A+Poem+About+a+News+Story

= Nothing stirs us emotionally like a riveting news story. After all, the stories we consider most "newsworthy" include the most uplifting of human accomplishments and the most devastating of human suffering. =

= For this poem, peruse the news for a story that moves you in some way. It might be a tragic story of a natural disaster, a touching story of a graduation, or a thought-provoking story about a wild animal seen in the Loop. It could be a story from any section in the paper -- the headlines, Sports, Business, or Lifestyle sections. Longer feature items tend to work better than short news clips, since they usually include more details and dialogue. If you choose a short piece, you'll just have to create more of the words and images yourself. = = =

= Determine what is the "heart" of the story: what is it saying about the human condition? Let that be your guiding principle in the poem. = = =

= Now, re-read the story you've chosen with an eye and ear for images, words, phrases, and passages that would befit a poem. Then craft the poem, using some of these sections of the article, transforming the news story into a poetic experience.... something that speaks to the universal nature of being human. = = =

= Below are two examples, one written by an anonymous poet and based on a well-known tragic story from the 1960s in Arizona. The original story can be found at the first link. The second poem is one I wrote after reading and several pieces in the news about children whose parents are in prison. (I've attached one of the shorter pieces here.) = = = = Note the use of short lines in the poems. Use your lines effectively! Let your reader focus on one image or idea at a time. =


 * http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1873&dat=19680211&id=r24eAAAAIBAJ&sjid=fskEAAAAIBAJ&pg=2279,1937970**

Linda and Beauty

 * Linda failed to return**
 * from the dance on Friday --**
 * home to where she knew**
 * parents with furrowed brows**
 * and endless questions**
 * would be waiting --**
 * instead finding the arms of**
 * an Air Force Lieutenant**
 * irresistable.**
 * Her parents,**
 * worried sick**
 * but also angry at**
 * Linda's disobedience,**
 * chose a punishment**
 * that would end**
 * her rebellious ways.**


 * They took a long drive**
 * into the desert**
 * on Sunday after church,**
 * Linda in the back seat**
 * with Beauty**
 * her only companion,**
 * and they did not**
 * have a picnic.**


 * They made Linda dig**
 * a shallow grave.**
 * Her mother held**
 * Beauty's head between her hands**
 * and her father**
 * handed Linda a loaded gun.**
 * "Shoot your dog,"**
 * he commanded.**


 * Linda put the pistol**
 * to her own head**
 * and fired.**


 * Police initially said**
 * there were no charges**
 * to file against the parents**
 * except perhaps**
 * cruelty to animals.**


 * "I killed her," her father said.**


 * Eventually, the law agreed,**
 * sending a grieving**
 * and broken man to jail**
 * to pay for his sins.**


 * It is unknown whatever happened**
 * to Beauty.**


 * http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/11/magazine/11lives-t.html?module=Search&mabReward=relbias%3Ar&_r=0**

Visiting Day

 * He waits, cheek resting heavily**
 * on uplifted palm, bony elbow**
 * planted on gray formica**


 * Feet dangle, swinging slowly from**
 * the molded plastic seat as**
 * frayed tips of untied shoelaces**
 * drag across brown linoleum**
 * He can no longer count the Sunday**
 * afternoons, hours spent waiting**
 * here outside the glass from**
 * the missing mothers**


 * Mothers who stole or debted**
 * or struck or cracked or confused**
 * themselves into this place**


 * Cold concrete where no heart**
 * beats, no blood flows within**
 * white walls to warm it**


 * Where a small child must kiss**
 * mama through inch-thick glass**
 * hear I love you whispered**
 * through static phone lines**


 * Then walk away again in**
 * Grandma's leathered grasp**
 * imagining a softer warmer palm**
 * pressed to his cheek like a promise**