We are still reeling from the tragic loss of basketball great Kobe Bryant, his daughter Gigi, and seven other passengers on that helicopter flight. For today's Thoughtful Thursday, rather than presenting more poetry to soothe our collective pain, we offer inspirational quotes from the man himself. Taken from interviews over the years and his book "The Mamba Mentality", his [...]
Happy Belated Birthday to Dr. King! While we as a nation will officially celebrate on Monday, we should not forget (or let our children forget) that January 15th was his actual birthday. Today's Thoughtful Thursday will break from our normal poetry/inspirational quotes offering to ask: How are you planning to commemorate Dr. King's holiday? Here are an assortment of [...]
In less than a week Christmas will be here! In celebration, today's Thoughtful Thursday brings some of our favorite Christmas poetry. First we have the glorious "Christmas Carol" from Paul Laurence Dunbar, followed by the delightful "[little tree]" by e.e. cummings. We end with the traditional crowd favorite, "Twas the Night Before Christmas", which, depending upon which scholars you [...]
On this Thoughtful Thursday, as temperatures drop below freezing in the North East, our thoughts turn to poems about the chill of winter. And so it is time to revisit an old GCP favorite, "Those Winter Sundays" by Robert Hayden. While its title and some of its vibrant imagery evoke winter's chill, at the core of the poem is a [...]
Today's Thoughtful Thursday features two award-winning African American female poets whose work is new to us, although these poets have been heralded for some time by (better read) poetry fans worldwide. Crystal Williams, a Detroit native, has written four award-winning poetry collections. A graduate of NYU (undergrad) and Cornell University (M.F.A.), Williams has taught at several universities and managed [...]
We are only a week away from Thanksgiving, so today's Thoughtful Thursday offers up a hodgepodge of poems celebrating the food, festivities and fun of this holiday. We start with Elizabeth Alexander's "Butter", a delightful ode to the spread which makes everything taste better. Bet you can't read this without getting hungry! Next is the moving and soulful "Perhaps [...]
Today's Thoughtful Thursday continues the celebration of Veteran's Day with two poems written by African American veteran Yusef Komunyakaa (b. 1947) about his Vietnam War service. Komunyakaa served in the United States Army from 1969 to 1970 as a correspondent; he was the managing editor of the Southern Cross during the Vietnam war, for which he was awarded a [...]
Today’s Thoughtful Thursday post, as it falls on Halloween, is dedicated to a series of delightfully sinister “Little Willie” poems. These poems detail the antics of Little Willie, a boy who carries out one devilish deed after another. Fans of Adams Family style fiendish humor will find these rhyming verses particularly fun. "Little Willie"poetry is first attributed to the [...]
Is your son or daughter an inspiring poet? A good writer? A talented artist? Time to enter a contest and show the world these talents! Today's Thoughtful Thursday showcases a few contests your creative children may want to enter. Click on the links for more details. National Poetry Month Poster Contest: Students in grades 9 through 12 can enter [...]
Did you know that National Hispanic Heritage Month began on September 15th and ends on October 15th? And why, you may ask, does this celebration of the histories, cultures and contributions of Americans whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central and South America start in the middle of one month and end in the middle of the [...]