Michelle Kogan

“We shall never go hungry, now that we know how to make soup from stones.”
~Marcia Brown

IMPERFECT poet Michelle Kogan is thinking about how someone cleverly turns inhospitable behavior into a lesson about hospitality. Isn't it cool when you can help someone learn from their mistakes on the spot?

Hungry traveler
visits your town only
to be turned down—but
he schemes an entire meal
with his wit and appeal!

Stone Soup
photo by aehdeschaine

MICHELLE KOGAN is an artist, illustrator, instructor, and writer. She grew up on Chicago's South Side and studied first at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, receiving a BFA, and went on to receive an MFA in painting from Northern Illinois University. Michelle's poem "Temptation" is included in IMPERFECT. Her web site is located at https://www.michellekogan.com/.

Ruth Bowen Hersey

IMPERFECT poet Ruth Bowen Hersey weighs the pros and cons of being late...

This is just to say
that I'm sorry I was late
to my meeting this morning
except not that sorry.
I stopped to take some pictures
of the tomatoes in my yard.
They were so beautiful.
So small and green
and so flecked with
rainwater.
And the meeting
seemed so far away.

Paul Hayday, Tomatoes

RUTH BOWEN HERSEY lives in Haiti where she teaches English, including poetry, to seventh and eighth graders at an international Christian school.

Elizabeth Steinglass

Mistakes can be life lessons, like learning where not to take a nap, and learning about giving new things a chance, as you can see in the two poems IMPERFECT poet Elizabeth Steinglass shares today. The second one is a mashup of William Carlos Williams' This Is Just to Say and Dr. Seuss' Green Eggs and Ham. Fun!

napping by a tree
with a stack of unsold hats
those rotten monkeys

Give me back my hats!

*******

This is just to say

I would not eat
the eggs and ham
you offered
so many ways

and which
you had probably
cooked
for me

Forgive me
they were delicious
though green
and cold

ELIZABETH STEINGLASS lives in Washington, DC with two of her children (a third has flown the nest), her husband, and her sleepy cat, Scout. Her book Soccer Nonsense is forthcoming from Boyds Mills Press. You can also read her poetry in magazines and anthologies, including Pet Crazy: A Poetry Friday Power Book and The Poetry Friday Anthology for Celebrations, both edited by Sylvia Vardell and Janet Wong. For more information, visit www.ElizabethSteinglass.com

Diane Kendig

Louisa Lane Drew as Mrs. Malaprop

IMPERFECT poet Diane Kendig wrote a clerihew for the blog about a character whose name became synonymous with a certain type of mistake.

Richard Sheridan
created this harridan
in Rivals, his play
where she mis-speaks all day.

A bit of info:
The word "malapropism"...comes from a character named "Mrs. Malaprop" in Richard Brinsley Sheridan's 1775 play The Rivals. Mrs. Malaprop frequently misspeaks (to comic effect) by using words which don't have the meaning that she intends but which sound similar to words that do.

Sheridan presumably chose her name in humorous reference to the word malapropos, an adjective or adverb meaning "inappropriate" or "inappropriately", derived from the French phrase mal à propos (literally "poorly placed"). [Wikipedia]

DIANE KENDIG'S five poetry chapbooks include the most recent Prison Terms, and she has also co-edited the anthology In the Company of Russell Atkins. A recipient of Ohio Arts Council Fellowships in Poetry and other awards, she has published poetry and prose in journals such as J Journal, Under the Sun, and Ekphrasis. She blogs at “Home Again” (http://dianekendig.blogspot.com/), and her website is dianekendig.com

Liz Garton Scanlon

IMPERFECT poet Liz Garton Scanlon shares a haiku here about a charming mistake maker.

Oh, no -- dropped a thread
and my sorry web now reads
OME PIG. Poor Wilbur!

LIZ GARTON SCANLON is the author of numerous beloved books for young people, including the highly-acclaimed, Caldecott-honored picture book All the World, illustrated by Marla Frazee, and her debut novel for middle grade readers, The Great Good Summer, as well Another Way to Climb a Tree, In the Canyon, Bob, Not Bob (co-authored with Audrey Vernick), and several others. Ms. Scanlon serves on the faculty of the Vermont College of Fine Arts, and is a frequent and popular presenter at schools, libraries and conferences. She lives with her family in Austin, Texas.

Buffy Silverman

thin ice
photo by mfortini

IMPERFECT poet Buffy Silverman writes about backpacks and origami in the anthology; here she talks about a potentially dangerous mistake:

frozen pond speaks with
warning cracks and groaning creaks...
skating on thin ice

it's less of a risk for these folks
photo by Yutaka Seki

BUFFY SILVERMAN is the author of 90 nonfiction books for children, featuring topics from Angel Sharks to Alligators, and Mars to Monster Trucks. Look for her nature-inspired poetry in anthologies and children's magazines, and visit her at www.buffysilverman.com.

Linda Mitchell

IMPERFECT poet Linda Mitchell shares an inspiring diamante in the anthology, and here she shares a mini poem about an invention that could have been dangerous for its inventor. Chemistry can involve a lot of surprises and volatile mistakes!

Earliest known written formula for gunpowder,
from the Wujing Zongyao of 1044 AD.

Mixed a little...
boom!
with a long wooden spoon --
charcoal, sulfur, and saltpeter
in a bamboo tube --
boom!
sparkles in the sky...
boom!
don't know why...
a mistake?
or a really lucky guy!

The inventor in Linda's poem was lucky,
but we don't know what happened to this bird:
An expendable bird carrying
an incendiary receptacle round its neck.
From the Wujing Zongyao.

LINDA MITCHELL is a family girl and middle school librarian which makes her increasingly curious, geeky and creative on a daily basis. She writes in the edges of her life. You can catch her weekly Poetry Friday posts at A Word Edgewise https://awordedgewiselindamitchell.blogspot.com/.

Christy Mihaly

George Washington at the Battle of Trenton
engraving by the Illman Brothers, 1870

Some mistakes have big repercussions. IMPERFECT poet Christy Mihaly wrote a poem for the Team Imperfect blog about a military mistake:

The men who celebrated
became inebriated,
their stomachs fully sated,
oblivious to threats;

then in their camp at Trenton
commenced their slow descent in-
to sleep, in this event in
our early history.

[The mistake-makers here are the Hessian soldiers camped at Trenton, NJ, who celebrated Christmas a little too hard as General George Washington and his troops crossed the Delaware River to attack them, Dec. 25-26, 1776, in a great victory for the Continental Army.]

CHRISTY MIHALY writes in Vermont at a pine table overlooking forests and fields. The activities in those fields inspired her first picture book, HEY, HEY, HAY! (A Tale of Bales and the Machines that Make Them), illustrated by Joe Cepeda (Holiday House, 2018). Christy is a member of the Poets' Garage, an online community of people who write verse for children. As a founding member of GROG, the group blog for writers and readers of children’s literature, Christy blogs about books and the writing life. She also creates ELA exercises for an online educational company, which is great writing practice and pays better than poetry. She has published articles, stories, activities, and poetry in children's magazines. Her poem for writers, "Muse," appeared in the SCBWI Bulletin in 2014. She has, in addition, amassed a tall stack of rejections.

Diane Mayr

IMPERFECT poet Diane Mayr knows that some mistakes begin perfectly innocently...one small gesture gets the ball rolling. Maybe something as small as a cookie.

In All Probability

Probably, I'll grow frantic
--see how I obsess.
You gave me the cookie,
now it's everything in excess.

DIANE MAYR is a public librarian, a writer for children, and a poet. She also plays at being an artist. Her published children's books include Littlebat's Halloween Story and Run, Turkey, Run! Her illustrated poems can be found at www.randomnoodling.com/. Diane lives in southern New Hampshire with her feline friend, Skippy.

Mary Lee Hahn

photo courtesy the Asian Carp RCC

Sometimes what seems like a good idea can go very wrong, like the introduction of Asian carp to the U.S. They were brought to control weeds and parasites but have ended up causing problems for native fish and the water quality. Currently people are trying to keep Asian carp from spreading other places in the U.S. IMPERFECT poet Mary Lee Hahn spotlights that mistake:

A Note From the Asian Carp

Don’t forget, you invited me.
I didn’t intend to be invasive –
the floods just carried me away

and now I’m on the loose
heading towards the Great Lakes to reproduce.
Will you be able to keep me at bay?


MARY LEE HAHN is a teacher-poet. She has taught fourth or fifth grades for over thirty years and is the author of Reconsidering Read-Aloud (Stenhouse). Mary Lee blogs about children's literature and teaching at A Year of Reading (http://readingyear.blogspot.com/) with Franki Sibberson. Her poems can be found in all of the volumes of the Pomelo Books Poetry Friday Anthology series (K-5, Middle School, Science, Celebrations), The Best of Today's Little Ditty (2014-2015 and 2016), Dear Tomato: An International Crop of Food and Agriculture Poems, and National Geographic Book of Nature Poems. She collects her poetry at Poetrepository (http://poetrepository.blogspot.com/).

Suzy Levinson

IMPERFECT poet Suzy Levinson shares a mini about a messer-upper who is lucky someone comes along to save her from this mistake:

GRANDMA

Grandma's looking weird today.
I can't believe my eyes.
Her ears are big, her fur is brown,
her teeth have grown in size.
Should I take a closer look?
Yes, I'm sure that's wise.

photo by Patrick Tubridy

SUZY LEVINSON writes poetry and picture books. Her poems have been published in several anthologies, including The Poetry Friday Anthology for Celebrations (Pomelo Books). Others have appeared (or are forthcoming) in the SCBWI Bulletin, Ladybug, and Highlights' High Five and Hello magazines. She lives in New York. You can find her online at www.suzylevinson.com, on Twitter @suzylevinson, and in IMPERFECT with the poem LOTS OF THINGS.

Ken Slesarik

A mini mistake-maker poem by IMPERFECT poet Ken Slesarik today.

Regrets

"Bad Boy" Bob, he's got some news,
back in the day he got tattoos.
He's eighty now and never rude,
but he'll tell you not to get tattooed.

KEN SLESARIK is a special education teacher and children's poet from Phoenix, Arizona. His "Heroes and Poets" assembly program, poetry “Lunch Bunch,” and after school poetry club have been well received by teachers, students, parents and administrators. Ken has spoken at conferences, written poetry curriculum and enjoys providing professional development for teachers. When not teaching, speaking or visiting schools, Ken writes poetry for children with poems published in several world-wide anthologies and magazines. Ken's mission is to empower students through the medium of poetry and he is a poetry advocate to children and teachers alike.

Kat Apel

In addition to 21 states and the District of Columbia in the U.S., IMPERFECT poets also live in Australia, Haiti, and Italy. Here is a historical mini mistake-maker poem from one of our Australian poets, Kat Apel:

A patron decried
the potato; ‘Not fried!’ –
so I sliced it in strips,
’cause I was spitting chips!*

Kat explains: There are different versions of the first potato chip story - but this is one of them, attributing the first chips to George (Crum) Speck, after someone complained (multiple times) that his fried potatoes were soggy.

* spitting chips is an Aussie slang meaning angry/annoyed.

George Speck with "Aunt Kate" Wicks

When I was looking up photos of George (Crum) Speck, I discovered that he named a restaurant after a mistake! One of Speck's customers was Cornelius Vanderbilt (founder of the university in Nashville). Vanderbilt, who had trouble remembering Speck's name, mistakenly called him "Crum." Speck liked "Crum" because he thought "a crumb is bigger than a speck," so he ended up calling his next restaurant "Crum's"!

***********

Kat also spotted something that reminded her of kintsugi: beautiful manuscript repair.

KATHRYN APEL is a born-and-bred farm girl who’s scared of cows. She lives among the gum trees, cattle and kangaroos on an Australian grazing property. Kat has five published books, including a rhyming picture book (about a cow stuck in the mud) and three verse novels.

Michelle Heidenrich Barnes

Some IMPERFECT poets have been concocting wee riddles about mistake makers, just for Team Imperfect fun. IMPERFECT poet Michelle Heidenrich Barnes shares a limerick that covers one way to earn somebody's forgiveness. (A pie goes a long way with me. What about you?)

This housekeeper might misconstrue
all that you've asked her to do.
She'll mess up your kitchen
and dress up your chicken,
but pie-baking skills see her through.

Pretty cute book jackets

MICHELLE HEIDENRICH BARNES is an award-winning children's poet and anthologist. Her work appears in magazines and anthologies, including One Minute till Bedtime (Little, Brown), Here We Go and The Poetry Friday Anthology for Celebrations (Pomelo Books), and forthcoming collections from National Geographic and Charlesbridge. Her blog Today’s Little Ditty is a poetry playground featuring writing tips, interviews with authors and editors, and monthly poetry challenges for anyone with a passion for wordplay. Visit her at MichelleHBarnes.com.

Catherine Flynn

a particular farmhouse
in Cavendish, Prince Edward Island

IMPERFECT poet Catherine Flynn wrote this poem about a famous fictional mistake using many of the author's own words. Can you name the author or the character?

This is just to say

Forgive me,
I did not mean
to intoxicate
my bosom friend.

But in my joy
at the prospect
of serving her tea,
I mistook

currant wine
for raspberry cordial,
bright red
and so nice.

CATHERINE FLYNN is a literacy specialist from Connecticut who is passionate about sparking a love of poetry in children. When she’s not teaching, reading, or writing, Catherine likes to knit hats, scarves, and blankets for her friends and family. When the weather cooperates, she can be found in her garden or walking her dog, Lucy. Her poems have been included in The Best of Today’s Little Ditty, 2014-2015 and The Best of Today’s Little Ditty, 2016. She blogs at Reading to the Core and tweets as @flynn_catherine.

Student Poets

Have patience with everything that remains unsolved in your heart. Try to love the questions themselves, like locked rooms and like books written in a foreign language.
~Rainer Maria Rilke, Letters to a Young Poet

IMPERFECT features several talented student poets. We appreciate the support of their parents, and, in Andres and Reese's case, of their teacher Susanna Lang.

RYAN WU is a hardworking, fun-loving 12-year-old with a passion for soccer, violin, piano, and gaming. He lives with a family consisting of one mother, one father, and a younger brother. Ryan currently resides in Pleasanton, California, attending Thomas Hart Middle School. He is ecstatic that his poem was accepted for this book.

ANDRES CEJA is a sixth grader at Hawthorne Scholastic Academy. He lives in Chicago with his Mom and Dad and two brothers named Aaron and Alex. At Hawthorne, Andres is an editor of the school literary magazine. This poem is his first ever poem to be published. Other than writing, Andres likes to film sketches. He also swims competitively and competes in water polo.

REESE HOFFMAN is in seventh grade at Hawthorne Scholastic Academy. She lives in Chicago with her sister who also attends Hawthorne Scholastic Academy. At Hawthorne, Reese is an editor of the school literary magazine. This poem is her first publication ever. Outside of writing, Reese runs cross country and track for Hawthorne.

Donna JT Smith

Can you name IMPERFECT poet Donna JT Smith's mistake-maker?

I ran away from home,
I should have stayed right there;
I took my little dog
With wiry scruffy hair.
Too late we ran back home
Where a twister twisted us!
Somehow we came down safely,
No hair on me was mussed!
We landed somewhere on the East -
Who'd think I'd get new shoes?
That witch should not have been right there -
She made a mistake, too.

where troubles melt like lemon drops
photo by Doug Wilkowske

DONNA JT SMITH, a retired teacher, lives on the coast of Maine. She now spends her time writing and riding her motorcycle - a bright red Honda Aero. Donna doesn’t really mind making mistakes (though she would secretly prefer to get everything right on the first try), because mistakes often lead to some good learning and often require creative solutions! Donna has published poetry in The Best of Today’s Little Ditty anthologies volumes 1 and 2 edited by Michelle H. Barnes and in The Nancy Drew Anthology from Silver Birch Press.

Charles Ghigna

Poultry poet! IMPERFECT poet Charles Ghigna knows how to not take himself too seriously.

I am a silly
poultry poet whose rhymes some
times break the gold egg

FATHER GOOSE® CHARLES GHIGNA lives in a treehouse in the middle of Alabama. He is the author of more than 100 books from Random House, Simon & Schuster, Time Inc., Disney, Hyperion, Scholastic, Abrams, Boyds Mills Press, Capstone, Charlesbridge, Orca and other publishers, and more than 5000 poems for children and adults in newspapers and magazines ranging from The New Yorker and Harper’s to Highlights and Cricket magazines. He served as poet-in-residence and chair of creative writing at the Alabama School of Fine Arts, instructor of creative writing at Samford University, poetry editor of English Journal for the National Council of Teachers of English, and as a nationally syndicated poetry feature writer for Tribune Media Services. He speaks at schools, conferences, libraries, and literary events throughout the U.S. and overseas, and has read his poems at The Library of Congress, The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the American Library in Paris, the American School in Paris, and the International Schools of South America. For more information, visit his website at FatherGoose.com

Molly Hogan

photo by vgallova

Can you guess the mistake-makers in IMPERFECT poet Molly Hogan's minis?

She seems so friendly
The apple looks delicious
Perhaps just one bite...

***

I only dropped down
for company with breakfast...
Who knew she'd run off?

***

Entranced by the view
I balance atop the wall
Too often I fall

MOLLY HOGAN grew up with three sisters and a brother, and the older two delighted in leading her astray. “Bitter Chocolate,” which appears in IMPERFECT, is based on the enduring memory of one such mistake. Although many of these incidents resulted in humiliation or punishment, this one also eventually resulted in a poem. You never know what will inspire you! Molly is a fourth grade teacher who lives with her husband in rural Maine. Much of her free time is spent writing, reading, running, wandering, taking pictures, and procrastinating. Her personal essays have been published in the Portland Press Herald and her poems have appeared in online galleries.

F.J. Bergmann

IMPERFECT poet F.J. Bergmann today with "An Apology," which originally appeared in Billy Collins' second anthology for high-school students, 180 More:

An Apology

Forgive me
for backing over
and smashing
your red wheelbarrow.

It was raining
and the rear wiper
does not work on
my new plum-colored SUV.

I am also sorry
about the white
chickens.

F.J. BERGMANN writes poetry and speculative fiction, often simultaneously, appearing in Analog, Asimov's, Polu Texni, Silver Blade, and elsewhere, and edits poetry for Mobius: The Journal of Social Change (mobiusmagazine.com). A Catalogue of the Further Suns, a collection of dystopian first-contact reports, won the 2017 Gold Line Press poetry chapbook contest.