7-Imp’s 7 Kicks #637: Featuring Melissa Sweet —
and Celebrating Naomi Shihab Nye
May 12th, 2019 by jules
Today, I’m celebrating two things — the fact that the Poetry Foundation named poet Naomi Shihab Nye the 2019–2021 Young People’s Poet Laureate and the art of Melissa Sweet.
When Melissa heard the news about Naomi this week, she was inspired and created this collage above. (I saw it on Melissa’s Instagram feed, squealed, and secured her permission to share it here today.) This is an excerpt from Naomi’s poem, “Famous.” You can read the poem in its entirety here, which I highly recommend. It’s always been one of my favorite poems by her (and, really, simply one of my favorite poems). Naomi’s work has meant so much to me over the years — as a reader, as a librarian, as a writer, and as a parent. I’m thrilled she’s the next Young People’s Poet Laureate. She will do good work.
I thank Melissa for sharing. She says she’d like to be a buttonhole (or a button!). Yes. Me too.
Note for any new readers: 7-Imp’s 7 Kicks is a weekly meeting ground for taking some time to reflect on Seven(ish) Exceptionally Fabulous, Beautiful, Interesting, Hilarious, or Otherwise Positive Noteworthy Things from the past week, whether book-related or not, that happened to you. New kickers are always welcome.
1) Seeing Sam Phillips live in L.A. last week was a bucket-list kind of happiness. The show was incredible, and it meant a lot to me that my daughters finally got to see her live. Afterwards, Sam came out to say hi to her fans, and we all got to chat for a moment.
2) We also had dinner before the show with other super Sam-fans (one who flew in from New Zealand!), whom I know from the online world. It was great to meet them in person.
3) We also saw some museums in L.A. and rode a Ferris wheel on the shore in Santa Monica.
4) For my birthday last week, my 13-year-old drew me a picture of one of my favorite song lyrics from Neko Case (a lyric from the song “Winnie”). After I got Ada’s permission to share part of the drawing on Twitter (because I figured Neko Case might appreciate it), she (Neko, that is) responded happily that she enjoyed seeing the drawing. Well, here it is:
How can it ever get better than this? ❤️😭 https://t.co/E3vh8ssLeD
— Neko Case (@NekoCase) May 7, 2019
That was fun.
5) And my oldest daughter sewed me a cosmo kitty, complete with a jet pack.
6) I teach a picture book grad course as a Lecturer for the University of Tennessee’s School of Information Sciences every other summer. This is a teaching year. I’m updating my lectures now and thinking thinking thinking about picture books. I’m eager to meet my students (even if I get a little nervous every time I teach — Impostor Syndrome is a nuisance, isn’t it?)
7) A Mother’s Day breakfast today with my daughters.
What are YOUR kicks this week?
Happy Sunday, Imps! Hello Melissa and Naomi!
Jules: I’m so glad that you all enjoyed the concert and the trip. Your daughters are awesome.
My kicks for the last week:
1) Opportunities
2) Granola
3) To-do list => ALL DONE list
4) Music
5) Ease
6) Smooth
7) Enough
Thank you Jules. Hearing that Naomi would be the Poet Laureate was inspiring and gave me a spring in my step I didn’t anticipate.
Happy spring. Melissa
Hi, all you lovely Imps! Long time lurker, first time kick-er. 🙂
My kicks:
1. Naomi Shihab Nye’s poem “The Art of Disappearing”: “Walk around feeling like a leaf./ Know you could tumble any second./ Then decide what to do with your time.” Definitely a pocket poem for me.
2. My 14-month old and his love of books–he’s in the stage where I read a book, he takes it from my hands, and puts in my lap as if to say, “Read it again!”
3. Booking great author visits at our local schools for fall (I work as a children’s book manager at a local bookshop and this is part of my job and I love it!).
4. Sunshine after a rainy weekend.
5. Swimming a mile for the first time post-childbirth!
6. Finishing a haunting, gothic novel this weekend–THE ORPHAN OF SALT WINDS by Elizabeth Brooks. NOT a children’s book, but the beautiful cover is illustrated by Júlia Sardà!
7. One final week as a 33-year-old!
<3
Late this week – love this combination of poem and illustration.Happy belated Mother’s Day!
Jules – So happy that your trip to see Sam was such an amazing experience! Its always so cool when you get to do a bucket-list item and its everything you hoped for and more – that kind of happy just lasts lasts.
LW -I am in AWE of you for having completed your To Do List.
Hi Melissa – yay for a spring in your step.
Hannah – welcome! I was a lurker for years before finally join the kicking, its a happy habit now. How wonderful your 14 month-old already loves books, and hooray swimming a mile!
My quick kicks:
1) Spring weather and the garden blooming.
2) The Blazers are going to the playoffs!
3) US Women’s Soccer team won yesterday!
4) Daisy still chugging along on her recovery – she starts dog rehab sessions later this week – and she’s feeling so much better she keeps wanting to jump and run. Its too soon for that for her knee, but its nice that she’s clearly so happy.
5) Redemption Day – powerful song and video from Sheryl Crow and Johnny cash: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rKg0vz0HIlo
6) SNL with Emma Thompson, she is a treasure.
7) Annoyed with GOT but also very happy Arya’s not dead.
Have a wonderful week Imps!!
5)
LW: Congrats on a checked-off to-do list!
Happy Spring to you, too, Melissa, and thanks again for letting me share this.
Hello, Hannah! Thanks for that book recommendation. I’m intrigued. And I do love that Naomi-poem, too. Thanks for sharing it. But your second kick is MY FAVORITE. I love that. Happy swimming.
RACHEL! I’M ANNOYED TOO. But, well. We’ll see what happens next week, right? Thanks for the music link. Will go listen now.
Have a good week, you all.