My Favourite Poet-Ted Kooser

Ted Kooser.These two words rang in my mind like a silver ice-cream bell as I marvelled at this American author who was born in Ames,Iowa.It is no doubt that the the this poet had produced marvellous yet fantastic poems in the past.Ted Kooser has an extremely unique feature:the theme of his poems.The theme of his poems give all readers a taste of a slice of life living in the country side,away from the hectic hustle and bustle of metropolitan cities.His theme of writing poems mainly revolving on the everyday countryside gives me a clearer,yet refreshing headset,thus momentarily giving me an opportunity to experience quiet rare peace.(It is quite difficult to find peace with all your assements to mark or all my homework to complete in today's modernised society.)The lazy cows,the azure blue sky,waving green grass in the breeze and the best of all,the remarkable array of colours ranging from orange to red.I must say,this is the perfect cure for letting your hair down after a long day at work or school.My thesis:I feel that Ted Kooser is a man who prefers quiet peace,serenity,surrounded by the wonders of Mother nature.His poems are excellent in many different points of view.For instance,he has penned down poems using the animal's point of view,invoking an emotion into readers who would know have a clearer understanding of what it feels like to be an animal,thus,dissipating anymore queries on animal emotions.This enhances the interesting factor if the poem Ted Kooser produces and emphasises the theme clearly,even taking into consideration the animals' emotions in a peaceful countryside in America.He uses figurative language greatly,almost every one of his remarkable works portray at 3 out of 5 main points in figurative language.The clarity of his poems easily implants the image of a peaceful countryside in the reader's mind,ranging from "No hunting signs" to the silver identification of cows to rare wood and trees.His amazing skills in writing poetry allowed the 70 years old poet to be awarded prestigious prizes in America: two NEA Literary Fellowships (in 1976 and 1984), the Pushcart Prize, the Nebraska Book Awards for Poetry (2001) and Nonfiction (2004), the Stanley Kunitz Prize (1984), the James Boatwright Prize, and the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry (2005).On August 12, 2004, he was named Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry by the Librarian if Congress to serve a term from October 2004 through May 2005. In April 2005, Ted Kooser was appointed to serve a second term as Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry.He have received many outstanding rewards in his career.The former vice president of an insurance company has definitely made out most of his career.
Need a coffee break with words?Relaxation and comfort away from the ever daunting desk your everyday goal?How about a Ted Kooser poem?It would have wonderful effects on you.
I am absolutely sure of it.

Here,take a break by reading Ted Kooser's magical poems:

Horse
In its stall stands the 19th century,
its hide a hot shudder of satin,
head stony and willful,
an eye brown as a river and watchful:
a sentry a long way ahead
of a hard, dirty army of hooves.


How To Foretell A Change In The Weather
Rain always follow the cattle
sniffing the air and huddling
in fields with their heads to the lee.
You will know that the weather is
changing
when your sheep leave the pasture
too slowly, and your dogs lie about
and look tired; when the cat
turns her back to the fire,
washing her face, and the pigs
wallow in litter; cocks will be crowing
at unusual hours, flapping their wings;
hens will chant; when your ducks
and your geese are too noisy,
and the pigeons are washing
themselves;
when the peacocks squall loudly
from the tops of the trees,
when the guinea fowl grates;
when sparrows chip loudly
and fuss in the roadway, and when
swallows
fly low, skimming the earth;
when the carrion crow
croaks to himself, and wild fowl
dip and wash, and when moles
throw up hills with great fervor;
when toads creep out in numbers;
when frogs croak; when bats
enter the houses; when birds
begin to seek shelter,
and the robin approaches your house;
when the swan flies at the wind,
and your bees leave the hive;
when ants carry their eggs to and fro,
and flies bite, and the earthworm
is seen on the surface of things.


In the Corners of Fields
Something is calling to me
from the corners of fields,
where the leftover fence wire
suns its loose coils, and stones
thrown out of the furrow
sleep in warm litters;
where the gray faces
of old No Hunting signs
mutter into the wind,
and dry horse tanks
spout fountains of sunflowers;
where a moth
flutters in from the pasture,
harried by sparrows,
and alights on a post,
so sure of its life
that it peacefully opens its wings.


Citations:http://www.tedkooser.net/index.shtml
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ted_Kooser


Done By:Gary Leong(16)
Class:1A1