The Sense-sational Sea

9/20/2013

Happy Poetry Friday, everyone! Tabatha has the roundup at The Opposite of Indifference.

Yesterday a friend told me one of my poems published by Highlights was viewable on the Highlights website. The poem is titled, "The Sense-sational Sea" and you can view it HERE. I love that Highlights not only presents the poem visually, but has an audio of two young girls reading it, since it is a poem for two voices.

I grew up going to the Jersey Shore: Asbury Park, Ocean Grove, Point Pleasant, Seaside Heights, and Beach Haven to name a few. Me and my brothers always tried to climb as far out on the jetties as possible and still maintain a foothold, while looking in the nooks and crannies for starfish and other sea creatures. It was a balancing act because you never knew when a giant wave was going to crash over the jetty and the jetties were usually slick with sea slime. Ah, those wonderful childhood days of living dangerously!

I also wanted to mention the illustrator for this piece. Highlights did a wonderful job of pairing my poem with a fabulous illustrator, Len Ebert. I wrote to Mr. Ebert, when my poem first appeared in the July issue, because I was overwhelmed at the beautiful art he had been inspired to create for my poem. He said that very rarely do the writers get in touch with him and it made him so happy that I had taken the time to search him out on the internet. I found this very sad, actually. I am always so excited to see my work brought to life by an inspired illustrator. HERE is a link to Len Ebert's website should you choose to view more of his work.

24 Comments

Laura Shovan link

9/19/2013 08:03:40 pm

Hi, BJ. I grew up in New Jersey also. Our beach was always Long Beach Island State Park. Then, if we were lucky and it wasn't too late, we'd stop by Seaside Heights. Lovely combination of poem and illustration today!

B.J. Lee

9/20/2013 01:53:53 am

Thank you, Laura. I forgot about Long Beach Island. We went there a lot - I remember the osprey nests perched way up high on the long road into the parking lot!

Michelle Heidenrich Barnes link

9/20/2013 01:00:47 am

Great poem, BJ, and I agree with you about the perfect illustration. Such a treat to see the wonderful artwork that is matched up with our work! That was one of the "perks" when writing greeting card verse as well... especially the cards for children.

B.J. Lee

9/20/2013 01:54:44 am

thank you, Michelle! I'd love to see some of your greeting cards!

Robyn Hood Black link

9/20/2013 03:21:19 am

What a gorgeous offering today, B. J.! I agree - the bright & playful illustration and the two lovely young voices reading your poem bring it to life in a wonderful way. I'm a former Florida girl myself - a past and future beach bum. Thanks for sharing!

B.J. Lee

9/20/2013 03:32:05 am

Thanks, Robyn! I'm a NE transplant, but after 12 years in Florida, I'm finally getting to love it.

Ruth link

9/20/2013 10:07:59 am

Thanks for sharing the link, and congratulations on being published in Highlights! It's a lovely poem!

B.J. Lee

9/20/2013 11:13:45 am

Thank you, Ruth! and thanks for stopping by!

Myra from GatheringBooks link

9/20/2013 11:34:02 am

Congratulations, BJ on the publication. Well-deserved. Apart from considering myself a daughter of the moon, I also think of myself as a daughter of the sea. Gorgeous photo and such sensory-rich poem too!

B.J. Lee

9/20/2013 02:42:41 pm

Thank you, Myra! I like that - daughter of the moon/daughter of the sea. Methinks therein lies a poem!

Liz link

9/20/2013 10:21:14 pm

BJ--you can certainly tell you know the sea well. I love all the different senses you incorporate. And here's the best complement of all--after my son heard it, he said: "Are there more?"

B.J. Lee

9/21/2013 01:11:28 am

Ha! That's so cute about your son. Thank you! I guess I am posting about the sea quite a bit. We live right on the sea, after all. I DO write about other topics I promise you.

Jone link

9/21/2013 01:37:12 am

BJ, you captured the sense-stationary sea beautifully. While I grew up and live on the west coast, the Jersey seashore holds a very special place in my heart. I have cousins who live in Belmar. The art work is amaxzing.

B.J. Lee

9/21/2013 03:01:48 am

Thanks Jone! I know Belmar very well. And thanks for stopping by!

Margaret Simon link

9/21/2013 04:00:34 am

Lovely poem and illustration. Congratulations!

B.J. Lee

9/21/2013 04:24:34 am

Thanks so much, Margaret!

Doraine Bennett link

9/21/2013 05:06:14 am

Lovely poem. And congratulations on the publication in Highlights!

B.J. Lee

9/22/2013 11:44:07 am

Thank you, Doraine! I'm glad you liked the poem!

Violet N. link

9/21/2013 02:47:18 pm

Lovely poem. Congratulations on the Highlights publication! And you're right, the illustration is beautiful.

B.J. Lee

9/22/2013 11:45:32 am

Thank you, Violet! The illustrator, Len Ebert, said he was in Hawaii when he got this assignment so he had plenty of inspiration. Lucky for me he was in Hawaii!

Catherine link

9/21/2013 10:34:50 pm

My only visit to the Jersey shore was when I was five, and my parents and I went with my grandmother to Lavallette. It was late October, so the beach was empty (why we went then is a whole other story), but I was mesmerized by the constant pounding of the surf and the seemingly endless expanse of ocean. Your poem captures the experience perfectly. Thanks for sharing!

B.J. Lee

9/22/2013 11:47:34 am

Thank you, Catherine! I know Lavallette! I'm glad you had the Jersey Shore experience! It's true! The surf is mesmerizing!

Gail Aldous

9/23/2013 05:17:28 am

Congratulations on publication in Highlights! Hopefully, one day I'll be published, also. Great use of senses and beat in your poem! Your poem reminds me of how I taught poetry to first-6th grade this summer. I tell my students write what you hear, what you see, what you taste, what you smell and what you feel.

B.J. Lee

9/23/2013 06:26:50 pm

Thank you, Gail! I hope you will be published one day too! Just keep at it! Involving the senses is a great way to start your students out writing poetry!

Author

B. J. Lee is a children’s author and poet. Her picture book, There Was an Old Gator Who Swallowed a Moth, is launching with Pelican Publishing on February 15, 2019. She has poems in 25 poetry anthologies published by Little, Brown, Wordsong, BloomsburyUK, National Geographic, Otter-Barry Books, Pomelo Books, and Chicken Soup for the Soul. She has worked with anthologists Lee Bennett Hopkins, J. Patrick Lewis and Kenn Nesbitt. She has written poems for such children’s magazines as Spider, Highlights and The School Magazine. Follow her on Twitter @bjlee_writer.

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