Ralph Fletcher - a great writing mentor!

The summer of 2013 I got to hear Ralph Fletcher speak at TC. That day he shared this poem with us:

The Good Old Times  by Ralph Fletcher

Sometimes I remember

the good old days,

sitting on the kitchen floor

with my brothers and sister,

each on our own square

of cool linoleum.

I’m fresh from the bath,

wearing baseball pajamas.

Mom gives us a cup of milk,

two cookies, a kiss goodnight,

I still can’t imagine

anything better than that.

Click HERE to go to my Notes about Ralph's August 2013 Keynote

That day he told us to pick our own moment, one we remember well and write a poem about it. He suggested to get started, we use HIS first two lines and HIS last two lines.

Amazingly, that day, I wrote a poem quickly!! Since that day, I have shared his poetry writing tip every year with the teachers I help to teach writing and with the students I teach.

This year and days after Veteran's Day, I was sharing Ralph's poem with my 3rd graders. Afterwards, I was moved to wrote this poem:

Sometimes I remember

the good old days

Our guest arrived just before 3pm

to the Atmosphere Studio Classrooms

including Ryan's dad in his official Navy uniform

On cue, we sang "Anchors Away"

and all the military songs with gusto.

So many moms, dads, grandpas, grandmas, and friends

came to celebrate with the 3rd graders

Honoring ALL the Veterans who keep us free

I still can't imagine

anything better than that.

Thanks, Ralph Fletcher! You are a wonderful writing mentor!