"Portrait of a Grandmother" - The Chicago Poetry Center

“Portrait of a Grandmother”

Last week with Haines 4th grade after school poetry group, we talked about grandparents. Some of us live far away from our grand parents, some of us see one or both of our grandparents regularly, and some of us miss grandparents who we never met or who have died. We read and discussed our favorite lines from two poems about grandmothers, “My Grandmother” by Pela Chacón, and “Abuelito Who” by Sandra Cisneros; and then collaborated to create “Portrait of a Grandmother.”

Many thanks, also, to Brooklynn, for writing a very meaningful acrostic poem for me – I really appreciate it.

"Portrait of a Grandmother" by Brooklynn, Zariyah, Peiqi, Jaxon, Chun, and Noah

A grandmother can remind you
of buttered pecan ice cream
and be as sweet as chocolate

A grandmother can be someone
who likes little dogs
who is as clean as purified water
who never smiles,
and sits by the window
who smells of elegance,
wearing the perfume of fresh baked
cookies

A grandmother can be someone
you miss

A grandmother can be someone who says
“be kind, be yourself” and
“don’t smoke or your lungs will die,”
“don’t eat too much candy,” and
“be careful who you are friends with”