Blog Post for 2/11/15

   I think I'm becoming a little bit more comfortable writing poems. At first the idea was terrifying: I have always been more of a short story writer, certainly not poems. As I was writing the poems due for workshop this week I realized that my first instinct (with the guidelines I was following that is) was always to take the poem a depressing route. That's not how I feel in everyday life, however I have found that is a lot easier for me to think of ways to stem off of a depressing basis rather than a happy one. I am also realizing that the more poems of others that I read they become a source of inspiration for me to take my story a little further or maybe in a completely new direction. I don't think writing depressing pieces of literature this entire semester is wrong -- but I am definitely anxious to see what I can do with a more positive source of inspiration.

   I also finished the rest of the provided packet of "Writing Down the Bones" that we were given... it is still one of the best books I have ever read! I don't think I have ever read another book required by a college course that I actually felt like I am benefitting from in a great way. Every time I read an excerpt it gives me more and more inspiration to carry my own notebook around with me to express my thoughts. There were a few quotes that greatly impacted me:

"Even miracles are mundane happenings that an awakened mind can see in a fantastic way." p.74

I had to look up what mundane meant ("practical details of regular life") but I knew that this was a fabulous sentence the second I came across it. The words are so clear, short and concise; yet when it is all put together it could change thousands of perceptions and views in many aspects. I really enjoyed reading about how you need to get to know your environment in order to become a great writer (i.e.: knowing the names of flowers that are in your neighborhood to be able to describe them beautifully and accurately. They are a living thing and deserve the dignity of having its own name.) It makes me realize how unaware we actually are -- we think we are conscious and nothing can get by us, however we miss thousands of opportunities to learn or explore everyday even when they are right under our nose.

"Often, as I write my best pieces, my heart is breaking." p. 103

When I wrote the first couple of poems we were supposed to write, I was going through quite an emotional upset. To top it off, I did not even want to write the poems in the first place. However when I sat down to write them, I found my pen practically unable to keep up with everything I had wanted to write down. They were effortless poems that I created and covered in tears, I did not hold back anything -- this doesn't mean that they weren't in fact terrible; they totally are. Nevertheless, I felt a lot better just even writing down everything I felt I needed to express. Plus: We didn't have to turn them in, so nobody ever was forced to read them! :)