Welcome to day 4 of the November Open Write. We are so glad you are here.
Our Host
Emily lives in Vinalhaven, Maine where she teaches middle school on an island 15 miles off the coast. After a decade as a science and environmental educator, she’s returned to one of her original loves: ELA. She works to connect with students through listening to their stories and sharing new stories. She’s happy listening to podcasts while cooking, and hiking throughout the island with her husband and 2-year-old Zeke.
Process
- This is an acrostic poem with your name: one version will describe you at your best, and the other at your worst. I encourage students to stay away from the physical, but you do whatever you’d like.
- Start by exploring adjectives and character traits that start with the letters of your name. Look for both positive and negative traits until you find a few that resonate with you.
- Create your acrostics using your chosen words, adding any flourishes you’d like.
- Write an ending line “but I am always…” fill in the blank for you.
- Variations: Write about something else at their best and worst. Your pet, town, country, scientific concept, class, or anything else on your mind. If acrostics aren’t calling your name (ha!) today, try any format you like.
Emily’s Poem
Worst & Best by Emily Cohn
At my Best I am…
Enthusiastic and earthy
Merry and magic-believing
Idealistic and imaginative
Laughing
Youthful
At my worst I am…
Envious and egotistical
Messy and mundane
Icy and irritable
Lazy
Yearning to be elsewhere
But I am always Emily
Your Turn
Now, scroll to the comment section below to write your own poem. (This is a public space, so you may choose to use only your first name or initials depending on your privacy preferences.) Not ready? That’s okay. Read the poems already posted for more inspiration. Ponder your own throughout the day. Return later. And, if the prompt does not work for you, that is fine. All writing is welcome. Just write something. Also, please be sure to respond to at least three writers. Oh, and a note about drafting: Since we are writing in short bursts, we all understand (and even welcome) the typos and partial poems that remind us we are human, and that writing is always becoming. If you’d like to invite other teachers to write with us, tell them to subscribe. For suggestions on how to comment with care.
Hi Emily
Thank you for hosting today and for a very unique and fun way to work with acrostic! This was fun. Sorry I’m late sharing because we had a long Tuesday meeting at school.
Sassy
Teacher
Achiever
Creator
Enthusiast
Yearning for learning
Sick and
Tired of
All the
Crap in
Education
Yearning for change
©Stacey L. Joy, 11/19/24
Well stated- I enjoyed how you put our thoughts on teaching into your ( our) perspective!! Excellent!! I definitely agree with the last verse!!
Oh, Stacey, such an awesome second stanza! We’ll-played. I love the first stanza too, as you are all those lovely things. I especially like Enthusiast tonight.
Stacey, you may be “yearing for change” , but you’re not waiting for it! You’re following Ghandi’s advice to “be that change you want”. So, pitch the “crap”, take a nap, and get back up and “rap”! Okay? 🙂
Stacey,
That second verse deserves a big Amen, Sister. You are all kinds of amazing, strong, excellent, and I love learning from you.
Stacey, thanks for writing today! Why are Tuesdays the longest dang day of the week? I enyed jo the rhyme at the end of your first stanza, and the sassy, creative, achiever – there’s a drive in the first stanza at your best, that comes back around with the truth in the second one. These words ring true to me today, both the yearning for learning and also for change. Thanks for this offering today!
Stacey, I love all of this! That first stanza is beautiful, and the second stanza is very relatable: I’m also “[s]ick and / Tired of / All the / Crap in / Education.” Thank you for this!
Emily — Thank you for this fun prompt. I love that you are merry and magic-believing. I think we all need to believe in a little magic to keep going these days!
At my best I am …
Tenderhearted and truthful
Amiable and accepting
Mindful
Motivated to help others
Interested in listening to someone else’s life story
At my worst
I am tearful and terrified
Anxious about what lies ahead
Mystified by the madness
Mourning lost freedoms
Irritated at the world
Tammi, wow. I can relate so much to your second stanza, especially those last three lines. And the first stanza reminds me of why I am excited to spend time with you this week!
Tammi, your acrostic speaks well of you, in that at your best, you’re able to prepare for the worst by being mindful and motivated to help others. Feed the best and starve the worst. You’ll be better able to address the issues that currently mystify us all. Take care. Hugs from one who understands.
Tammi, thanks for writing today! I love “interested in listening to someone else’s life story.” I get the sense that you love people, and want the best for them – so many of your words were about accepting and helping others. The anger in the second one also seems on behalf of others. Tammi, thank you for sharing this meditation on your place in the world today!
Good Evening, Emily! Thank you for hosting today. I love that you are “merry and magic-believing.” When I read the prompt this morning, I was so excited about it, and then the day happened. I didn’t quite get to play with words as much as I wanted.
A Balance Act
At my best, I am
Loving, loyal, listening with intention
Energetic, endearing, easy going
Inclusive, inviting, inventive
Likable, lively, lighthearted
Young at heart (have to point this out since there aren’t many other “y” adjectives)
Amiable, adventurous, artistic
Please, stay away when I am
Lost, lightless, or languished
Exhausted, empty, enraged
Impatient, impulsive, introspective
Lingering on doubts, locked in my mind
Yearning for more but yielding to fear
Anxious, aloof, a little too cautious
In the end, I am still Leilya
Leilya, that first stanza is full of adjectives I have b experienced of you and your delightful temperament. I loved reading about the “stay away” you!
Wow, Leilya! You rocked this one with the alliteration, or is it something else? Tired brain over here. All of the descriptions of the best of you I agree! You’re a gem!
Leilya, no need for apologies! I’m a night owl writer myself, so I can appreciate that! I love “listening with intention” “endearing” “lighthearted” and the warning to stay away when you’re at your worst! Thanks for this honest and “introspective take on the prompt – it’s clear that you love to play with words, and your livliness shines through! Thanks for writing after a busy day!
At my worst I am…
Klutzy
Annoying
Troublesome
Insensitive
Egotistical
At my best I am…
Kind
Ambitious
Trustworthy
Impressionable
Empathetic
I like how you flipped the script and ended on the best notes. Trustworthy is my favorite word. That is truly a wonderful, wonderful quality!
Love your word choices, klutzy & troublesome. Your ending is a perfect contrast to the first stanza. Empathetic is a quality that we need to see more of in this world.
K.C., I thought about flipping the order to begin with the worst and end with the best. It leaves the better “aftertaste.” I am sure you have hyperbolized your “worst” to some degree as often we are the most critical of ourselves. Thank you for sharing!
Katie, I love putting the worst first, and ending with you at your best. I get a sense of calm ambition in your best! I am also feeling a little klutzy today… Thanks for writing this today and bringing your impressionable and trustworthy self!
KC, I’m with everyone else, I loved the “flip” so that you’d end on your best qualities, which truly are wonderful traits. Thank you for crafting and sharing this today!
Emily, thank you for this creative prompt today!
At my best I am…
Motivated
Creative
Kind
Energetic
Neat
Zany
Inclusive
Enthusiastic
At my worst I am…
Mean
Cold
Knucklehead
Egocentric
Numb
Zoned-out
Ignorant
Envious
Oh, Mckenzie, this is so simple, yet sublime. I love the honesty and use of such interesting words.
I love the words you chose to use (even the ones that have a negative connotation) thanks for sharing!
Zany people are my favorite!
M M, I already like you. The word “zany” sounds so attractive! Thank you for being “brutally” honest. ))
MM,
Good!!! I don’t know why I love the second stanza so much since it’s the worst of you. I think I really appreciate the honest and raw choices.
😊
Mckenzie – I really enjoyed this honest and creative set of acrostic adjectives. I get a sense of creativity and welcoming in your first stanza, and I could relate to your second one – nice work on fitting in two Z’s! Thanks for writing with us today and sharing yourself!
“Knucklehead,” lol! I really enjoyed your poem, MM; thank you for writing and sharing with us!
Emily, thanks for this opportunity for a little word play.
best & worst
at my best I am
just
absolutely open to new things
most of the time
it’s hard to know when to jump and when to
exclaim “I should have thought about this a little more”
at my worst I am
just
a lazy person, happy to ignore
managing my time
instead of getting things done, before
even the quietest moments get messy
Jamie! So good to see you. I love reading your name in lower case. Just adds some whimsy and shape to the letters that situates the descriptions as part of rather than separate from the capitals. Love “absolutely open to new things” followed by “most of the time” — great commentary and parenthetical without punctuation. And that last line “even the quietest moments get messy.” I am lingering with this this line for a bit. Thank you.
Jamie, I really like the way you used the prompt to still share a full story! I too at my “worst” tend to spend my time without actually spending my time.
Love these lines —
“most of the time/it’s hard to know when to jump and when to/
exclaim “I should have thought about this a little more” — I can totally relate to this.
Jamie, I like the narrative approach to this prompt. I wish I would do the same. It flows so well without any forced descriptions. You made this look too easy. I also enjoyed learning about your personality. Thank you.
Jamie, oh what fun this flowing acrostic is! I love the lines “it’s hard to know when to jump and when to
exclaim “I should have thought about this a little more”” I also love “before even the quietest moments get messy” – oh this reminds me of when it’s too quiet in another room with kids, and you KNOW it’s about to go down! I love the open and breezy personality I see depicted in your set of poems today!
Hi Jamie,
I love how you’ve shared so much of yourself with us in the two stanzas. I loved this self-reflection and self-acceptance here:
I feel like I’m reading about so many of us today who let “the quietest moments get messy” because we never stop and REST!
😍
These are all incredible!! I plan to respond this evening to all I can’t get to now! Thanks for writing today, everyone!
At our best, we are
Asserting liberty and justice for all
Moving barriers for those in need
Equal access to excellent education
Recognizing problems, seeking solutions
Innovative, inspiring new ideas
Collaborative and caring
Achieving a more perfect union
At our worst, we are
Absorbed by self-interest
Masking the truth
Energized by money
Racist, regressive, and repressive
Idolizing authoritarianism
Compressing the marginalized
And destroying our very union
Maureen, I am glad you started with the positive particularly at the moment when I am trying to dodge the negative. I try to remind students that we are trying to form a more perfect union. I like how you end with union for each stanza.
Wow, Maureen. What a powerful take on this prompt. Thank you for speaking out the truth about the “Racist, regressive, and repressive” tendencies in the worst of us. Here’s to a more perfect union.
I love America when we are at our best. Lately, though it seems we are at our worst. I am hopeful we will return to being our best selves again soon.
Maureen, When I read “At our best, we are,” I I quickly started guessing who “we” are in the poem, and then I saw “A,” and that was the end of the puzzle. This is such a needed poem today. Your depiction of today’s America is so real. Thank you!
NAILED IT! 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽
Maureen – yes, indeed. I was wondering if someone would take on our country today, and you did it so well! Your allusions to “liberty and justice for all” and the hope that we all yearn for in your first stanza, but it somehow feels extra fitting to leave it with the second one. Thanks for honest state of our union. Deep breaths!
Well, Emil, you asked for it!
Who Is She, Really?
A ambitious, arousing, articulate
N nervous, nettlesome, nice
N eedy, naughty, neuculate
A around, aware, a-nut
R restless, ready, rowdy
O observant, obvious, on-it
S silly, sophisticated, socializer
E emotional, energetic, enthusiastic
B banter, bothersome, buddy
O obstreperous, obvious, orderly
R rambunctious, religious, reliable
O on-time, obliging, optimistic
Often enough to be a good friend.
Oh, yes “to be a good friend” indeed, Anna. I learned some new words. You are always the teacher! Obstreperous — this has a few connotations, and I love reading this as a positive way of being, which makes you an advocate for social justice! Yes.
Sarah
“often enough to be a good friend” – oh, I love this! Also, I really enjoy your alliteration; so fun – especially the combination of rambunctious with religious.
Anna — I love your word choices and alliteration!
Anna, I, too, learned a new word with you today–“obstreperous.” It’s the first time I saw this one in print, and I haven’t heard it, but I believe you can be obstreperous to cause good trouble. I have no doubts you are a good friend. Just in this space, you generously share your ideas, handouts, and other resources.
Anna, I asked for it, indeed, and I am glad I did! These trios of words also tell me you like to play with words and get specific, and I learned some new ones along the way. I love how you wrap it up with an image that embodies so many of these adjectives, as well as your closing line. Our good friends see all that we are, and the mix of traits is how we are truly. Thank you for writing today!
Thanks, Emily, for this clever prompt that makes me ponder myself and also get to know others.
At my best I am…
Relentless in my pursuits
Imaginative in my thinking
True to my family, friends and values
Affable and affectionate to others.
At my worst I am…
Resistant to change
Irritable when I’m tired
Too trusting at times
Awful in Math.
Rita,
So lovely to learn more about you in this way. So love to learn “affable and affectionate,” this is a trait I am so grateful that people in the world have to give love in this way to others with the love language, and I wonder if several of us here will be able to relate to the closing line. Here.
Sarah
I’m with you on “irritable when I’m tired”. Love “imaginative in my thinking.”
Rita, my worst days can look similar to yours. Thanks for sharing and reminding me we all have those days!
Rita – I love how you made your four letters work for you today, with more insight into who you are! Your very last line made me laugh out loud, too! I felt like I got to know you through your best, and I could very much relate to your worst!
At my best I am
Soother to hurt hearts
Attentive to every word
Resistant to judging
Available to love
Humbled by my flaws
At my worst I am
Suffering with doubt
Avoider of conflict
Redresser of harms
unAvailable to love
unHumbled by my privileges
Sarah, you sound like a lovely person. I can easily relate to your “worst” qualities, especially Avoider of conflict. Ugh! Don’t you hate it?
So fun the way you squeezed in that little “un” before Available and Humbled …very poetic twist. I love “humbled by my flaws” … and know well that feeling of “unavailable to love” when I am at my worst.
Sarah – you really are “attentive to every word” and “resistant to judging” – I’ve come to value your words over the years and appreciate how you’ve created this space. What’s more, you seem to know and accept yourself. You model that integrity with us all the time. Thanks for sharing your insights into you today!!
Hi Emily. I had fun with this one. I had to use my given name, since Mo is just too short. I also referred to some of Susie Dent’s work- she’s my favorite wordsmith!
Best & Worst
By Maureen Daley 11/19/24
At my best I’m
Magical
Alchemic
Ubiquitous
Rapturous
Enigmatic
Erudite
Nectarous
At my worst I’m
Mumpsimus
Anserine
Ugsome
Rancorous
Ergophobic
Egocentric
Nod crafty
But I am always Mo
Oh my goodness, these words are fabulous! “alchemic,” “erudite,” “rancorous”…wow, you got out the college dictionary, lol. I am smiling big at “nod crafty.” I’m glad that I didn’t write Best/Worst for my name, because, wow, I am awed by yours, Maureen!
Mo, this is such fun and I loved these unique word choices like “Mumpsimus
Anserine
Ugsome
Rancorous
Ergophobic” – I learned some new words, and learned about all the magic you bring to this community.
Thank you for a cool Prompt!
Two dogs of the moon
MOONDOG
at best
Can I achieve- What I believe?
Live my life, as I perceive?
All the way to reprieve…
Yellow my death with a million chameleon leaves.
Testify my legacy, so my children may retrieve
Onward my destiny, with reincarnated weaves.
Neverending upon my Grand birth’s eve.
MOONDOG
at worst.
Can I believe, yet not achieve?
Live a life- they perceive.
All in the way of reprieve…
Yell at death, until it leaves,
Tangle a legacy, that no one can retrieve.
Offer my destiny as plastic weaves,
Neverending cycle of depressive eves.
Clayton, I like the way you begin each stanza with questions. Your first stanza shares your aspirations. Nice rhyme scheme, too. My wish for you is to stay in the first stanza. Though I know we all meander.
This is so technically well done, Boxer. I love your deep questions. My favorite line is Yellow my death with a million chameleon leaves.
Clayton, what a clever use of those words to echo one another in each poem. The rhymes are impressive. Some of my favorite lines are “yellow my death with a million chameleon leaves” and “tangle a legacy that no one can retrieve.” I liked how the best in you is looking forward and passing on that best. Thanks for writing and sharing this today!
Years ago, in one of
my education classes,
the one that wasn’t
about overhead
projectors or curriculum
planning or tests and
measurements, the
instructor asked us
one weekend to go
home and hold a baby.
Um, what?
Give me a chapter to
read and some notes
to study, why would
I want (or need) to hold
a baby?
Now, current and present
me can appreciate the
message behind this
lesson (although I still
maintain it’s an odd
request for a twenty
something year old
who has chosen to
pursue secondary
education to go out
into the world and find
some stranger’s baby
and ask to hold it,
and now that I think
about it, the directions
may not have specified
that the baby had to be
from a stranger,
but have no fear,
I found and held
the baby)
but this poem is not
about that
this poem is about
another assignment
that this instructor
asked of us:
ask someone you deeply
care about what is your best
quality
and what is your worst.
I asked my mother what
was my best quality
to which she replied
your sense of humor.
I asked my mother what
was my worst quality
to which she replied
your sense of humor.
Yep, that checks out.
________________________________________
Emily, thank you for your mentor poem and your prompt today! I can see this prompt as a definite hit in the classroom! For my offering, I didn’t write an acrostic, but I did put all the first letters of each line into an anagram solver website, and I was left with this message: “maternalisms immaturity [with] witty antacids.” So, you know, there’s that, lol.
Wow! You packed so much into this poem. I love the baby assignment…how unique and also think that asking your mother your best and worst qualities was genius. Funny how they are both the same. Which my mom was here so I could ask her.
LOL, Scott. I love the roundabout way you get us to your topic. I’m about to ask my husband about my best and worst qualities. Can’t wait to hear what he has to say!
Scott,
this is a fantastic narrative poem.
Sounds like a much better class for learning about teaching than
No doubt it was a more interesting class.
Thanks for sharing your humor with us.
Scott, thank you so much for these “maternalisms” which it sounds like your professor would have enjoyed! Thanks for sharing the experience of those off-the-wall assignments that really stick with us. The holding of a baby insight will stick with me, and I often think about how each student was someone’s tiny baby. I love your honesty in recounting your mom’s response – sounds like the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree! Thanks, as always, for a fun and thoughtful response!
When Mae Swenson gave us Ordinal Numbers,
my letters grew into pictures that strangely reflected me….
K rock meets a hard place
E climbing up
L carpenter’s square
L true course
E climbing down
Y choosing the road less traveled.
But my best and worst is as revealing
The best of me is that I’m K kind, E egalitarian, L loveable, L lyrical, E eclectic, and Y young at heart.
The worst of me is that I’m K Klutzy (being proprioceptionally challenged), E exasperating (just ask my husband), L lethargic, L lopsided (limping along on my gimpy left ankle), E exhausted, and Y years older than I look (but I still feel it!)
It should be best and worse are… I missed the autocorrect.
Kelley, this is so original! I love how you tackled this prompt. You make me want to look at my name in another light.
Kelley – this makes me so curious to learn more about Ordinal Numbers and I plan to look that up, too! Thanks for the intriguing introduction! Also, I love how you took the letters of the name to create images that resonated – the Y is so interesting, as is the carpenter’s square! I liked your explanations in your worst poem, they gave me a sense of your world and your humor! Thanks for giving me new food for thought today!
Thank you. I’ve had a lot of fun with Swenson’s poem, but I changed the name for my students when they needed help with the poem. I gave you the changed name. It’s Cardinal Ideograms.
Hi Emily,
I loved reading your poem because we have the same name and some of your words I completely relate to. Especially Yearning to be elsewhere! I love the cute little California beach town I live in, but I dream of living on an island in Maine. Haha!
Endlessly endeavoring to learn
Mindful of others
Industrious and imaginative
Laid-back
Yachtswoman ⛵️
Envious (of people traveling)
Melancholic
Incredibly idealistic
Lonely by choice
Yearning to wander
Emily,
Im thinking of the adventures you have on the yacht. I’m a bit jealous! And your second list is full of things I admire. Don’t lose that idealism. Teachers need that suoerpower!
Emily, I love learning a little about you through your words. Even your worst self is appealing – incredibly idealistic, lonely by choice, yearning to wander. And on the best side a laid-back yachtswoman.
Emily, I really like the words that you used in your poem! I like the part where you talked about being “lonely by choice” and I too argue with this statement. Your words are very relatable, except for the yacht part. 🙂
Emily – that cute California beach town sounds pretty great, too! I liked the Ys – we have to get creative there, don’t we? I get a sense of adventure from both sets of acrostics, as well as the multitudes you contain. Thank you for writing and bringing your imaginative and laid-back self to the writing table today!!
This is such a fun poem challenge, and one that can be used in the classroom so effectively–even used on the characters the students get to know through literature.
The Worst and Best
I try to keep my demons at bay
but they win sometimes and I become
Self-absorbed
Uncouth
Sanctimonious
Anxiety-ridden
Narrow-minded
Thankfully, my better angels often
take over and I become
Selfless
Understanding
Spiritual
Accepting
Nurturing
Those who know us, hopefully, love us
even when the worst gets the best of us.
~Susan Ahlbrand
19 November 2024
This was a lovely way of offering your worst and best. It speaks to the universal conflict between good and evil that I think we all experience. Thanks for sharing, Susan.
Susan,
I love your playful use of demons and angels and “us” and the way you weaved best and worst into your last line:
I really like how you framed this, Susan. I also love your idea of using this form for characters in the classroom.
Susan, I love how you added some perspective and framing in between stanzas. Your last lines ring very true, and makes me feel lucky to feel that. I love how you played with “when the worst gets the best of us” – very clever and true! I liked how the two acrostics lined up in the first sounds. Thanks for sharing this sweet perspective!
Hi Emily,
Thanks for hosting. This is an interesting prompt for me today because it’s my birthday and my name has a tangled family mythology, which isn’t my writing focus. I wanted to find an approach that lets me think outside myself. ☺️
Just GLENDA
Who am I to say
who I am when a
world of judgers
have decided for
themselves I am
Gregarious & Galling
Laudable & Lackluster
Eloquent & Egocentric
Neoteric & Naughty
Dependable & Deviant
Affable & Abrasive
depending on the day
the month the year
their mood and all
the things I can’t
control like the way I
had no say in choosing
this glottal stop Germanic
name that ends with a
resounding duh!
I am just Glenda.
—Glenda Funk
November 19, 2024
*Today is the anniversary of the Gettysburg Address.
Oh my goodness, Just GLENDA, your poem is a whirlwind of energy that does reveal your various personal traits. Your glottal stop part is hysterical. I always think Glenda is a beautiful name and always reminds me of the Good witch who is always lovely. Your opening question is provocative! Have a very happy birthday:)
Glenda,
Happy Birthday! I love the preface to your poem. Isn’t it true that we often think of adjectives to describe ourselves because of what people say about us or tell us that we are! I used one of those words in mine even though I’m not sure I believe it about myself. I love your ending also- how we don’t choose our names. “I am just Glenda.” And that is good! ♥️
Great poem, Glenda. This made me smile and remember that others often seem to determine how we see ourselves. Clever as always! Thanks.
Glenda, I love how the “best” and “worst” are perfectly enmeshed in one stanza. Just like we are–a mixture of all our traits! “I am just Glenda.” Perfect
Glenda, Happy Birthday! I have never met a Glenda I didn’t like, and one thing all my Glenda friends have in common is fierce passion. I love that you pointed out your name ends in duh – which certainly doesn’t fit you all alone, but with the Glen in it, it always makes me think of the Wizard of Oz and you have that same good magic!
Glenda, first of all, Happy Birthday! You share the day with my brother and a dear friend, and I hope you are celebrating today! Thanks for writing on the anniversary of the day you were named – I’m glad you’re here! I love the take on thinking about how others view you and how we have no control over this, just as we had no control over our given names. What a powerful meditation and a reminder to trust in ourselves. I also was delighted by the lines, “ I
had no say in choosing
this glottal stop Germanic
name that ends with a
resounding duh!”
This made me laugh, and I also had to wonder if you read or watched Wicked with Glinda the Good…
Good morning, Emily! Please say hi to Maine for me. Although I’ve never lived there, it is home as my Mom and her parents were from Ft. Kent and my Dad and his parents are/were from Frenchville, Me. I always loved visiting when my grandparents were still living. Thanks for hosting and prompting us to examine our dualities.
Stubborn
Harried and harsh
Absurd
Ramshackle
Oblique
Needy
Supportive
Happy and hopeful
Art-loving
Reliable
Optimistic
Nurturing
And I’n always grateful to be my mother’s daughter
Sharon, interesting use of the word “ramshackle”. Makes me curious about you. I think we should hang out at an art gallery together.
I would love that, Margaret! If you’re ever in Austin…
It’s fun getting to know you, Sharon. I like how you put your positive traits as the second part of your poem. I also like harried and harsh.
Hi Sharon! Love having a fellow Mainiac on here! Fort Kent is a unique place that I’m glad my science teaching days took me to, and the special language and culture of that corner of the state! I felt your sincerity come through in both stanzas, and particularly enjoyed “ramshackle” and “reliable” as pairs and a window into you! Your final line is a fantastic reminder of where your name and your best and worst come from! Thanks for writing today!
Emily, thank you for hosting today. It’s always fun to play around with acrostics.
BE Would Rather Be Angry than Defeated
Bad ass bitch
Angry, fists raised
Ready to rumble
Better back up
At my best
Radiating defeat
Blankly staring into the abyss is the worst of BE
Barb Edler
19 November 2024
Barb,
I love how insightful this is, how it shows you know who you are and will raise your fist and shout it! You are a “Bad ass bitch,” which is among my favorite things about you. Don’t let that abyss define you.
Hell yeah!!! Awesome💪💪💪💪💯💯!!
Uh,oh, “Better back up!” I wouldn’t want to cross paths with this side of you.
Barb, You go, girl! There’s nothing better than being a “bad ass bitch” and if that’s where we have to be to survive, then so be it! I love how clever you were with your name (using that B to start and end your name right in the middle). So good!
Barb, I can see you here. I love that “bad ass bitch” about you. And your initials BE are meaningful and add to the poem. I like what you did with the form, especially the last line.
Barb, I love this. I’m laughing, I’m cheering, and I’m not surprised at all that you used the letters in your name to bring us a winning poem today – cheers for the rumble!
Barb, I agree that it’s always fun to play around with acrostics. Love the use of your initials as well as your name. You make me recall a favorite line from Downton Abbey: “Don’t be defeatist, dear. It’s very middle class.” But seriously – I don’t (ever) sense you radiating defeat even if you feel you are. You are a victorious poet and encourager. I often play whack-a-mole with my own “ready to rumble side,” more than people ever realize. So…you and your words are a comfort. Honest!
Barb, I love that you start off with a strong declaration that sounds like something we all admire! Sometimes, anger can be righteous and beautiful, and you captured that in this poem here… I really like that line “radiating defeat,” because it’s so true, you can read it all over someone. Thanks for this today! I resonated with that state in between fist raised and abyss staring.
Emily, how nice you get to teach in ELA again. Thank you for your sweet acrostics. It was fun to get to know you better. I smiled with all your double adjectives, except on Laughing and Lazy, which both seemed appropriate to have just one. 🙂 This is a great prompt. I have written lots of acrostics with my name, but never like this. I have an idea for using this prompt; wish me luck.
At my worst, I am
Devoid of decisioning
Editable and eremiticNondescript and nonproductive
Icy-cold and impatient
Shabby and sinful
Embarrassed and excessive
At my best, I am
Devoted and durable
Eager and earnest
Neighborly and natural
Intrepid and intrigued
Self-respecting and sagacious
Easy-going and ethical
But I am always Denise
Love your poem, Denise. I so enjoyed your selection of adjectives especially editable, nonproductive, and impatient. I can definitely relate to those behaviors and feelings. Your second stanza is what I always see in you: “sagacious” and “ethical”. Lovely poem just like you!
Denise,
Okay, I’ve concluded you have better letters to work with than do I. I live “intrepid.” Maybe I’ll change the spelling of my name. Love that you ended w/ positive attributes. The juxtaposing of words is brilliant. Wish I’d thought to do that.
Denise,
I like how you put your negative words first and then your positive words second. I also like how you ended the poem with that you are “always Denise”. That is shows the reader that you are all of the things that you said before and not just the negative or positive words.
Denise, I like how you saved the best for last. Ethical is a great word to end on – – I would have never seen the words icy cold or excessive coming in the first part. My favorite may be easy-going. I think your easy going spirit brings out the best in those around you!
“Devoid of decisioning” – yikes! What a great phrase, though! It’s fascinating to see these “worst” self-described sides of folks. I absolutely see the best things – they pour through your writing often. For the E I personally add “Encourager” because you are. amazing at it, friend.
Denise, thanks for writing this swaying, swinging tribute to balance, and for teaching me a new word! I had to look up eremitic, which I love and very much relate to! I love how you let these well-chosen words shine in their pairs, doubling up the duality today! Thank you for sharing your intrepid and intrigued self with us today!
I have one of those longer names with repeated letters, so I may run out of ideas halfway through, but willing on this rainy morning to give it a go.
At my best,
Mood smooth like malbec wine
A steady
Rock you can lean on
Grounded in my faith
Alert to nature
Ready for a long talk
Empathetic with my tears
Trust me with your pain.
At my worst,
Moody
Arrogantly introverted
Reserved
Guarded soul
Assailed by doubt
Reactive
Enneagram four evading reality
Torturing myself
But I’ll always love you.
Margaret, I love your opening simile and the message that one can trust you with their pain. I like how you opened the second stanza with a form of mood. I’d never heard of Enneagram before, so I’ll have to check that out. I do understand the self-doubt and the self-torture. Yikes those are not good days.
Margaret, your poem shows how we can be two things at once, how two things can be true at once, and also how the “negatives” can be important in self-preservation. I can see the introvert, the guarded soul, the reserved writer needing to retreat to keep on. I’m reminded that there’s strength in holding onto ourselves too.
Margaret,
Love your opening simile:
Let’s bring some to our art museum hangout. =)
Love the sweetness and loyalty of your last line:
Thanks for sharing this lovely portait.
Margaret – thanks so much for giving it a go to give us wonderful lines like “mood smooth like Malbec wine” and “empathetic with my tears” and “guarded soul.” I like how you made the first one flow together, and the second one had a more staccato rhythm. I also very much loved your final line, reminding us that we must accept ourselves. Thank you, Margaret! Way to get creative with multiple repeats, too!
Em, I couldn’t be more proud of you. Love, Susie🥰
Thank you, Susie!!! So delighted to continue learning from you!
Emily, I adore acrostics! They can be incredibly creative and expressive, as yours is, offering a lens to examine oneself (yikes). The better we know ourselves, the better we can understand and appreciate others, with empathy. So: I have gone by the nickname “Fran” all my life, but my given name is Frances. It was my grandmother’s middle name. I decided today to embrace my inner Frances…thank you for this. Oh, and I also decided to get the worst over with first, lol.
The Worst and Best of Me
I am…
Fierce…there’s fire in my veins, verily
Reclusive…let me be, let me be
Angst-riddled…what can I possibly do?
Negative…I’m hard on myself; not just you
Caustic, critical…that fire in my veins again: POP!
Expecting… the other shoe to drop
Sad…too much burden I borrow
I am also…
Faithful, forgiving…my heart is set free
Reasonable…let it be, let it be
Able…enough and sometimes more
Nurturing…nature-loving to the core
Calm…I lend you my cloak, still warm
Expecting…to rise above the storm
Sanguine…it will be better, my love, tomorrow
and so I have learned to live
with these dual, dueling
Franceses in me.
Fran, what beautiful commentary you have added to the adjectives in Frances. “too much burden I borrow” and “my heart is set free” and “let it be, let it be” Oh, I could go on. I feel I got to know you so much more through those sweet added words. “Dual, dueling” is so clever too. Lovely.
Your dual personalities show your passion. I love how you close this poem, especially the dual, dueling. Marvelous poem!
Fran, how wonderfully complex you are (we all are, really – any of these lines could describe me too!). Your repeats (fire in my veins), word play (dual, dueling) and couplets strengthen these lines, pulling our attention into them rather than along the surface of them.
Oh, those Franceses. I love the plural of sides of your name. I like that you are Able and sometimes more – – and of course, I always see you as calm and it comes through in your writing. That is the demeanor I need more of. Love your word choices.
I love that you gave a bit of history behind the name and that you decided to get the worst over with first! I enjoyed how the two stanzas echoed each other in the “let me be, let me be” and “let it be, let it be” and how you reused the E to show that dueling duality! Thanks for sharing your fierce and faithful self!
Emily, thank you for this great prompt! I’d love to read more about teaching 15 miles off the coast of Maine. It sounds romantic–merry and magic making. And yet, I’ll bet there are some small town things that can be irritating. What a great place for writing! I wrote an acrostic for a character. It was super fun and allowed me to think of traits.Thanks so much!
That’s a great idea, too! Might try this tomorrow!
Linda, I love doing this for a character. Great way to show the classroom possibilities! And living in a small town also, I can say that yes, small towns have their Un-Hallmark-like side too.
Yes, today was bash the school on Facebook day. Also, bash the new street lights in my neighborhood for being too bright!
Emily, I have often dreamed of moving to an island off the coast of Maine (this very recently came up in serious conversation again). How lucky you are! And magic-making is just the word to make today wonderful. Thank you for sharing!
Nov 19, 2024
It was the best of times…
July 4th birthday celebrations
Evenings with a book and Shadow nestled in
New adventures and places to explore
It was the worst of times…
Junk food bingeing
Endless to-do lists
Nightmarish news
Definitely two sides of a coin here. Evenings with a book and Shadow sound lovely…nightmarish news? all too real.
Jennifer, wow. I like reading this thinking of you in different seasons of life and the calendar. I also like your twist on best and worst–the times do affect us. Short and sweet, yet we read so much with the words you chose.
Your poem is compelling, Jennifer. I think there is something quite tragic when a day appears to be full of fun and energy, but then tragedy strikes. Powerful end to this one!
Jennifer,
I have a cousin in Maine, so it might be the right time for me to go. I feel every word of that second half. The news is shocking every day.
Jennifer- I love your tale of two November 19ths! I wish we could stay in the happy zone of your best- sounds very cozy and inviting, but alas we’re stuck in the nightmarish news zone… thanks for sharing your day with us!
Jennifer,
I like that you used your nickname instead of your full name. It represents you and makes the poem more personal. Also, I find your poem very relatable when you said, “Junk food bingeing”. I think we have all fell victim to that at least one in our lives. 🙂
Jennifer, the Dickens first line of A Tale of Two Cities works so well here to show the best and worst of your times. Those endless to-dos are the worst of times, and I’m getting too old for all of these deadlines. I want to be there reading evenings with the best of my book loving writer friends. The nightmarish news has me reaching arms to hug.
A book and a dog nestled – I ask, truly: Does life get much better? Not to mention summer and bd celebrations. Reading your short lines fills me with longing for the freedoms summer brings. And yeah, me too, with the junk food bingeing that I have been so good about until recently, and the endless to-do lists (hence my commenting so late tonight) – in short: I can so relate!!
Emily, thank you for today’s prompt! I think I was meant to have your letters in my name. I, too, can be lazy and have to guard against it. I, too, more often than ever, yearn to be elsewhere and home at the same time, so I took that idea from your poem and added it into my own. This is a fabulous prompt for getting to know a new class or new group of people. Thank you for the inspiration today!
Knowing Kim
At my best, I’m
Kindle-reading with dogs piled in my lap by the fire on the farm
Inspired by writing and all things hygge
Making a plan
At my worst, I’m
Karaoke singing
In trouble again
Making a mess
But I’m always Kim.
love it–especially kindle reading by the fire.
Kim, From the first line, I would know this poem was yours even without your name. Books, dogs, fires, farm sound like perfection (I included 2 of those as well!). And “all things hygge” has become my coping focus for moving forward – along with lifting up those we love and surrounding them in kindness. I know you listed it as a worst, but I can imagine the fun with an evening of karaoke (that would be a worst for me too).
Kim, the way that second stanza reads just cracks me up! I want to spend time with that worst Kim! I would also love to spend an evening with the best Kim. I’ll bring my Kindle.
What a fascinating portrait of you. I want to see this Kim at the mic singing her heart out. Love the line “Making a mess”. I can relate! Fun poem!
Kim,
Of course the dogs are here as they should be! As long as you’re in “good trouble” there’s not a problem. And I love hygge. It was i’m OLW a few years ago.
Kim, I love the contrast of the hygge loving Kim versus the raucous, karaoke singing Kim! Though I’m sure it’s a lot of fun! Your two versions have a pleasing symmetry of words and rhythm!
“Inspired by all things hygge” may be the Kimmest line yet! Ok except for all the haiku and green glass things. I am definitely a planner, too. The inclusion of karaoke singing at your worst has me cracking up – I feel that even your “making a mess” has an artistry and redemption to it. You are always Kim, a forever fun writer-friend, for whom I am infinitely grateful.
I can see you in every line of the first stanza and even karaoke singing, Kim!