Summer
Summer is with it,
she's
wild,
she likes
bare legs and cutoffs
and camping
and hikes;
she dives in deep water,
she wades in a stream,
she guzzles cold drinks
and she drowns in ice cream;
she runs barefoot,
she picnics,
she fishes,
digs bait,
she pitches a tent
and she stays up too late
while she counts out the stars,
swats mosquitos and flies,
hears crickets,
smells pine trees,
spies night-creature eyes;
she rides bareback,
goes sailing,
plays tennis,
climbs trees;
she soaks in the sunshine;
she gulps in a breeze;
she tastes the warm air
on the end of her tongue,
and she falls asleep
reading
alone
in the sun.
she likes
bare legs and cutoffs
and camping
and hikes;
she dives in deep water,
she wades in a stream,
she guzzles cold drinks
and she drowns in ice cream;
she runs barefoot,
she picnics,
she fishes,
digs bait,
she pitches a tent
and she stays up too late
while she counts out the stars,
swats mosquitos and flies,
hears crickets,
smells pine trees,
spies night-creature eyes;
she rides bareback,
goes sailing,
plays tennis,
climbs trees;
she soaks in the sunshine;
she gulps in a breeze;
she tastes the warm air
on the end of her tongue,
and she falls asleep
reading
alone
in the sun.
Myra Cohn Livingston
10 comments:
Oh, this is fantastic! So truuuuuuuuuuue. It's taken me all summer to be able to stay up til midnight. And, I report to work on Monday. Sob.
No wonder Summer falls asleep reading, she's been on the move! She's done all the things, and now it's time for a well-deserved book and a nap.
In our corner of the world, school hasn't started yet but there's homework to do.
I love this poem! Wow! It really captures summer--especially when I was a child. I love the figurative elements and the imagery. Thanks for sharing it.
I was getting ready to comment that my childhood summers (even my adult summers) don't have much in common with the one in this poem (except the ending!) when I thought...MENTOR TEXT!! I'm SO going to get my students writing on the first day of school, making a poem to summer that starts with
Summer is with it
She's (or he's or it's) wild
She/he/it likes..."
And just for the sake of ease, we'll not worry about rhymes.
THANKS!!
I am so glad you shared this poem! What a delight! Love the images, the language, those verbs!!! I can't wait to share it with my students. Thanks!!
What a delightful poem. Even though I'm no longer tied to the school schedule, there is still something wild about summer.
I like Myra Cohn Livingston's voice in "Summer."It's intoxicating–and I hope our summer decides to linger a bit longer. Thanks Ruth, and all the best with this new school year!
What a wonderful race of a poem that shows how easy it is to come to the end of summer before you're really ready to.
Terrific poem - thanks for sharing. This summer whizzed right by!
What a great list poems. It would be a good format to have students use. Loving
"she gulps in a breeze... climbs trees, ... falls asleep in the sun"
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