Where I'm From

Where I'm From

by George Ella Lyon in United States of Poetry, a book and a video published by Harry N. Abrams

1. "Where I'm From"
   
   
2. I am from clothespins,
3. from Clorox and carbon-tetrachloride.
4. I am from the dirt under the back porch.
5. (Black, glistening
6. it tasted like beets.)
7. I am from the forsythia bush,
8. the Dutch elm
9. whose long gone limbs I remember
10. as if they were my own.
11. I am from fudge and eyeglasses,
12. from Imogene and Alafair.
13. I'm from the know-it-alls
14. and the pass-it-ons,
15. from perk up and pipe down.
16. I'm from He restoreth my soul
17. with cottonball lamb
18. and ten verses I can say myself.
19. I'm from Artemus and Billie's Branch,
20. fried corn and strong coffee.
21. From the finger my grandfather lost
22. to the auger
23. the eye my father shut to keep his sight.
24. Under my bed was a dress box
25. spilling old pictures.
26. a sift of lost faces
27. to drift beneath my dreams.
28. I am from those moments --
29. snapped before I budded --
30. leaf-fall from the family tree.

Why we read/write this poem

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. 

Practice: Analyze and Write

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

• 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.
• If you are using paper, place two sheets of paper next to each other, and make four main columns (and one margin column) like this.
• If you are using a computer with Docs, click here, and go to Edit (on your browser's toolbar), and Select All, then Edit (on browser's tool bar), and Copy. Then open a New Document in Docs, and paste this table there.

 What to do once you have set up the four columns:

1. Re-read the lines from the poem in each row of the first column.
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 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.

Similar Poems

Enduring Understanding

The sensuous (of the senses) details of memories make for good poetry.

Essential Questioin

Why do some memories stick with us and others fade?