Photo by curlywurlygurly
There is a photo of me fishing with my grandpa,
standing by the water, throwing the rod,
cows eating grass behind us.
There is a photo of me talking to him,
surrounded by my family, smiling,
pictures of past generations on the wall.
There is a photo of me visiting him in the hospital.
He wanted to be in his own bed.
There is not a photo of me saying goodbye to him,
Grandpa lying on a bed,
eyes closed,
trying to sing an old song.
By Ramiro, 12th grade
Image via Wikipedia
Eat like a champ
Take a shower when you smell
Quit acting like a dumb kid
Don’t bother your mom
Don’t bother your sister
Stay in school
By Tucker, 7th grade
Image via Wikipedia
This poem, “My Grandma’s Hands,” is written by a 3rd grader, who was inspired by Niobi Shihab Nye’s poem “Words Under the Words” about her grandparents.
My Grandma’s Hands
My grandma’s hands know how to make tortillas
which she learned how to do in Mexico.
My grandma’s hands know how to take care of my grandpa
who has to go to the hospital almost every day.
My grandma’s hands know how to braid my hair
into a long trenza.
By Diana, 3rd grade
Photo by Nick Harris1 via Flickr
My shiny pink box with
the pictures of my grandpa.
The pictures with his smell
that makes me remember him.
In my box, I will put…
My baby things like
my pillow, my shoes, my clothes,
and my blanket. With my
smooth little things I wish
I was a baby like I
was before.
In my box, I will put…
The shiny and rough clothes
that someone special gave me.
My grandparents gave me
the clothes with their smell
and love. That I love
and will always have.
By Elizabeth, 4th grade
Image by Umpqua via Flickr
I have never met my grandparents before, but my mom told me about them. She told me that my grandpa got milk from the cow and made it into cheese then sold it. She told me that they had lots of animals, like cows, pigs, horses, dogs, sheep, and goats. When my mom was little, my grandpa gave her a horse for her birthday. Her name was Star. My mom told me once there was a fox that was trying to get in the chicken pen and eat a chicken, but my grandpa saw it and scared it away. My mom looked in our closet to find a picture of Mexico that they took with the animals and my grandparents and my mom when she was little. First I saw a picture of a pig named Gordita, and she had piglets that he sold. Whenever there were baby chicks, cows, horses or goats, my grandpa would sell them. My grandma took a picture of the dog playing with the chicken. There was some stuff in the box with the pictures. There was a sombrero and a little statue of a Chihuahua dancing the Mexican hat dance. She put the box away and started thinking about going to Mexico. It’s a gateway to a lifetime.
by Christian, 4th grade
