Sometimes I wish I wasn’t a poet, so I could feel less. To put out fires that catch my sleeve, where the heart is exhausted from burning. And here we are, another year on the brink of being over. For me, it felt like a decade. A thousand possibilities, some of which I wish hadContinue reading “Building Fires”
Tag Archives: poetry
Poetry lives on
All the poet can do today is warn. That is why true poets must be truthful. -Wilfried Owen What a month it has been. We may dedicate one month to celebrating poets and poetry, but for poets, as Mary Oliver puts it, “poetry is a way of life.” What does it mean for poetry toContinue reading “Poetry lives on”
Laying the Groundwork
Sometimes it’s necessary to step away. Far away. Away from the eyes of social media and the need to engage with people on a constant, consistent basis. Away from the need to be validated for every post, every photo, every moment of a life. For the last two months, I have chosen to be inconsistent.Continue reading “Laying the Groundwork”
Navigating in November
October was a blaze of activity and flurry of leaves. For two weeks, my autumn consisted of frenzied walks through crowds. Of scrawling notes in the dark and tweeting between speeches. Of conversations and interviews. Of hosting authors and sitting on backstage steps to hear them speak. Of signed books and signing books. OfContinue reading “Navigating in November”
Late Summer Lessons
August. A month of transition. A month of humid, hazy days, late night thunderstorms, and the whisper of autumn around the corner. We’re soaking up every ounce of sunlight we can– dipping our warm bodies into cool lakes and sparkling pools, fanning ourselves on our decks and porches, filling and refilling glasses ofContinue reading “Late Summer Lessons”
Letting Go in June
When one jumps over the edge, one is bound to land somewhere. -D. H. Lawrence Earlier this week, I had to say goodbye to my childhood home. We packed boxes of precious books, piled our car with pillows, wrapped heirlooms and crystals, and left some things behind– including our lovely garden. It’s been difficultContinue reading “Letting Go in June”
Manifesting in May
National Poetry Month was a busy one– filled with writing workshops, performances, collaborations, and new poems. In my workshop, “Road Maps to the Heart” I encouraged participants to explore the terrain of their own hearts, and they created their own (stunning!) heart maps. I also spent quite a bit of time working on ghazals for TheContinue reading “Manifesting in May”
The Ghazal Project: Week Three & Four
The Ghazal Project: Week Three & Four The Ghazal Project, my ambitious write-one-ghazal-a-week project, was going quite well until the third week. I found out that one of my first poetry mentors, Rishma Dunlop, passed away, and I couldn’t bring myself to write a ghazal. I tried, but the words didn’t hold the weight thatContinue reading “The Ghazal Project: Week Three & Four”
The Ghazal Project: Week Two
This week’s prompt was “What does spring taste like”, and wow, did I get some delicious responses! From ‘black coffee’ to ‘ ice melting into a mountain stream’, the poetic possibilities were endless. And yet, I had to pick only one. Lemon, mint and ginger. Healing that stings and soothes. It reminds me ofContinue reading “The Ghazal Project: Week Two”
The Ghazal Project: Week One
Well, this was a challenging one folks, seeing as how it’s been snowing on and off this week, and my ghazal prompts are all about….spring. My first prompt was a question, “If spring had a colour, it would be…” (Feel free to use this prompt for a writing exercise/journal prompt) I had some unique,Continue reading “The Ghazal Project: Week One”
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