Welcome to Poetry Friday. If you want to know what Poetry Friday is, check this article by Children’s author, Renee M La Tulippe, on her page at Water, No River.

This week has been better with focusing on optimism. I drew inspiration from nature as the ice and snow thaw, preparing to give way to spring ephemerals and warmer days.

I had planned to share a poem by Shel Silverstein, as I have four of his books from my mom’s classroom, including The Giving Tree (1964), Where the Sidewalk Ends (1974), A Light in the Attic (1981), and Falling Up (1996), which she used years ago when she taught third grade.

But, alas, Shel Silverstein’s works are not in the public domain. They are protected by HarperCollins, and permission is required to share. I did not seek it.

But you can go to the Poetry Foundation website to learn about Shel and Poets.org to read a couple of his poems. I’m sure most of you are familiar with his poetry already.

Surprisingly, or maybe not, Shel’s poetry books are banned in many schools and libraries.

There’s a nice synopsis of his work and how his books came to be on a website that carries his name.

My penchant for older kid lit poems and prose came from waking up this morning and feeling like Flat Stanley! I cannot believe a tiny bit of work in our woods yesterday, clearing brush, made me ache so badly.

Classics

Where's Waldo?
Stuck in a book, on a shelf somewhere
Not opened in years.

Where's Flat Stanley? 
The one who travelled the world from 
Classrooms to home.
Is he lost in the mail?

Where's Pete's Dragon?
Stranded in the fog,
Now that Pet has grown.

Charlotte no longer 
Spins her web of words
The farm is gone.

Pooh Bear was traded for 
Pokemon, Long ago.
The Hundred Acre Woods has
Been logged...

© Draft/Beginnings of a poem on classic characters that might be lost to modern times by Carol Labuzzetta, 2026. 

My mom's poetry, sits in a folder in my home. Her writing reminds me of Shel Silverstein and Jack Prelutsky and Jeff Moss - all of whom I proudly now own books from her collection.

Here is one from her files that I retyped into Canva. It is at least 30 years old, probably more. I wish she had dated it.

Our Poetry Friday host this week is Karen Edmisten. Thanks for hosting, Karen.