On Sundays, I invite Ethical ELA friends to do some creative writing — a stanza or story about anything you wish. I will, however, offer some inspiration to get you started:
Think about someone you admire. It may be someone you know well or someone you only know from afar. Of course, you don’t have to know or love someone to pay tribute to him or her in a stanza or story. Write a poem honoring one of your daily or super heroes, someone who has, up close or at a distance, made a difference in your life.
From a Distance
From a distance I watch–though not in that creepy, stalker way.
I notice how you go about your day with deliberate strokes, sure of your way:
Calculated balance in your choices and moves — never too much of this or to little of that,
Careful ‘n precise discretion — never soaring to excess nor slipping into debt.
Laughing without restraint.
Suffering without complaint.
Loyal with measured doubt.
Honest, and not to a fault.
Only a few feet away now, I will move a bit closer (again, not with that creepy, stalker dread),
and I shall try to laugh with you though I imagine I will watch you laugh instead,
and I shall try to refrain from complaint when I feel pain or my heart is flat,
and I shall be more loyal and honest because you —
you are a pretty good teacher.
I admire anyone that has hope and compassion.
No lacking intelligence or slacking on what’s
Truly important.
But someone who I can look into the eyes of;
And see a beauty of compromise.
I look at you and in an instant and see
The feeling you receive when you touch something truly amazing.
Rather the heart of someone you love, a dandelion, or a bruised ankle.
You can feel your touch
Spark a reaction and yes pain leaves scars, but they’re covered up by your love and the bandages that stay on your heart.
I admire the time and dedication you put into something.
You don’t just fix it and leave it be;
You stay to see if it’s okay.
You leave bits of your heart in everything you’ve ever loved;
And maybe that’s why you’re left with only a few pieces.
But you re-collect the pieces and make duplicates; making sure
There’s more than enough love to pass out.
You see yourself in the eyes of someone you love;
The way their eyes sparkle.
You acknowledge someone’s wits, passions and desires.
You pay attention to the little things
And understand what’s right to wrong.
You say the right words.
Without a single curse in the wind;
You make the world a better place with the love and dedication you put into everything.
I truly admire anyone that has the desire to make the world a better and happier place.
What a beautiful stanza! Subtle, yet full of meaning (so you Sarah!)… You know, at one point in time we all are teachers and students; mentors and proteges; masters and disciples; fathers and sons; mothers and daughters; bothers and sisters… At the end of the cycle, we all are One…