Anne Mae Longbons: The Weather Vane

Anna Mae Longbons is 12 years old and has been writing poetry for over two years now. She loves words and enjoys piecing them together to form poems. She wrote, “When I was outside one day I looked up at the weather vane on top of my family's corn crib and this poem began to form in my mind. The places that inspired this poem were the corn crib and America.”

This poem shows history. Note the rhyme scheme of the four line stanzas. I would think that if Ms. Longbons were Robert Frost’s student, he would be proud. Yet it has a Carl Sandburg feel.

The Weather Vane

Some split wood shingles
Atop a barn
A wicker basket
That’s filled with yarn

The grazing sheep
From where it came
And on the roof
A weather vane

A cow to give them
Milk and cheese
A growing garden
With beans and peas

Look to the North

A salty sea
So large and vast
The whaling boats
With towering masts

The tall brick buildings
So strong and old
They housed men
Both brave and bold

A country’s birth
A war of pain
Upon the roof
A weather vane

Look to the East

A noble land
Yet holds the mark
Of hating those
Whose skin was dark

A weather vane
And it has shown
A fertile land
Where crops were grown

They feel betrayed
And yet with grace
They bear the trials
They must face

Look to the South

The thousands flocked
In search of gold
And their possessions
Have all been sold

They’re rushing to
The open plain
They give no thought
Towards weather vanes

They’re leaving now
As pioneers
They’ll live through laughter
And hope and tears

Look to the west