asakiyume | Entries tagged with oral tradition

This past Friday was Food Truck Friday in my town.

So many marvelous choices! (This is just a sampling)

I got empanadas from La Mesa and some fried plantains from a Caribbean truck (not pictured). People were picnicking, but I was bringing my goodies home for family.

I did, however, stop to get a "wicked short" poem from Attack Bear Press's poetry vending machine:

I got an untitled haiku by Melissa Silva:
sun-shade dappled path--
beeeee-bzzz-see-seee-seee-dz-dsee
Blue Winged Warbler sings

Jason Montgomery, the Attack Bear in the picture of the vending machine, told me that on the trees at the front of the school grounds where Food Truck Friday was happening had the transcribed story of his grandmother's migration to the United States from Mexico in the early 20th century. Her story was vivid--here is the introductory placard and a few others from the trees:

It was very pleasant! Much better than my other main excitement of the week, which was to contract a TERRIBLE case of poison ivy for which I'm now on steroids ....

Crossposts: https://asakiyume.livejournal.com/927658.html

Sherwood Smith asked me some really interesting questions that The Inconvenient God raised for her, and she posted the questions and answers over on the Book View Cafe blog (here).

I think my favorite question was the one about whether writing words down chains them. The technology of writing is really wonderful and makes miracles possible, in terms of sharing and transmission, but the spoken word has real power too. I love thinking about their different strengths.

And speaking of spoken word (heh),

okrablossom linked me to another beautiful spoken word poem, "Rise," by Kathy Jetñil-Kijiner, this time in collaboration with Aka Niviâna, an Inuk poet. Kathy Jetñil-Kijiner is from the Marshall Islands, which are gravely threatened by rising sea levels, and many of her poems deal with climate change. Aka Niviâna is from Kalaallit Nunaat--Greenland--whose melting glaciers create the rising sea levels. Her poems often deal with the legacy of colonization.

Their words, combined with the breathtaking images, is really powerful (video (6 minutes) and text of the poem available here).

--Sister of ice and snow, I'm coming to you
--Sister of ocean and sand, I welcome you

Crossposts: https://asakiyume.livejournal.com/909901.html

On August 23, writing in her journal, Kaya recalls a traditional song repurposed as a children's taunt for games of chase:

I’m sending, sending, sending the Lady’s birds
To find, find, find what you have hid
They’ll seize, seize, seize your every secret
And pierce, pierce, pierce your many lies.
They’ll leave, leave, leave a burning ember
In the place, place, place of your coward heart
And fan, fan, fan the Lady’s fires
To flame, flame, flame in your fevered eyes

I love children's songs and rhymes--clapping games, jump rope rhymes, counting-out games, insults and retorts, all of it. I've posted about them before, but this time round, I'd like to link you to the handclap and jump rope rhymes page on the Cocojams website. The whole site is an excellent resource, and this page is loads of fun. For example, this rhyme, which developed after my childhood:

MAMA MAMA CAN'T YOU SEE (Version #17)
Momma momma can't you see
What the baby's done to me
Took away my MTV
Now I’m watching dumb Barney
Tic Tac Toe Three in a row
Barney got shot got shot by GI Joe
Who ever got stop get a bump in the head
And that is how the game will end

The site includes videos of kids playing the handclapping games:

Watch on YouTube

S	M	T	W	T	F	S
1	2	3	4	5	6	7
8	9	10	11	12	13	14
15	16	17	18	19	20	21
22	23	24	25	26	27	28
29	30

Asakiyume mita

Entries tagged with oral tradition

Food trucks --with poetry

written word, spoken word

August 23 in Pen Pal: songs children sing

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