Week 39: Emily Dickinson Searching the Soul

Reflecting on the Poet Tarot Card for this week takes me deep within my soul in search of something but I don;t know exactly what it is. Dickinson was certainly no stranger to soul searching. Much of her writing seems to reflect this deep reflective journey that seemed endless.

Her life seemed to center so much on her own being that  I believe she provides an example of how one can become comfortable in their own skin. How they can utilize their time alone in greater artistic pursuit.

While I am not single and must keep a balance in my life I can surly look at the example of Dickinson to examine the the ideas that cancome through introspective examination.

Dickinson gives me permission to step back from the busy every day life and focus upon my art, my writing, Write, read, indulge in a glass of wine or a sweet. Take a walk, watch the birds, the clouds, ask God to reveal more clearly what I am about.

I should plan a retreat even if only a weekend at home. Where I write and read  and reflect and turn off . everything else. Go deep into my soul and let that guide my writing.

Mapping our direction

We must travel in the direction of our fear.
- John Berryman

Week 38 - John Berryman

Drawing the John Berryman card is a bit scary to say the least.  What I already know of Berryman is that he struggled in life. A lot.

Berryman like a number of poets in his prime turned inward and a good deal of his poetry reflected his struggles.

Berryman is challenging me to look inward too. Have the courage to allow your work to be influenced by your emotional struggles. In The Dream Song Berryman developed an alter ego whom he used to ding deep into his own psyche and reflect on.  Can I do this? Do I have the courage to tackle such writing?

What truth might I learn about myself? Do I utilize my own struggles in my poetry? What is holding me back?

Week 37 - Two of Muses

How committed am I to my art?  That's what the Two of Muses is asking me. I of course want to reply - I'm very committed. As I deeply reflect on this question I can name a number of reasons that I could answer not enough. In truth I'm somewhere in-between.

Many times I'm quite committed. But there are other times I let silly little things get in the way. Facebook, video game, some TV program that turned out to be not that good.

I need to better schedule my time. I need to prioritize. When I do these things and I get done what I've planned, Facebook or anything else I do is okay diversion. It's alright to allow myself to do even fluff stuff if I am otherwise being as committed to my writing as I've pledged myself to be.

Carve out time to write in evenings and weekends. If I faithfully do this - and make efficient use of that time, then I can achieve what I want to with my writing. The first step is being honest with myself about my time commitment. My second, is to be realistic about my goals. If I am planning to complete an 80 page manuscript, I can't do it in 6 month is I write hit and miss maybe to days a week.

It's time for me to reevaluate my writing schedule.

Emerson on Imagination

Listen...

First An Amateur

Carry the beautiful with you

Though we travel the world over to find the beautiful, we must carry it with us or we find it not. -  Ralph Waldo Emerson

Week 36: Emerson - Embracing the unique you through art

Ralph Waldo Emerson asks, When was the last time I embraced being a rebel? 

One of my favorite Emerson quotes implores us, " Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail." Emerson is one of those people I probably do not think about as much as I should. A different era and all but he embraced creativity and really is an excellent role model for artists of all stripes.

It's easy for us to find artists that inspire us and find ourselves trying to emulate what it is about their work that we like. And while this can help us to grow as a writer or painter or photographer. But there is a point in which I believe Emerson's advice is prudent for us all. As scary as it is leaving the beaten path, it is forging a new direction that takes our work to another level and provides us with our own uniqueness.

I think Emerson himself embraced by example mentoring.  He was both teacher and always a student. Always curious, always striving to learn always willing to impart his experiences on others.

I have examined those poets/writers both living and dead which inform my process, my attitudes and are the foundation around which I have chosen to grow as a poet. These choices are are mine but it must be my choice too to find what separates me them as well. To use the best advice, the best example I can take from them and find an altogether new ways, new views, new pathways to achieve my own imprint in poetry.

This week I plan to explore:

• ways to expand my knowledge
• find time to give back to the writing community
• embracing the spiritual side of nature
• to seek the positive in others especially those with different cultural experiences/backgrounds

This week I will embrace my own uniqueness as scary as that might seem.

Week 35: The Six of Muses - Everything is writable...

The Six Of Muses reminds me to look back at my life, m past, m family, my friends, my experiences. These all things provide a trove of material to write from. You don't even have to show these things to anyone if they are about family and you feel uneasy, but they may provide a path towards addressing some thing with  greater ease.

Sylvia Plath would turn just about every experience into writing, be it a poem or story. Summer jobs, places she vacationed, people she knew, her struggles with both mother and father all found ways of influencing her work.

Let your memory and past experiences lead the way into new work and see where it takes you.