Diamonds in the Trees: ImproVerse Rhyming Poem

Friends were complaining after a major ice storm in the Chattanooga Metro area (Catoosa County, NW Georgia). With lows around 6 degrees above zero, it WAS cold! As the sun came up, it showed something magical: Diamonds in the Trees. I walked through the woods and out into the wildflower field at Spirit Tree Farms, where goldenrods, pokeweed, late bonneset, blackberries, grasses, and other native plants joined with honey locusts, hickory and oak trees, and more, to show off  a collection of sparkling jewels unmatched at any jewelry store. I riffed these iambic lines in a video, trying to stiffle my crying. Thanks to HomeGrownNationalPark.org for the inspiration, and to Heavenly Father and His Son Jesus for the Creation.

Barbarossa German Poem Elvis Style: Performance Art

Barbarossa: Ein Deutsches Gedicht / Lied nach Elvis Art. For a BYU German class, a friend and I — returned from our German-speaking missions for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints — had to memorize a long poem auf Deutsch. It was tough, until we put it to music. (Of course, we had to use #Elvis music!) Years later, I remembered the song / poem and captured it. Here’s Barbarossa von Friedrich Rückert.

Danke Ihnen viel mals!

Here are the words to “Barbarossa”, if you want to follow along!