Poetry Friday: Critter of the Day

Hi, Poetry Friday friends!I've been out of blogging commission for some weeks. Most of you know the reason why.But first, a reminder: If you're coming to the NCTE Conference in Baltimore next month, you are invited to a Poets of KidLit dinner. It will be on Wednesday, November 20, 7 pm. Location TBA (probably Nick's Fish House). Our special guest will be Kat Apel!So ... why haven't I been blogging lately? On September 30, my husband and I moved out of our home of 20 years. We downsized a bit and moved from the suburbs to the country.Best of all: At the new house there is space for writing workshops! I hope to get the workshops up and running by summer or autumn of 2020.Meanwhile, Rob (husband), Sam (Schnauzer), Rudy (beagle), and I are getting used to living in the woods.That means critters. Lots of critters. Enough to post a #critteroftheday on my Instagram account.Today's beastie was the spider who made itself GUARDIAN OF THE MAILBOX.But most interesting so far was the skeleton by the shed. It took a group effort on Facebook to identify this animal. Once I got a good shot of the jawbone, there was no question.It's an opossum.I haven't had time to write during the unpacking phase of moving, but I did find a wonderful poem to share with you today.    PossumsBy Sheila Black

A kind of thrill—to lie on a roadand flatten yourself,

white fur like a ball of winter,like the March blossoms on the fruit trees,each one folded in likethe fledgling that never made itfrom the nest.They do this when they feel threatened,remain motionlesseven when curious people come prodthem with sticks,stiffening their pearly claws as a tree stiffensits twigs for winter.Read the rest of the poem at Poets.Org.My favorite resource for understanding animal encounters is Animal Speak by Ted Andrews. Does anyone else have and love this book as much as I do? I wonder if it's unpacked. Time to search through the book boxes.