A Great Nephew and a Great Aunt, Guests-Amy Ludwig VanDerwater and Daughter, Georgia

Posted on by Penny Parker Klostermann
Ants may rule the hill, but they don’t rule here! Art by Landon (Click to Enlarge)
Ants may rule the hill, but they don’t rule here! Art by Landon (Click to Enlarge)

Hello, Great Readers of our series! Just In case you haven’t visited before, let me tell you a little about A Great Nephew and A Great Aunt. My great nephew, Landon (a sixth-grader) and I (his great aunt) collaborate. I write a poem which he illustrates. We started this collaboration in the fall of 2014 and have had so much fun with it that we decided to invite others along. Landon and I will continue to have a new episode on the second Friday of each month. The other Fridays are filling up quickly with guests.
I have created a page on my website to view all the episodes of A Great Nephew and a Great Aunt. Click HERE to visit the page and enjoy past episodes.

Today it is my pleasure to share a creative collaboration from . . .

Amy Ludwig VanDerwater and her daughter, Georgia

From Amy: This colored pencil drawing was a gift from Georgia to me this past Mother’s Day, 2015, and I could not feel luckier to have it.  When I was a girl, I never believed that homemade gifts were really my mom’s favorite, but now, as a mom, I believe it with my whole heart.  I adore the beauty and whimsy, the magic and reverence for nature in this piece of art…it all reminds me of Georgia herself.  I like to look at the girl in this beautiful wood, imagining for a bit that she is me.

Art by Georgia

Forest Georgia 2015 (1) copy
Art by Georgia VanDerwater

Poem by AmyThe Girl Who Loved Birds - Revised (1) copy

Special Treat: One thing I love about visiting Amy’s website is the fact that I can listen to her read her poems. She records her poems and includes the recordings in her posts. So today you have the privilege of hearing Amy read The Girl Who Loved Birds.

From Amy: I am grateful to Georgia for sharing her gifts with us and grateful to Penny for offering this opportunity.  Taking the time to think and reflect upon Georgia’s piece was a gift in itself!

Many thanks to Amy and Georgia for sharing their special collaboration with us today. It was magical.

Georgia and Amy copy
Meet Georgia: Georgia VanDerwater is a writer and artist and creative soul.  She volunteers at Messinger Woods, a wildlife care and information center, enjoys exploring and learning about the outdoors, and is involved in theatre, both onstage and off.  A sophomore in high school, Georgia reads constantly, often rereading old favorites.  You can find her cuddling pets and cracking up her friends and family any day of the week.

Meet Amy: Amy Ludwig VanDerwater is author of FOREST HAS A SONG and the forthcoming EVERY DAY BIRDS, READ! READ! READ!, WITH MY HANDS , and DREAMING OF YOU.  She is co-author of the second grade poetry book in the Heinemann UNITS OF STUDY FOR TEACHING WRITING, has taught writing to teachers and students for seventeen years, and blogs poems at The Poem Farm and notebooks at Sharing Our Notebooks.  Find her online at www.amyludwigvanderwater.com.

Thanks to Janet for hosting the Poetry Friday Roundup today at Poetry for Children.  If you’d like to know more about Poetry Friday, click HERE for an explanation by Renee LaTulippe.

poetry friday button

39 thoughts on “A Great Nephew and a Great Aunt, Guests-Amy Ludwig VanDerwater and Daughter, Georgia”

  4. Very wonderful, Georgia and Amy! (And thanks, Penny, for making this post possible.) I have a Georgia in my class this year who reminds me of GVD, and I’m reading Alice Hoffman’s “Nightbird” right now which flew about my head the whole time I was enjoying your collaboration!

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  5. Hi, Penny, thanks for sharing on this Poetry Friday and for this marvelous series! And thank you, Amy and Georgia, for sharing your collaboration too!

    Liked by 1 person

  7. It’s so true, isn’t it, that those hand-made presents are really the best? True treasures. Thanks, Penny, Amy and Georgia for sharing the drawing and the poem.

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  8. Oh how I loved this dreamy escape! (Homemade gifts really ARE the best.)

    Georgia’s pencil drawing is gorgeous. I love the details: the web in the tree, the bird pulling at the girl’s hair wreath…. Clearly Georgia is a storyteller like her mom, but here she does it in art. And Amy, what a magical poem! You’ve left me longing to have that dream, myself. When I played it on soundcloud, Miranda overheard it from the next room, and said “that’s really beautiful.” Yes, yes it is.

    Thanks Amy, Georgia, and Penny!

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    1. Thanks for coming by, Michelle. This collaboration was dreamy! I’ve had passing thoughts about what it would be like to be a bird but Georgia and Amy expressed it with such longing that it was much more than a passing thought.

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  10. Georgia and I thank you for all of your generous words here on our collaboration. Amazing how one’s children can grow up to be such inspirations! Gratitude…

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  22. Being a bird is my dream come true. I would fly up and steal food from the table and the counters and – yes – even the elusive garbage pail. I’m too small to reach anything, now, but if the birds made me wings, oh boy, would I have the time of my life! Great job, girls!

    Love and licks,
    Cupcake

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