1       "Where I'm From" by George Ella Lyon
in United States of Poetry, a book and a video published by Harry N. Abrams

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I am from clothespins,
from Clorox and carbon-tetrachloride.
I am from the dirt under the back porch.
(Black, glistening
it tasted like beets.)
I am from the forsythia bush,
the Dutch elm
whose long gone limbs I remember
as if they were my own.

I am from fudge and eyeglasses,
     from Imogene and Alafair.
I'm from the know-it-alls
     and the pass-it-ons,
from perk up and pipe down.
I'm from He restoreth my soul
     with cottonball lamb
     and ten verses I can say myself.

I'm from Artemus and Billie's Branch,
fried corn and strong coffee.
From the finger my grandfather lost
     to the auger
the eye my father shut to keep his sight.
Under my bed was a dress box
spilling old pictures.
a sift of lost faces
to drift beneath my dreams.
I am from those moments --
snapped before I budded --
leaf-fall from the family tree.
[Clorox = clothes detergent  carbon-tetrachloride = bleach.]



[forsythia = yellow flowers]

[Dutch elm = a tree]





[Imogene and Alafair = names of relatives, grandpa and grandma?]








[Artemus and Billie's Branch = a side of the family tree one identifies with]


[auger = wood-working machine]




[a sift = a filter used to separate things from each other]

 

Click here go to an article by Linda Christensen.
She describes a lesson similar to the one presented below.
She also explains why we ask students to read and write poetry like this.

 

Read "Where I'm From," then write a poem like it , following these directions:

  1. Read the poem silently to yourself, then read it aloud a couple of times. Notice that there is a phrase that repeats throughout the poem, "I am from..." When you write your poem, you will want to repeat "I am from..." or another phrase to pull your reader through the poem. Are there any words or phrases that you don't understand? Check with your teacher or another student who might be able to help you.
  2. Place two sheets of paper next to each other, and make four main columns (and one margin column) like this.
Line #

Copy poet's lines

What this is about
1-3

 

  

 

  

 
4-6

 

  

 

  

 
7-10

 

  

 

  

 
11-12

 

  

 

  

 
13-18

 

  

 

  

 
19

 

  

 

  

 
20

 

  

 

  

 
21-23

 

  

 

  

 
24-30

 

  

 

  

 

My own list

My own poem
 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
  1. In the first main column, copy the lines indicated above on each row.
  2. In the second main column, say what the poet has described about her family or upbringing. What details has she put in these specific lines? [For hints on what kinds of things to include in this column, see the headings in Linda Christensen's article.]
  3. Then go to the third column and make a similar list of things from your life and memories.
  4. After you have analyzed the entire poem, "Where I'm From," go to the fourth main column to write your own poem like this one. Be sure to include the many details, language, and lists from your third column in your poem.
  5. Read more poems like "Where I'm From" to get more ideas. See below.

More poems like or based on "Where I'm From"

1. Where I'm From Ahlvoid Daniels,
10th grade student
2. Where I am From Kellie Sloan,
teacher
3. I am from kids Lea Ricci,
teacher
4. King and Story Collage Adel Curasco,
Taco Shop Poets
5. Where I'm From Aldeny García,
12th grade student
6. Where I'm From No name (1),
11th grade student
7. Where I'm From No name (2),
11th grade student