Some poems begin with a big idea, and others start with something small and simple. This one began when I was out for a walk on a beautiful day. The weather was just right—not too hot, not too cold—and everything felt bright and cheerful. Without even thinking about it, I realized I had a little extra bounce in my step.
That expression, “a spring in my step,” has always made me smile. It’s such a happy way to describe that feeling when you’re full of energy for no particular reason at all. I liked the sound of it, and I liked the feeling behind it, so I decided to see if I could turn that idea into a poem.
As I wrote, I had fun imagining all the different ways that feeling might show up, skipping, bouncing, practically floating along. But the real challenge was figuring out why it was happening. I tried a few possibilities before settling on the one that felt just right.
I hope this poem puts a little spring in your step too.
A Spring in My Step
I’m bopping along with a spring in my step.
I’m skipping and leaping and loaded with pep.
I’m bounding around like I don’t have a care.
I feel like I’m practically walking on air.
I’m bouncing along like a red rubber ball.
My head’s in the clouds like I’m twenty feet tall.
It’s not that I got some extremely good news,
or ate lots of candy, or bought some new shoes.
But after each winter I get the same thing…
a spring in my step as we step into spring.
— Kenn Nesbitt
