Chords of Strength

Wow! Just finished reading my copy of David Archuleta's first book and all I can say right now is AMAZING. I can't believe that these are the thoughts of a 19 year old. Of course he is not an ordinary teen, and I already knew this, so it should not have surprised me.

Since the actual release date is not until June 1, I won't post any details about the book until then. I don't want to spoil anything, just in case. I will brag though that the one picture that I submitted for possible inclusion in the book made it to the awesome full-color pages. I couldn't believe it when I opened the book and found it included. I immediately called my husband, who was the actual photographer on that day, to let him know and he was so happy for me.

I look forward to writing a review of this book on Tuesday but for now I will say that I have learned a few new personal things about David but overall I have developed an even greater "love" and respect for him as an artist and as a person. I think that this book should be required reading for every teen, really everyone, so that they can see the "better way" to grow and prosper in this crazy world. I love David's positive outlook on the world that he knows is not always positive. He doesn't "stick his head in the sand" he just doesn't choose to be a part of the problem.

Well more to come on this book and review on Tuesday. Now it's off for a family time on a three day weekend. This is the last weekend before my daughter graduates from high school. Time has really moved along quickly this past year.

David- A Sonnet

photos courtesy of my husband (Limelight Images, Austin,TX) --

David @Houston July 3, 2009

One of my favorite David fan sites, Snarky Archies, is asking for submissions for a contest to win a copy of David's soon to be released book. Since I have been in the mood to write poetry lately and I had not written a sonnet since my college days (don't ask how long ago that was), I decided to put the acrostic poems on hold and try my hand at a sonnet.

There are several different ways to form sonnets but all basically have rhyming words at the end of the phrase or line and iambic pentameter (the same number of beats in the line - 10). There are usually 14 lines in a sonnet although modern poetry does not always follow this rule. Once I got started, I couldn't believe how easy this was to write. I guess that the topic is really clear in my head and heart.

David - A Sonnet from a Fan

My world was changed when first he sang his song;

His stunning voice did pierce and still my heart.

It found the place that years had torn apart

And healed the wounds that life had made so strong.

Now word has spread and I am not alone,

His eyes bare love for all the world to see.

The hearts and souls of men he will set free;

For, through his voice, a new love song is sown.

He sings of peace and love and life and hope

With such amazing depth and thought and soul,

That when we hear the words our hearts do soar,

And we can find the strength to somehow cope.

The Voice - He brings us back and makes us whole.

We fans have glimpsed his soul, and we adore.

Chords of Strength Acrostic Poem #1

As the David Fandom anxiously awaits the release of David's book, David Archuleta- Chords of Strength, I decided to make a list of words that have been used to describe David' character and place them in a new acrostic poem using the book title as the topic.

Chords of Strength

Compassionate

Humble

Optimistic

Religious

Dedicated

Smart

Outgoing

Family-oriented

Spiritual

Thoughtful

Respectful

Energetic

Nice

Generous

Thankful

Humanitarian

Christmas album acrostic poem

Having majored in English in college, I have always enjoyed poetry, although I have never felt that I was capable of writing anything of my own that was worth reading. My thoughts are not as deep and complex as most poets. I am more of a "black and white" thoughts person. Say what you really mean in the actual words. The one type of poetry that I have enjoyed writing is acrostic poetry. This is where the first letter, syllable or word of each line spells out a word or a message. There are many ways to use this concept but I found that it is very effective when it is used to describe a person or place.

When I was substitute teaching in elementary school grades a few years ago, I found that the students really liked to write these types of poems to describe themselves, their friends, or a character in a story. The writer can make these as complicated or as simple as they like as long as they are consistent in the length of the lines.

I decided to make one of these using David's Christmas album as the topic word. I then choice words which had appeared in fan reviews of David's Christmas tour concerts. These words were used to describe David, his performance, or the feelings that the reviewer had during the performance. It allowed me to feel as though I had been able to attend these concerts even though I had not. I think it came out reasonably good even though many of the letters repeated.

Here is the acrostic poem that I wrote in December 2009

Christmas Acrostic

D- deep

A- amazing

V- velvet

I- indescribably beautiful

D- David

A- accomplished

R- reverent

C- confident

H- heart-felt

U- unbearably bedazzling

L- lovely

E- enchanting

T- transcendent

A- archuheavenly

C- captivating

H- humble

R- rousing

I- intimate

S- spine-tingling

T- trance-like

M- mesmerizing

A- awesome

S- superb

F- fantastic

R- rich

O- OMG!!!

M- masterful

T- talented

H- heavenly

E- energetic

H- honest

E- exquisite

A- angelic

R- real

T- THUD