Mary O' Neill

Mary O' Neill 

Children's Writer and Poet

February 16, 1906 - January 2, 1990

One of Mary O' Neill's most popular books, Hailstones and Halibut Bones  (1961), identifies and interprets the spectrum of colors through verse. 

O'Neil is a master at using rhythmic words to convey feelings. The format of her poem from the book The Random House Book of Poetry for Children  conveys the power of word choice.

                                                               Feelings About Words

Some words clink 

As ice in drink

Some move with grace

A dance, a lace.

Some sound thin:

Wail, scream and pin.

Some words are squat:

A mug, a pot,

And some are plump,

Fat, round and dump.

Some words are light :

Drift, lift and bright.

A few are small:

A, is and all.

And some are thick,

Glue, paste and brick.

Some words are sad:

"I never had..."

And others gay:

Joy, spin and play.

Some words are sick:

Stab,scratch and nick.

Some words are hot:

Fire, flame and shot.

Some words are sharp, 

Sword, point and carp.

And some alert:

Glint, glance and flirt.

Some words are lazy:

Saunter, hazy.

And some words preen:

Pride,pomp, and queen.

Some words are quick, 

A jerk, a flick.

Some words are slow:

Lag, stop and grow,

While others poke

As ox with yoke

Some words can fly-

There's wind, there's high;

And some words cry:

"Goodbye...

Goodbye..."

by Mary O" Neill

While some poets can write at great length about words, some poets on the subject are brief.

A Word

A word is dead

When it is said, 

Some say.

I say it just

Begins to live 

That day.

by Emily Dickinson 

The sun setting over the desert indeed is an incredible sight. This photo was taken right out my back door 

and reminded me of another poem of Mary O' Neill about the color purple written in verse form. 

What is Purple

Time is purple just before night

when most people turn on the light -- --

but if you don't it's a beautiful sight.

Asters are purple, there's purple ink.

Purple's more popular than you think...

it's sort of a great Grandmother to pink.

There are purple shadows and purple veils,

some ladies purple their fingernails.

There's purple jam and purple jell

and a purple bruise next day will tell

where you landed when you fell.

The purple feeling is rather put-out

the purple look is a definite pout.

But the purple sound is the loveliest thing

It's a violet opening in the spring.

_________________________________________

Blueberry Blast Smoothie

Cook's notes: A healthy and nourishing start to your day.
Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup nonfat or 1 percent low-fat milk
• 1/2 cup non-fat plain yogurt
• 1 cup frozen blueberries (unsweetened)
• 1 teaspoon honey

Directions:

• Put all ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth.

2005, Ellie Krieger, Food Network