Favorite Places - Jonah's

This is a "Summer Experience poem." It incorporates sensory detail (sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and skin sensations) to make the reader feel as if he or she is "there," some dialogue for a sense of freshness, figurative language (such as similes, metaphors, personification) for richness, some dialogue for immediacy, a sense of journey (with a beginning, middle, and end). The closing should be reflective, even philosophical. Assignment by Mr. Chamberlain, Clarke Middle School, Lexington, MA. Poem used with Jonah Watt's permission. Photograph -- "Malden Island from Five Island Lobster Co, Georgetown, Maine" by Robert C. Sutton (source) used with his permission.One Morning in Maine -- by Jonah Watt As I pull back the shades, sunlight streams through the windows,Brilliant and warm as ever, a yellow yoke high in the sky. When I walk downstairs, the salty air greets me

“It’s going to be a beautiful day,” it tells me.

Across the bay, I can hear a bell ringing

Signaling breakfast on Malden Island.

I pull on my clothes and eat some pancakes,

Then step outside to witness nature’s wonders.

Outside the sun is shining down on the bay,

Piercing the placid water like diamonds scattered across a mirror.

I can see the tiny beads of dew on the grass

And fishing boats flocked by cawing seagulls, the men hauling in their traps.

I decide to walk down to the wharf to see

The hustle and bustle of a working fishing village.

Hot sun beats down on the pavement,

Warming the road like a brick oven.

Walking down the pier, I can smell the fish

Being carried up a ramp by a fisherman with calloused hands.

I see a local sitting at a picnic table and say hello,

“Ayup,” he says, “We sure got some great weather here!”

Feeling hot and clammy, I decide to take a jump into the water.

As I hit the icy water, it feels like needles digging into my skin.

I climb up the ladder, the salty water running down my face,

And drink in the radiant sun as if it were a cup of milk.

On the way back to the house,

I think to myself: Could this get any better?

And my senses call back to me:

Welcome to Maine, the way life should be.

-- Jonah Watt, class of 2014, September 2009