2. DEDICATION
Dear Mom,
I’ve put together a collection of poetry to give you appreciation for all
that you’ve done. Thank you for your patience, your resilience, your
humor, and your love and care for me and my siblings. Thank you for the
late nights of movies and conversation. Thank you for all of the laundry
that you’ve done and the countless meals you’ve cooked. Thank you for
the times you’ve patiently stood outside the dressing room in the clothing
store and waited for me. Thank you for everything you’ve done.
3. Life is a stream
On which we strew
Petal by petal the flower of our
heart;
The end lost in dream,
They float past our view,
We only watch their glad, early
start.
“PETALS”
B Y A M Y L O W E L L
Freighted with hope,
Crimsoned with joy,
We scatter the leaves of our
opening rose;
Their widening scope,
Their distant employ,
4. We never shall know. And the
stream as it flows
Sweeps them away,
Each one is gone
Ever beyond into infinite ways.
We alone stay
While years hurry on,
The flower fared forth, though its
fragrance still stays.
(CONTINUED)
5. EXPLICATION
―Petals‖ was written by Amy Lowell and published in 1912 in ―A Dome of Many-
Coloured Glass.‖ The poem is about a comparison between dreams and flower petals.
The author starts out by talking about how flower petals that float down a stream are like
our dreams and the stream is like our lives. The speaker talks about how the flower of our
heart floats past what we can see, or our view. This can be interpreted as our dreams
floating past us as our lives move on. As the poem progresses, the tone becomes sadder
because it talks about how we lose our petals. It talks about how we are happy at first, but
then we become sad as we lose our petals. In other words, the poem is saying that we
become discouraged when we lose our dreams.
6. The poem says that they are gone ―ever beyond into infinite ways.‖
There is a sort of finality in these words. It means that they are gone
forever and are beyond our reach. After these verses, the poem says that
―We alone stay while years hurry on.‖ It means that we are still here even
though our dreams have floated past us. The last verse says that ―The
flower fared forth, though its fragrance still stays.‖ In this poem, the
flower was our dream and the fragrance of it was the lingering memory
of our dreams.
7. The rhyme scheme of this poem started out as ABCABC. The rhyme
changes in the seventh line to DEFDEF. The words change in the third
group of verses to GHIGHI, but still have the same rhyming pattern. The
imagery was very good because the words were descriptive and painted a
picture of the comparison between flower petals and streams and life and
dreams. The symbolism was also excellent because of the strong symbolic
relationship between the different things.
8. Well, son, I’ll tell you:
Life for me ain’t been no crystal
stair.
It’s had tacks in it,
And splinters,
And boards torn up,
And places with no carpet on the
floor—
Bare.
MOTHER TO SON
B Y L A N G S T O N H U G H E S
But all the time
I’se been a-climbin’ on,
And reachin’ landin’s,
And turnin’ corners,
And sometimes goin’ in the
dark
Where there ain’t been no light.
9. So boy, don’t you turn back.
Don’t you set down on the steps
’Cause you finds it’s kinder hard.
Don’t you fall now—
For I’se still goin’, honey,
I’se still climbin’,
And life for me ain’t been no crystal
stair.
(CONTINUED)
10. EXPLICATION
The poem ―Mother to Son‖ was written by Langston Hughes. The speaker in the
poem is a mother, and she is talking to her son. The theme of the poem is that life isn’t
easy. The speaker says that ―life ain’t been no crystal stair.‖ She is comparing her life to
something that is crystal because it is something that is perfect; whereas, her life has been
far from perfect. This particular line was introduced as the second line and is placed at the
end of the poem as the last line. The speaker talks about how her life has had tacks and
splinters in it. This is symbolic of how she has suffered hurts in her life. The mother also
talks about how there have been places where the boards have been torn up. This is an
indication that there have been some especially hard times in her life where there weren’t
even any floor boards to walk across.
11. The speaker says she has still been climbing up the whole time, despite her
circumstances. She says that she has been ―reachin’ landin’s‖ and ―turnin’ corners.‖ She is
telling her son that she has had some progress in her life, despite her problems. ―Turnin’
corners‖ is a reference to this. The speaker then urges her son to never turn back. She is
telling him to be strong and do what he has resolved to do. The mother also tells her son
not to sit down on the steps of life and give up.
The poem is also unique because of the language that it uses. It uses the kind of
language that the mother uses when she speaks to her son. There wasn’t any particular
rhythm or rhyme scheme in the poem. Instead, descriptive images and evocative words
were used.
12. Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
“THE ROAD NOT TAKEN”
BY ROBERT FROST
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim
Because it was grassy and wanted wear,
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,
13. And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way
I doubted if I should ever come back.
(CONTINUED)
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood,
and I,
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the
difference.
14. EXPLICATION
―The Road Not Taken‖ was written by Robert Frost. The speaker in the poem is
the author and he talks about a decision that needs to be made. The author tells the
story of how he needs to make this decision. He talks about two separate paths and
how he has to choose one of them. Both of the ways are equal to each other
because they are both worn the same, yet they both are also covered with leaves. At
first, the speaker says that one of them looks ―grassy and wanted wear.‖ It gives the
impression that this a path or decision that hasn’t been taken as much. The speaker
is conflicted, and is not sure which path to travel.
15. In the poem, the reference to the poems is symbolic of the paths and decisions in life
that we have to choose. Like the speaker in the poem, we sometimes can’t decide. The
paths and the decisions that they symbolize are the themes in this particular poem.
The rhyme scheme in ―The Road Not Taken‖ is ABAAB. The rhyme in the poem is
strong and fits it nicely. The speaker does end up choosing one of the paths. Although, at
the same time, he is telling himself that he will take the other path on a different day. The
speaker then went on to say that he does not think that he would ever go down that other
path that he is talking about. In the end, the speaker says that he will tell people that he
took the road that was less-traveled.
16. Nature the gentlest mother is,
Impatient of no child,
The feeblest or the waywardest.
Her admonition mild
In forest and the hill
By traveller be heard,
Restraining rampant squirrel
Or too impetuous bird.
NATURE-THE GENTLEST MOTHER
BY EMILY DICKINSON
How fair her conversation
A summer afternoon,
Her household her assembly;
And when the sun go down,
Her voice among the aisles
Incite the timid prayer
Of the minutest cricket,
The most unworthy flower.
17. When all the children sleep,
She turns as long away
As will suffice to light her lamps,
Then bending from the sky
(CONTINUED)
With infinite affection
An infiniter care,
Her golden finger on her lip,
Wills silence everywhere.
18. EXPLICATION
The poem ―Nature – the Gentlest Mother is‖ was written by Emily
Dickinson. It was published posthumously in the year 1886. The poem
talks about how all of the living things in nature are taken care of by
nature itself. The poem is using ―Mother Nature‖ to allude to the love of
a real mother. In the first stanza, the poem talks about how nature is
patient with all of her children; even the most awkward and wayward
ones. The main theme of this poem is nurture. In the same way, human
mothers are also gentle and patient with their children.
19. The author of this poem makes good use of imagery. The most obvious use of
imagery is the line “Nature – the Gentlest Mother is.” It is comparing the Mother
Nature in the poem with her caring ways to the fashion in which human mothers
can act towards their offspring. A lot of personification is used in this poem
because of the many human traits that are given to nature.
The line “Her Household, Her Assembly” is another example of imagery in the
poem. These lines could be referring to everything in the earth as a part of the
household or assembly. Members of this household could include plants or animals.
The poem’s tone is positive because it is about love and caring.
20. The first two lines of the last stanza talk about ―infinite affection‖
and ―infiniter care.‖ It is no mistake that the poem uses a word
―infinite‖ to express how much the mother loves and cares for her
children. The speaker is using these words and personifications to
give a picture of just how much a mother loves her children.
21. Lord Jesus, Thou hast known
A mother's love and tender care:
And Thou wilt hear, while for my
own
Mother most dear I make this
birthday prayer.
A PRAYER FOR A MOT HER’S BIRT HD AY
BY HENRY V AN D YKE
Protect her life, I pray,
Who gave the gift of life to me;
And may she know, from day to
day,
The deepening glow of Life that
comes from Thee.
22. As once upon her breast
Fearless and well content I lay,
So let her heart, on Thee at rest,
Feel fears depart and troubles fade away.
Her every wish fulfill;
And even if Thou must refuse
In anything, let Thy wise will
A comfort bring such as kind mothers use.
(CONTINUED)
Ah, hold her by the hand,
As once her hand held mine;
And though she may not understand
Life's winding way, lead her in peace divine.
I cannot pay my debt
For all the love that she has given;
But Thou, love's Lord, wilt not forget
Her due reward,--bless her in earth and
heaven.
23. EXPLICATION
―A Prayer for a Mother’s Birthday‖ is a beautiful prayer written in first person. The
author is the speaker in this poem. He is essentially praying a prayer of blessing over his
mother’s life because it is her birthday.
There are several deep meanings and references in this poem. The author prays a
prayer of protection over his mother in the first line of the second stanza of the poem.
He prays this prayer of protection over her life because of the gift of life that she gave to
him. A deeper and spiritual meaning is explored in the second and third lines of the
second stanza when the speaker prays that she may know ―The deepening glow of life
that comes from thee.‖ He is praying that she will experience the life that is given to her
because of Christ.
24. In the third stanza, the author talks about how he once rested
contentedly upon his mother. He prays that her heart will rest in Jesus and
be content and fearless as he was when his mother held him. In the fifth
stanza, the speaker goes on to pray that her hand will be held as his hand
was when she held it. The imagery in this poem was very good because it
helped me to paint a picture in my head of the things that were
mentioned in this prayer. The rhyme scheme for the poem was ABAB for
all of the stanzas except the last one.
26. ODE TO RAIN AND
MEMORIES
The rain is gently falling,
Its drops bring life and healing
The warm drops massage my tired body and bring back feeling,
I used to stand there and feel the rain until I heard my mother calling,
I didn’t want to leave, so I’d stand there stalling.
As a child, the rain was so very appealing
After it was done, the sun shone with a rainbow revealing
Those days are so worth recalling.
27. We were just little children in those days,
Oh, how we loved to dream of foreign lands and places,
We’d have fun playing in the rain or soaking up the sun’s rays,
Then we’d set a goal and run races
In my memories, all that is good stays,
I will never forget our innocent and happy faces.
28. DEDICATION
I have included ―Ode to Rain and Memories‖ because I thought that
you would enjoy reading this poem about how the other kids and I used
to play when we were little. Writing it brought back the memory of
running out in the rain and splashing around in puddles until you called us
in. Reading it probably reminds you of what the younger kids do now;
how they are the ones who do this very thing. I included it in this
collection because I thought that you would enjoy both the memory of
this and the way the poem is structured.
29. HOPE
It is like a tiny spark,
It starts small, but grows bigger.
On us, it leaves its mark.
Soon it is a roaring, raging fire,
It cannot be put out.
It is what pushes us forward,
It is our shield and sword.
It is the weapon that helps us to fight,
When things seem like they’ll never be right
30. It is the wind in our sails,
It is what keeps our boats from turning over,
It saves us when all else fails.
It is small, but very mighty,
It is faraway, yet close.
It is hope.
31. DEDICATION
I have included the poem ―Hope‖ in this collection because I think
that hope is a very important thing to have because it is what keeps us
going. I like how it can start out as a very small spark and then grow into a
flame. I also like how it can be a shield and sword that will help us to
fight. I have included this poem because I thought that that you would
appreciate the different ideas of what hope is in my poem. I think that it
is a great reminder of what hope can do for us. I also thought that you
would enjoy the rhymes.
32. LITTLE SISTER
Little sister, I remember the day you were born,
You were just the cutest thing I’d ever seen,
A full head of beautiful curls,
Along with big brown eyes, intelligent and keen
Your cheeks were rosy,
And you were wrapped up in a soft blanket, snug and cozy.
In an awed voice, I asked if I could hold you,
You looked so tiny, so fragile, and so new.
33. I picked you up gently
You felt so very light,
But you were perfect and just right
And now I’ve had the honor of watching you grow,
The joy of watching you find your wings and fly,
Your smiles are worth more than anything money can buy,
And your laughter is the most joyous sound in the world
Oh, the fun that you’ve brought!
Little sis, you dance a lot, laugh a lot, and are loved a lot.
And in my heart, you will always have a special spot.
34. DEDICATION
I have included ―Little Sister‖ because I thought that it was a poem
that you would enjoy. It is actually about my youngest sisters. I was old
enough to remember when they were born and to remember hearing
about it and what my reactions were. I also remember going to visit them
in the hospital and how I felt when I held them. I thought that this was a
poem that you would enjoy because it is a nice poem that might bring
back sweet memories of holding them for the first time and what they
looked like.
35. Through it all,
You’re my mother,
Whether I’m happy, or not,
The times when I act like a doll,
And the times I yell at my brother
The patience you have can’t be
bought,
THROUGH IT ALL
You’ll put up with my
procrastinating,
Even when I stay up all night
And then become cranky
because of my eyesight
Through it all, you’re my
mother.
36. DEDICATION
I wrote the poem ―Through it All‖ because I wanted you to know
how appreciative I am of the way that you are there for everything. I
was inspired to write it because of the way that you are there for all
of the things that happen. Whether I’m happy or not. Even when I
stay up all night. Thanks for all your patience!
37. I know that you don’t have
time for yourself,
Because you’re always busy
You work hard enough to make
anyone dizzy
You wash and you fold,
You cook and you clean,
You make sure we’re not cold.
YOUR TIME
A harder-working mother I’ve
never seen
You’re strong and resilient,
You can’t be bent
You do everything for such a
large crew,
Thank you so much for
everything you do.
38. DEDICATION
I wrote this for you and included it because I wanted to recognize
you for all of your hard work and selflessness. It is true that you are
always busy and work hard enough to make anyone dizzy. Thanks for
all of the many things that you have done and are doing. Thanks for
meals you have cooked and all of the loads of laundry that you have
stayed up to fold. Thanks for all that you do!
39. BIBLIOGRAPHY
Birmingham, Christy. "Poetry analysis: Petals, by Amy Lowell - by Christy
Birmingham - Helium." Helium - Where Knowledge Rules. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 May 2013.
<http://www.helium.com/items/2262585-analysis-of-the-poem-petals-by-amy-lowell>.
Dickinson, Emily. "Nature the gentlest mother is by Emily Dickinson."
PoemHunter.Com - Thousands of poems and poets. Poetry Search Engine. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 May
2013. <http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/nature-the-gentlest-mother-is/>.
Dyke, Henry Van. "A Prayer for a Mother's Birthday - Poem by Henry Van Dyke."
Famous Poets and Poems - Read and Enjoy Poetry. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 May 2013.
<http://famouspoetsandpoems.com/poets/henry_van_dyke/poems/2498.html>.
40. (CONTINUED)
Hughes, Langston. "Mother to Son - Poem by Langston Hughes." Famous Poets
and Poems - Read and Enjoy Poetry. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 May 2013.
<http://famouspoetsandpoems.com/poets/langston_hughes/poems/16948>.
Lorcher, Trent. "Analysis of Three Emily Dickinson Nature Poems." Bright Hub
Education Provides Teaching Tips & Lesson Plans, Homework Help & Study Guides,
Homeschooling Advice & Much More. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 May 2013.
<http://www.brighthubeducation.com/homework-help-literature/50416-emily-
dickinson-nature-poems/>.
41. (CONTINUED)
Lowell, Amy. "Petals - Poem by Amy Lowell." Famous Poets and Poems - Read and
Enjoy Poetry. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 May 2013.
<http://famouspoetsandpoems.com/poets/amy_lowell/poems/19949>.
"Spark Notes: Frost’s Early Poems: ―The Road Not Taken‖." Spark Notes:
Today's Most Popular Study Guides. Spark Notes, n.d. Web. 25 May 2013.
<http://www.sparknotes.com/poetry/frost/section7
Suttor, Marijane. "Poetry analysis: Mother to Son, by Langston Hughes - by
Marijane Suttor - Helium." Helium - Where Knowledge Rules. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 May
2013. <http://www.helium.com/items/2273942-mother-to-son-langston-hughes>.
