Memorable writing that sparks imagination. Lean in. Hear the writer’s voice on the page. Winter Sunrises By Elizabeth Beechwood On the darkest days The glorious sunrise shouts And still we persist! Winter solstice marks the beginning of our journey around The Wheel together. It’s a mysterious dark time here in the Northern Hemisphere, when Nature challenges us to turn inward. Inward to our homes, inward to our bodies, inward to our minds and thoughts. In my part of the Pacific Northwest, winter is marked by long stretches of blustery rain punctuated with cold, clear breaks in the weather. Many people find comfort in starry winter skies, chunky knitted blankets, and twinkling lights. But it’s during these breaks that I find comfort in something different: the winter sunrise. The sunrise is especially glorious on these mornings; the sky is banded with robin’s egg blue, house finch blush, and warbler yellows and…
Courage . . . Prompt #818
Today’s Writing Prompt: Courage Just Write!
Arriving
Memorable writing that sparks imagination. Lean in. Hear the writer’s voice on the page. Arriving By Julie Wilder-Sherman She embraced becoming the crone. With age came a dawning while in the sunset, that she didn’t know everything when she was in her 30s. The next 40 years would shape who she would become in her later years—the matriarch, the elder, the wise one in the family. The realization that there was less time ahead than behind tickled her mind every day, and she set out to make the most of her last years. The seventies would be her decade. She would be her own boss. She made the conscious decision to let some friendships go. People she had put up with were no longer going to drain her energy and time. She would give her remaining energy and time to the ones she loved and cared about—like giving a present…
Getting Older . . . Prompt #817
Image by Freepik Write about getting older. #justwrite #iamwriting #iamawriter
Oldest Friend . . . Prompt #816
Write about your oldest friend or oldest relative. #justwrite #amwriting #iamawriter
Under the Tree
Memorable writing that sparks imagination. Lean in. Hear the writer’s voice on the page. Under the Tree By Mary O’Brien You wake me with coffee – I wrapped gifts ‘til three. “Ten minutes,” I moan into my pajama sleeve. Sugar plums danced round the chimney with care, ten minutes later your hand on my hair. It’s now 5 AM, there’s a turkey to splay. It’s a terrible, horrible, wonderful day. A giggle of memory tickles my mind. The one with twin bikes, trusty training wheels behind. When what to my bleary eyes should appear, you’re under the tree, shedding a tear. The loss of your mother now freshly pricked. All ornaments she gifted us tenderly tick on a tree heavy with memories, some cold tonight. Others thick in the throat, hot with tears of hindsight. The babies we lost, the parents we buried,…
When is writing done?
“Even after a poem has hardened into print, it may continue to represent a risk, a chance, a surmise, or a hypothesis about itself.” —Mary Kinzie. A Poet’s Guide to Poetry, U Chicago Press Thank you, Sonoma County Poet Laureate, Dave Seter, for letting me know about Mary Kinzie. Dave’s response to Mary’s quote: “What this means to me is, a piece of writing is never truly ‘done’ so instead of worrying so much about whether it is ‘done,’ we should share our writing with each other even when it feels a little raw, because there is power in the original idea and sometimes it takes time for the words to catch up with the idea.” #justwrite #iamwriting #iamawriter
Lost . . . Prompt #815
As you write on this prompt, if there is pain or hurt, put your hand where the pain is. If you can’t put your hand there, put your thoughts there, as you take deep breaths. Take a deep breath now, put your focus on where there is pain as you take a deep breath in. And release your breath. Take another deep breath in. Let it out. Prompt inspired from Kate Braestrup’s Memoir, “Here If You Need me.” Consider the things you have lost: ~ Opportunities ~ People ~Jobs ~ An important item ~ A favorite item Write about that loss, but instead of letting the story lead you towards pain, start from where it hurts and move forward from there. Describe how you regained sanity, confidence, and the other things you have needed in order to maintain your healthy connection with life. Perhaps there are allies and amulets that…
A special person . . . Prompt #814
My grandmother (Nana) making noodles with my sister and my niece, circa 1974. Write about a special person in your life. The person can be alive or no longer living. It could also be an animal. #justwrite #iamawriter #amwriting
Loss
Guest Blogger Sharon Ziff writes: I lost my gloves—the ones I bought in Venice last year. I loved them. LOVED THEM. How could I love a pair of gloves? They had a soft, fluffy pompom on the top. I liked to stroke them. It was like petting a kitty. Sadness. And upset with myself for losing them. So I lost a pair of gloves. How could I feel this deep emotion for a pair of gloves? It’s the attachment to my experience in Venice and my love for the friend I was with. Loss is a recurring theme in my writing. At times, I struggle to manage the intense feelings that accompany loss. There’s a burning sensation in my belly that I want to go away. I find myself thinking, “No, no, no,” while tears begin to flow. It’s not about the lost gloves; it’s about the impermanence of life….