Imagine we all “climb the ladder of our being” and claim our sunshine within…truly as Ihsan says, it will be a miracle. There is so much power in the word. And so it is…
Have you ever talked with a six year old about writing? You would be astounded at the advice these kids can give you in a short amount of time. Most of the time, they teach me.
When I asked them a simple question, what do you know that good writers do? Here are their answers:
* Write, write, write. (My 86 year old father-in-law says so too.)
* think, think, think
* A writer’s work is never done.
* Never stop
AND MY ALL TIME FAVORITE:
* “Listen to the master.” When he first said it, he was looking at me. And then I reframed it and said, “Who is the master of your writing?” “And then he said with a resounding enthusiasm, “I AM!” So I refined it even more, “Listen to that still small voice.”
If you ever need advice on writing or anything in life, ask a six year old. They’re honest, and they haven’t been away from the true source for too long.
Have a happy Sunday, and may you write, write, write and heal, heal, heal. ~Namaste.
Poetry and food? Think about it. They are both guilty pleasures, so it stands to reason that they should definitely be in the same sentence. As I was doing my ponderings today, I thought what fun it would be to imagine these two together. So…first I did a list kind of poem of what would ‘color my palette” of food poetry.
Spicy Mexican food
thrills the tongue
lingering, but not sabotaging
teases enough to pant for another bite.
Icrecream
Creamy cold silk for ANY day.
soothes the throat
delights the taste buds
It’s very essence can shoot me back
to childhood
Big Red crème soda
Bubble gum delight
Fizzles and drizzles
Down my throat
For hot Texas days.
……MORE TO COME. It’s just the beginning!
And coffee…my magical treat for any day of the week gets its very own poetry style, An Ode
Oh coffee, of coffee
you’re wonderful stuff,
coffee oh coffee you
are wonderful stuff
you sooth me, move me, groove me.
Coffee snuggles with me and wraps its smooth brown blanket all around me, never wanting me to be cold. He’s a warm invitation and a smooooooth conversation. I can be myself with him. With him by my side, what else could I want?
(I realize it needs some work…but I’m putting it out there to let you know as Anne Lamott says, it’s okay to write the worst crap…it grows a great garden! The fact is…I’m writing! And you can too!)
WRITING PROMPT: What food would you write an Ode to? I can’t wait to read what you write!
Here is what an Ode is: The word ode derives from the Greek word meaning poem intended to be sung – in essence, singing praise. Odes use exaggerated language, taken to the extreme.
What ODES do to assist a Writer: Because Odes use extreme language, it allows a writer to overexaggerate and take things over the top…in other words, “LET GO.” Those who have trouble with their Inner Critic being too critical or get stifled in their writing can use an Ode to get out of the rut. It’s meant to be outrageous, even gaudy…and causes humor. Don’t we all need a chance to not take ourselves so seriously?
Sometimes, I need to remember: I am a Writer. This summer I got to LIVE and BREATHE writing, and it nourished my soul. Yes, I remember soaking in the sunniness of it’s words and feeling it fill my body and created “I LIVE Poetry.” Each day, I lived poetically with music and photography and art and just noticing…and my friends, I must say, I had never been happier. I had to return to my job…which I love, but it IS a time sucker. Soon I was in a whirlwind of meetings and have tos, instead of I want tos…and literally writing almost came to a screeching halt. I pined for my artistic side to be fed…I remember noticing many things I wanted to sit and write about…but alas, my seat in the seat could not happen. The best part was I understood it was temporary…
Last night, I got to enjoy a fabulous group of writers, and they reminded me of the beauty of words and the healing of words and yes, sometimes the mysteries and elusiveness of words. I reveled in all that they shared. Windows to souls…and I knew I wasn’t the teacher anymore, but a fellow participant who just loved what I was doing, ENGAGING in writing.
Writing, it has MAGIC POWERS…it can heal…it can bring joy.
Have a blessed day my friends. And thanks to my buddy Michael, that sometimes it’s committing to just a few words a day.
My dad is a Doctor Dolittle. He certainly has a way with animals. He interacts with them like people, mostly because he is a man who lives out in the country, and animals are the closest things to talk to. He has regular people conversations with animals; and like Dr. Dolittle, it is not limited to cats or dogs. Currently, he has 2 cats and 3 dogs and a frog that comes and sits.
One day when I visited dad, he surprised me by telling me the conversation he was having with a bird outside. Rarely does my dad get excited about things. Most of our conversations consist of the weather and typical daily chores. But on this day, my dad carried on about his interaction with the bird.
Dad continues, “Marie, the bird would make a sound ‘tweet, tweet’ and then I would echo back, ‘tweet, tweet.’ Then dad…
I set up a sweet wonderful poem for someone to start off our POETRY COLLABORATION for this week, and I don’t have their information. I’m so sorry! I thought I wrote it and put it in my notebook, but I can’t seem to find it. If you can leave me a message in comments, I can get back to you. And set it up for this week. Again, I apologize.
The goodbye is because I’m going to be underground until this weekend. I might have to do several posts at once. Usually the first week of school is really crazy. Training first graders is a tough job because they only have about 70 days of kindergarten in a whole year, and sometimes that’s not enough time to get them prepared to lifelong learners. Wish me luck and say lots of prayers for me.
Take care and have a GRAND week of Joy and tell me how you LIVED POETRY. ~Namaste, Marie ;0)
I have been blessed so much this week. My heart is full of gratitude.
#3 We got to raft the river and feel peace and calm and I heard my daughters giggling together and we “played” with each other Oar battles and water battles and just great company. I remember what it’s like to feel that peace of the river where nothings exists but the here and the now. Being present is the only thing you can do. I get to do that more often.
#2 I have a husband who loves me and honors me. He knows this week is a busy week for me. He just says, “go ahead and take care of what you need to take care. You and me are good. I’ll be here when you get back.” (Because when I go into school mode I’m in another dimension.
#1 And the best part is that after 8 months, I finally get to see my Kendra girl. Alabama is too far away sometimes. It’s hard for a mama because I went from seeing her everyday to seeing her a couple of times a year. But when she’s here, I get to love love love upon her and it feels yummy.
I have a collaboration post for this afternoon from another wonderful blogger, so stay tuned….but after that, I might be off the grid for awhile. The first two weeks of school are pretty busy. Wish me luck! ~Love ya, Marie
“Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in awhile, you could miss it.” Ferris Bueller
A year ago in January I attended a workshop in Maui on Divine Love. It was led by Dr. Wayne Dyer and turned out to be a life changer for me. I am not surprised that this happened, afterall a couple of my life changing moments happened as a direct result of this incredible man.
This time around it was a simple sentence that seemed to resonate in my whole body. A great big A-Ha moment that left me ruminating with it for quite some time, wondering how to begin to live it. The words were a paraphrase of a Herman Melville quote and are at the root of a lot of Dr. Dyer’s teachings, but for some reason these words more than any others did the trick for me…
Writing Wings For You 