Miss E arrived home from school on Friday and handed me a crumpled piece of paper.
Her eyes shone with nervous excitement and her head was high, her smile the tightly pursed lips of a child bursting to tell, but wanting desperately for me to discover instead of be told.
I looked down at the white page grasped gently in my hand, already showing the reverence, the respect I felt she hoped for and saw this…
Me: “Erm great E, a picture of a horse’s bottom.”
She grabbed it, turned it over and handed it back giggling.
Miss E: “No Mummy. This side.”
And then I looked and I read, and I understood the excitement and the pride and the smile playing on her lips as she watched my eyes wander back and forth over the page.
I couldn’t capture the image too well so of you’re struggling to read it here it is below.
Snow
Snow is the colour of frosty white falling from a sky of misty grey
Throwing shimmering glitter on us at any time of the day.
Snow is as white as a newborn polar bear at two weeks old,
As cold as the big blue sea or a giant freezer.
As soft as a feather pillow or velvet.
As slippery as melted wax that is not dry.
Snow makes snowmen as cute as a puppy.
Snow is cool, literally.
By Miss E (Aged 8 years and almost 2 months)
I think my heart may have melted.
Also, I wanted to thank you so much for all the comments on my post about my fab niece. My sister-in-law was overwhelmed and asked me to thanks you all. I also had a really nice comment from the author of the gorgeous poem I featured (Build Me a Bridge), Thomas A McKean who said,
“This poem of mine seems to pop up on the blogs every now and again. I never get tired of it. At first it was just one of many hundreds of poems I had written. But over time, as I began to see people’s reactions, it has come to mean much more to me. ”
Along with his comment was a link to his site which I visited and I wanted to share a little of his biography with you…
“Thomas was born on June 18th 1965 and was diagnosed with autism at the end of 7th grade. Placed in a psychiatric facility for 3 years, on leaving he went on to study computer science, received his GED and graduated high school a year early, and later studied Mental Health and Journalism.
In 1992, Thomas was asked to run for office on the national board of directors of the Autism Society of America. He served a total of five years on the board and also traveled extensively throughout the USA and Canada, speaking at conferences and doing private consulting for families and school systems in regards to children with autism.
Thomas has written and published two books. The first, “Soon Will Come the Light“, is biographical in nature and covers a lot of behavior and neuro-sensory information on the topic of autism. This book was released in 1994. It took the national ASA award for literary excellence that year and remains in print all these years later.”
His website is well worth a visit especially if you are seeking information on autism and its many forms.
{ 21 comments… read them below or add one }
Very sweet poem! What a clever child.
I also liked the horse’s bottom.
Ahh thanks DFTF, I feel a bit bad posting this, but it blew me away a little bit. And the horse’s bum is great isn’t it? Snort.
Don’t feel bad to post it. These moments are the most precious in our memories and our hearts. now you have a record of it forever. I would be proud too - infact I have blogged my boys poems before now. It is a great moment to see them use creativity and make it their own.
Horse’s bum is an accurate depiction of a horse’s bum!
Great poem. Very cool. (Though not literally so, unlike the snow.)
WoW! She wrote that!!?? Go Miss E!!
What a beautiful poem! That should go on the Christmas cards!
Miss E’s poem warmed my heart. about something soooooooo cold….but so heart warming. sigh…I can’t wait for Sugar to write stuff like that.
Wow, a great poem plus a bonus picture of your husband!
That’s a very good poem for an 8 year old, but then kids always do surprise us, don’t they, because they have no inhibitions to make them shy when they verbalize their thoughts. You hold on to that poem and remind her of how talented she was so early in her life whenever she has any doubts about herself when she grows up.
WOW. That is a prolific child you have there. I love that poem by Thomas McKean. Talk about turning your lemons to lemonade.
Great work, Jo!!!!
Woah! Methinks that child takes after her Mummy! You have every right to boast of such proud mummy moments
And how fab that Thomas McKean liked your post.
What a beautiful poem, and an wonderful talent brewing.
Crazycath, thanks, and it is a good horse bum isn’t it? ;D
Iota, thanks, I think it’s the literally bit that made us smile most, literally.
AOJ, yay, I love that she likes to write. She’ll be a blogger yet.
Sybil, I will make some with it on for family with them I think. I love Christmas.
Corey, it’s lovely, it warms your heart every time.
WT, yep, my husband, the horse’s ar*e.
Irene I will. I think it’s so important to do that. You are a wise lady, but then I knew that.
Bee, she likes to write. And Thomas’s poem has something for everyone doesn’t it?
David, thanks, but she did it all by herself. I’m so glad she showed it me though.
Belle, thanks lovely, and I thought that was fab too, I mean, he must get it all the time but he took the time to visit. What a nice bloke.
BerthdduSuit, thanks, and I hope so.
I loved her words .. she’s a poet/writer in the raw .. but I must know .. who drew the horse’s patoot?
Such beautiful words for an 8 year old to write, she is obviously a very talented and thoughtful girl.
How wonderful that the author of the friends poem you used should write you too.
You need to frame that in a piece that shows both sides. Her words were lovely. Well beyond an 8 yr, 2mo old!!
Wow. I can just picture that as a beautifully illustrated children’s book. What a talent!
Daryl, it came form school so it might have been her teacher. Maybe I should be worried about that??
Akela, she is a thinker and she loves to write. And it was great that Thomas read and commented, a real honour.
Nola, that 2 months makes all the difference you know, hee hee.
Kim, that would be so cool, literally.
your retirment is set in gold kid sandy
Wow! You have a true poet there!
Hope you keep that… it’s beautiful!
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