, too.
ReplyDeleteA cool calendar and a lilting dansa! ❤️ Thanks for sharing, Tricia and Carmela!
ReplyDeleteSo fun to share in the gift-giving and read about the poems and swaps! Carmela's danza is lovely!
ReplyDeleteTricia, I'm so glad you like the poem and gift. What a wonderful coincidence that the calendar card contains one of your favorite poems. I look forward to sharing your gifts to me when I post next week.
ReplyDeleteTricia, your poem swap from Carmela is a fabulous combination of poetic goodness. The poem flows beautifully making the dansa the right format. I look forward to reading your swap to Carmela next week.
ReplyDeleteIt is so fun to see these swaps -- each partner writes the perfect poem for their swap partner (your Pi poem is swoon-worthy) and works so hard to come up with just the perfect gifts! This is what love looks like.
ReplyDeleteWhat a gift to treasure! Carmela's dansa is just right for winter wondering.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful gift and poem. Have a wonderful holiday, Tricia!
ReplyDeleteOooh, I'm adding Farmhouse Greetings to my Favorites in Etsy! (Swooning over the "Hope" is the thing with feathers calendar card.) What gorgeous gifts Carmela sent, along with a gorgeous poem. Thanks for sharing these with us!
ReplyDeleteCarmela's poem is lovely, cozy, and the line for those we are missing at the holidays is exactly how I'm feeling this year.
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