My First National Poetry Month Project and a Bit of News!

I love following the National Poetry Month projects. For the past several years, I’ve wanted to do one of my own but worried that it would require a huge time commitment. I don't like to commit to something and then not be able to follow through. I knew I could only do it if I could figure out something that would be quick and easy. I finally came up with an idea.

In February, the lovely and talented Renee LaTulippe organized a daily writing challenge for LLL alumni. I was fortunate to be partnered with poet Cynthia Grady. We both have busy schedules so Cynthia and I agreed to write for 15 minutes, and exchange a daily observation "snippet". Fifteen minutes, I could do that. Being gentle with one another gave us the freedom to explore whatever piqued our interest each day. Knowing Cynthia was waiting for my daily email kept me motivated. Neither of us missed a single day!

During March, I tried to continue, but without accountability, other activities began to squeeze out my writing time.  Over the past thirty years, I’ve started dozens of writing projects only to file them away doubting my ability to create anything someone would want to read. In a recent interview, Oprah, talking about how we often put off working toward our goals said, “Ask yourself, if not now, when?”  Those words have stuck with me. I don’t want to look back someday and wish I’d given myself the push I needed to accomplish my writing goals.

So,  this year I'm doing my first National Poetry Month project. In keeping with my One Little Word- Simplify, I decided on a project that is easy and quick but will help me move forward on my WIP.

Each day, beginning tomorrow, I'll post a five-minute reflection about  my progress, and the lessons I learn as I begin to shape those February snippets into a collection of poems. I’m a little nervous because daily blogging is way out of my comfort zone, but the Poetry Friday community has always been very supportive, and I've made some wonderful friends online. All of you make it easier for me to stretch and grow as a writer. 

I don’t know if anything I share will interest anyone besides me, but I hope you’ll come along with me on this journey and let me know what you think.  Your words are important to me.

A bit of news-

I just registered for my first Highlights Foundation workshop The Craft and Heart of Writing Poetry for Children led by two of my favorite master poets:  Rebecca Kai Dotlich and Georgia Heard.  With special guest editor extraordinaire Rebecca Davis and a Skype visit from the great Lee Bennett Hopkins, it's a poet's dream team!  I am super excited!
                                                                     

For years, I've wanted to attend a Highlights poetry workshop, but there were always obstacles: transportation, cost, and time.  Last week, as soon as I saw the announcement, I took a leap of faith and registered. The workshop isn't until September so I have time to figure it out.  "If not now, when?"
  

Amy kicks off National Poetry Month with the Poetry Friday roundup at the Poem Farm.
See you there!

Behaving Boldy

This week for Spiritual Journey Thursday, we are writing about Donna's one little word for 2016: 

I have never thought of myself as someone who is BOLD, yet there have been times that I have acted boldly, For instance, after high school, I joined the Air Force. I was a country girl who had never been on a train, plane, or visited a big city. So, going to basic training over 2000 miles from home was big and BOLD, and it led me to my next decision.

I was married with two sons and ran a full-time day care business when I made the decision to earn my teaching certificate. It took almost ten years, but at 32 yrs. old, I finally earned my degree. I was the first person in my family to graduate from college, and I wasn't sure I could do it. There were many times I wondered if all the late nights and being an outsider among students much younger and smarter than me was worth it, but wanting to show my sons education is important made me BOLD.

Now, I’m dipping a toe into my next BOLD act, and I’m a little nervous about it because it involves writing and posting every day during the month of April. I’ve always wanted to do a project for National Poetry Month, but fear of failure has stopped me.

Then, keeping with my One Little Word— simplify, I came up with an idea.
I’ll announce it tomorrow for Poetry Friday, and I hope you'll stop by and let me know what you  think. 

We all have moments of BOLDNESS. I can’t wait to hear about yours.

A Simple Journey

This week for Spiritual Journey Thursday, we are writing about my one little word for 2016:

I chose the word simplify because this year I’m on a journey to slow down and lead a more mindful and simpler life.

I'm cleaning out closets, bookshelves, file cabinets, etc. and discarding anything that no longer has meaning or purpose for me anymore. It's been exhausting but worth it.

I've started to reduce commitments and habits that clutter my day with endless chores and responsibilities. One of the biggest challenges for me is letting go of the need to have a “spotless” house. Not that my house is ever truly spotless!    I like things neat and tidy, but I sometimes go overboard and spend all my time on housework. I'm trying to find a balance I can live with.

For me, the  toughest part of this journey has been the internal one. On a good day, I try not to allow my mind to be cluttered with negativity, guilt, jealousy, worry, or regret. Instead, I’m trying to fill the space with thoughts of joy, hope, and compassion. These emotions energize and lift me toward becoming the person I truly want to be. It's definitely a process that will take some time.

As a society, it seems we’re immersed in constant noise from our devices: TV, radio, laptop…  I’ve started shutting down an hour (or more when possible) each day and giving myself the gift of silence. I'd love to be able to sit in stillness during my hour of silence, but that's not possible right now so I try for 10-15 minutes. 

One thing I'm most excited about is that I’m learning to simplify the way I think about writing.  A big part of that for me is giving up on my need for perfection.  Usually, I start the year with a long list of writing goals and then spend a ridiculous amount of time trying to decide on the perfect idea/project to work on first.  When I finally chose one, fear takes over and I end up talking myself out of it. Then start the process all over again! Sounds crazy, doesn’t it?  Yet, somewhere along the way, I got stuck in thinking that it was the way "real" writers work.  

I'm all for setting goals, but I had to make it work for me.  This year, instead of making a long list of goals, I only made one.  My goal is to write and finish a collection of nonfiction poems on a topic I love.  So far, I’ve completed a draft of twenty-five poems, and now I’m starting on revisions.   I've put away the "what ifs" about publication and for now, I'm just trying to write the best poems I can and enjoy my writing time.

So little, by little, I’m on my way to simplifying my life.  It’s a slow process, but with each tiny step, I feel freer, lighter, and encouraged to continue on this life-changing journey.

 

I'd love to hear about ways you've simplified your life and especially your writing life.  I can use all the tips I can get! Here's to a simplier life!

So Much to Admire!

This week for Spiritual Journey Thursday, we are writing about the one little word  Julieanne Harmatz chose- ADMIRE.

Monday mornings are always hard for me. I’m not a morning person, but in order to get to school on time, I have to get up by 5:30.  This past Monday, when the alarm jarred me awake, it was dark and raining outside. I got dressed and headed out dreading my hour-long commute.

Light drizzle fell as I turned the corner onto the main road. Then, there it was – a gorgeous rainbow lighting up the gray sky.  As I drove on admiring the rainbow; I forgot about the rain. There was too much traffic for me to stop and take a photo, but even after it faded, the image stayed with me. Just thinking about that rainbow makes me smile.

Last night, I was thinking about who and what I truly admire. We are blessed to live in an amazing world, and I’m in total admiration of nature. Sunsets, starlit nights, animals, hummingbirds, mountains, the ocean, a doe stepping shyly across the lawn…  There’s always something to see, always something that fills me with wonder.

The people I admired most are the everyday, ordinary people who work hard and do what they can to make the world a better place. My husband, my sons, my daughters-in-law, and my siblings are my heroes because they live their lives in a way that makes me proud of who they are and who they continue to become.

I also admire art, especially poetry. Ever since I was a child, words have always been an important part of my life. Poetry is a superhero when it comes to expressing ideas or emotions. Poetry reminds me that I am not alone. No matter if I’m feeling sorrow or joy; poetry will be there to hold my hand.

One of the lessons I’ve learned from admiration is that the more I find to admire, the happier and more positive I become.  I think that might be because admiration inspires me to be a better person and to slow down and enjoy this life I’ve been given.

Two New Picture Books I Love!

It's been a super busy week, and I've been doing my very best to keep up with my goal to write a poetry "snippet" every day during February. So, this will be a short post, but I wanted to share two beautiful new picture books that arrived on my doorstep this week.  As a grandma, I'm always looking for fun activities to share with my grandchildren. Both of these books are perfect for that!

 Fresh Delicious by Irene Latham.  

After reading Irene's playful descriptions, I'll never look at fruits or vegetables quite the same way. I'll see cucumber submarines, a bouquet of minty green butterfly wings, a bee-kissed lake, a mountain of mouse-sized swords, and strawberries carrying green parasols. I love the way Irene finds just the right words to create all this deliciousness!

The illustrations of the animals are adorable, and I can't wait to try out some of the recipes with my grandchildren. For a real treat, check out  Jama's tasty review of FRESH DELICIOUS. 

 EVERY DAY BIRDS by Amy Ludwig VanDerwater 

EVERY DAY BIRDS is written as a single poem that begins:

Every day we watch for birds
weaving through our sky.
We listen to their calls and songs.
We like to see them fly. 

Isn't that beautiful?  The poem continues with a few words about the characteristics or behaviors of twenty different birds.  The bright and colorful illustrations help with the identification of each bird. I enjoyed learning more about the birds (Did you know that some hawks can dive for prey at over 100 miles per hour?) in the descriptions Amy included in the back of the book.  You'll want to also take a look at the cute videos about EVERY DAY BIRDS on Amy's blog  The Poem Farm.

Last summer, my granddaughter was delighted when she saw a hummingbird in our backyard. Imagine how much fun we're going to have using Amy's book to identify even more birds!

Teachers always appreciate books for their classroom libraries. Both FRESH DELICIOUS and EVERY DAY BIRDS would make wonderful gifts for a preschool, kindergarten, or first grade class.

I hope you'll head on over to see Liz at Elizabeth Steinglass for today's Poetry Friday.

Putting "DELIGHT" On My Calendar

This week for Spiritual Journey Thursday, we are writing about Irene Latham's one little word: DELIGHT.

Just thinking about the word “delight” lifts my spirit.  I find delight in many things:

spending time with my family
watching a sunrise/sunset
taking a long walk on a beautiful day
watching snow fall, leaves change, clouds dance
listening to music
watching old movies with my husband
sending greeting cards to people I love
reading an inspiring book, poem, essay, blog
daydreaming
writing a poem, journal entry or blog post.

I could name dozens more, but what I discovered from my list is that my delight comes from simple, everyday experiences.   The mystery is why don't I allow myself more time to engage in these delightful activities? 

I'm slowly working to change that.  For example, this month I am writing a very rough draft of a poem  every day and sending it to my writing buddy. At first it was hard to allow myself the 30 minutes of writing time, but now just thinking about what I'm going to write brings me delight all day long. 

The best thing about this delightful activity is that the more I write, the more I learn about myself and the things that make me truly happy.  I think that's a pretty good reason to keep doing it.

Turning Intent Into Action

This week for Spiritual Journey Thursday, we are writing about Leigh Ann Eck's OLW: INTENT.

Intent is something I struggle with, especially when it comes to making time to write.  Take today for example. My intent was to get all of my grading done before I left school today so I would have more time to work on this blog post. It didn't happen. Instead, I spent my planning time writing a letter of recommendation for a colleague. Although I was happy to write the letter, it took considerable more time than I planned, and I had to bring the grading home.

The workload of a teacher goes beyond the school day. Every night, I pack my tote bag full of more work than I can possibly do. Yet, even though I know it's an impossible task, I lug it home anyway, with the intention of getting it done.

I get paid to be a teacher and I care about my students so I feel guilty when I take time away from school work to do something I enjoy-- like writing.

For several years, I've intended to write a collection of poems about a topic I'm passionate about.  I set writing goals and intend to keep them. But, somehow I always push writing to the bottom of my "to do" list, and it never gets done: an endless cycle of intention and failure.

So, I've been thinking about why this keeps happening. The answer just might be in that overflowing tote bag.  It feels like a metaphor for my life because I always put more in my "tote bag"  than I can possibly do.  My writing intentions are good, but I haven't taken the action necessary to achieve them.

A few months ago, I watched a program about the power of changing one thing in your life. I intended to try it back then, but...

Finally, the time has come. I'm replacing my large tote bag with a much smaller one. Instead of working on "school" for an hour each night, I'll work on it for thirty minutes and use the other thirty to write. My intention is set, now it's time to take action.  I'm ready to do this!