As I drove from Auckland to Whangarei, the beauty of the land caught my attention so naturally I had to take pictures and pen this poem in Free Verse. Please enjoy.

The scenery

of the Aotearoa landscape

on the road to Whangarei

is breathtakingly beautiful;

From north to south,

east and the west,

on all sides the traffic flows;

in an on ending line

both fast and slow. The awesomeness

of the rolling hills,

the trees and fauna

of every shape and kind

burst with dazzling beauty,

from the exhilarating rays of the sun;

They spread their glow of splendour,

like the neon lights

beaming across the Auckland Harbour;

Everywhere through searching eyes,

are flower-strewn meadows,

and babbling brooks and streams,

that lap up the springtime air;

While beneath the trees

and in the fields,

golden daffodils stand

with their trumpets,

lifted proudly towards the winds;

They herald in the musical sounds

of the forested land;

Now high above

in the azure sky

whipped cream images

with unique designs

gently float on by.

And at the mountain base,

sheep and lambs do graze

and frolic with a stately prance.

Such simple pleasures

are found

in Aotearoa

Land of the Long White Cloud...

No. 2

A poem in the form of the Hendianne Sonnet.In it, the persona sililoquizes about injustice in the world.

No. 3

This Hendianne sonnet reflects the poet's passion for traditional versification. The rhyme scheme used is aaaa bbbb cccc dd within iambic pentameter verses. The first quatrain introduces the theme or problem The next two quatrains provide the resolution A twist comes at the beginning of the last quatrain. The twist signals a change in the tone, mood, or stance of the poem. The last couplet can either be a closed couplet or an open couplet.

No. 1

In this sonnet, the persona reflects on sadness as seen on the faces of people in the crowd. The couplet of this Shakespearean sonnet introduces an unexpected sharp thematic or imagistic "turn". The rhyme scheme is abab cdcd efef gg. The tone is pensive and slow.

Today, I am feeling a little low, I find it very hard to sleep and rest; And penned this poem with beats that are slow; Surely, it is not the amateur's best! Poems you know do have a unique way, Of freeing the mind from the enclosed box, Such creativity is on display; So one behaves like a crafty old fox. What sadness do we see on faces here? He is gone, so too is his shaven face. Silver buckles no longer shine, my dear; From the earth too are his footsteps and pace. He parades in the celestrial sky; So he had to say this final goodbye.

This visualized poem, "Indian Corn" is written in Traditional Ballad form. This structure allows for alternating lines of iambic tetrameter (4 metrical feet) and iambic trimeter (3 metrical feet). It follows a rhyme scheme of xbyb. The Ballad is a narrative poem with a stanza of four lines. Of necessity, it has a refrain. The story line for the Ballad can originate from a wide range of subject matter but frequently deals with folklore or popular legend.

This Ballad poem, "Indian Corn" provides support material for the interdisciplinary approach to classroom instruction. As a matter of fact, well selected poems enhance the thematic approach to classroom instruction. They provide strong building blocks for the integrated lessons. It is with these in mind that this visualized poem was created. The following websites provided images for this movie:

http://www.dpi.vic.gov.au/CA25677D007DC87D/LUbyDesc/Corn+Fields/$File/CornFields.BMP http://nihongo.wunderground.com/blog/Melagoo/comment.html?entrynum=15&tstamp=200705 http://updatecenter.britannica.com/eb/image?binaryId=94912&rendTypeId=4 http://perrone.blogs.com/horticultural/images/0805-010.resizejpg.jpg http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/06/CristobalColon.jpg http://www.hort.purdue.edu/ext/senior/vegetabl/corn1.htm http://www.hort.purdue.edu/ext/senior/vegetabl/corn1.htm http://www.usask.ca/biology/211blab/Lab2/.jpgf2.JPG http://www.michigan.gov/images/mhc_mhm_corn_field_45272_7.jpg http://content.answers.com/main/content/wp/en/thumb/7/7f/160px-Cornsilk_7091.jpg http://www.funnyfarmonline.org/base/pics/cornyuncookedbushsmall.jpg http://huntersimmons.files.wordpress.com/2007/11/img_8026.jpg http://maxlindberg.greenoptions.com/files/430/corn_ears.jpg http://www.amnh.org/learn/musings/FA01/ia/community_img3.jpg http://cls.casa.colostate.edu/TransgenicCrops/images/coloredcorn.jpg http://nihongo.wunderground.com/data/wximagenew/m/Melagoo/556.jpg

This blooming tree grows on the front lawn of my sister’s home in Ohio. Its beauty caught my eyes so I had to write this poem. It is indeed a magnolia tree from all appearances and botanic behaviour. Right away I mused that a poem in the form of an ode would capture the beauty of this flowering magnolia. The magnolia has become the State Tree/Flower for Louisiana and the Mississippi. These trees grow magnificently amid weather peeves. Now you asked why the ode and not an epic poem on this State tree? I have weighed the pros and cons and for this composition the ode is more appropriate for this moment in time. The ode’s majestic and intricate form of lyrical verse have allowed me to portray my feelings, state of mind and perception towards nature’s awesome beauty in this tree the way no epic poem could do. The epic tells a story and depicts characters and actions and magnolia is not about a story but rather its heraldry of spring now that winter has retreated. “Ode to the Magnolia Tree” takes on the characteristics of the Horatian ode. The Roman poet, Horace perfected this poetic form which consists of a series of uniform stanzas, complex in their metrical system and rhyme scheme. Horatian Odes are characteristically less elaborate and more restrained than Pindaric Odes. The characteristics of the Horatian ode are found in the “Ode to the Magnolia Tree”. A close examination of its structure shows uniformity of its decimeter stanzas. The verses are written in Iambic Pentameter with a rhyme scheme ababcdecde. Please enjoy as we salute the coming of Spring. Use as support material for the integrated lesson in classroom instruction. For all audiences.

This poetic docudrama in the form of an epic poem, Nelson composed on March 16, 2006 captures the feelings of most Bajans toward the statue of Lord Nelson in Trafalgar Square, Bridgetown, renamed National Heroes Square. These Bajans believe that National Heroes should be given prime spots on the island which became a self-governing Nation in 1966. This epic poem, provides support material for the interdisciplinary approach to classroom instruction. As a matter of fact, well selected poems enhance the thematic approach to classroom instruction. They provide strong building blocks for the integrated lessons.