Stacey Joy, our host for Day 6 of #VerseLove 2025, is a National Board Certified Teacher, Google Certified Educator, and 2013 L.A. County Teacher of the Year. Stacey has taught elementary school for 39 years in Los Angeles Unified School District.
Today, Stacey invites us to write Where I’m From poems. She offers this process: “Visit George Ella Lyon’s website for a refresher on Where I’m From. If you are a list person, create a list of people/places/things/memories. Then compose your poem in any way you prefer. If you are more comfortable with a form, you can write your poem following a form you prefer.” You can read her full prompt here.
Today, I’m writing a Where I’m Not From poem.
I’m not from here.
I’m not from this chaos.
I won’t play these games.
I won’t clean up the mess.
I won’t sit at the table.
I won’t partake of the feast.
I won’t bow for a fake prayer (I know the difference)~
I won’t smile and pretend.
I won’t take the bait.
I’m not from this chaos.
I’m not from here.
Common Threads 
Kim, wow, wow, wow. I missed this yesterday. I’m in awe. So much sorry truth that we have to live with in this generation. I’m starting to feel hope, as people are saying no to the nonsense. Thank you for being a leader.
Today I read something Kenneth Burns said that makes me think we really are form here: “Being an American means reckoning with a history fraught with violence and injustice. Ignoring that reality in favor of mythology is not only wrong but also dangerous. The dark chapters of American history have just as much to teach us, if not more, than the glorious ones, and often the two are intertwined.”
LikeLiked by 1 person