Poetry Challenged Boys

One of AO’s suggestions for high school is Roar on the Other Side. It is a book that is supposed to help beginning poets write poetry and to help them to see what "makes a poet worth reading."

This book has NOT been an inspiration, nor a favorite. Zachary, my 16yos’s, assignment a few weeks ago was this:

"… choose a piece of fruit to eat (not an orange). Write a journal entry of your own, describing the experience. Use sensory details and words full of suggestion."

This did not excite his imagination. We had a peach in our fruit basket that he chose to write about. Or tried to.

He sat there staring at the peach for some while. Finally he said, "You know, mom. It’s kind of hard to write about a peach when you’re feeling like I do." Sniff, Sniff. Having a cold presented an even bigger challenge.