February 24 – Washing Line Conversation
Last night’s conversation
Continues on the clothes line
The shirt and blouse entwined
Embraced in the music of the wind
Trousers slipped off
Placed one on the other
Now creased and dishevelled and
Two pairs of underpants side by side
As they were last night
February 23 – Revolution
When did “revolution” become an adjective?
Ascribed to ingredients of domestic products
“Revolutionary cleaning power!”
The design of women’s lingerie
“New, revolutionary wonder lift!”
No longer the power to stir
To call to arms; to change;
To leap into action.
All I know is
When the revolution comes
I’ll be wiping my bum
With revolutionary 3-ply toilet paper.
Posted in Ars Poetica, Creativity, Post It Note Poetry, The Writer's Life
Tagged creativity, poetry, post it note, post it note poetry, revolution, slice of life, writers, writing
February 22 – Tacet
Tacet marked on the score
A signal to stop
To not play
To rest
A moment to listen.
The breath in is held
Counted first then numbered
A paused action
An eternity
Captured
Selah
Posted in Ars Poetica, Creativity, Post It Note Poetry, The Writer's Life
Tagged creativity, music, poetry, post it note, post it note poetry, selah, slice of life, tacet, writers, writing
February 21 – Fences
I peer between the common
Connection of our backyards
Through the fractured fingers
Of the old paling fence
Splayed out with lichen fingernails
And mossy knuckles
Leaning and bearing the weight
Of the jasmine and wisteria.
I peer into your backyard
Slatted snippets of sight
And wonder if you look into mine
Took a couple of photos for today’s poem. I liked them both so I included them here.
Posted in Ars Poetica, Creativity, Post It Note Poetry, The Writer's Life
Tagged creativity, fences, poetry, post it note, post it note poetry, slice of life, writers, writing
I watched my daughter sitting at the table colouring in this afternoon. She selected colours at random. The sky was purple; the skin was blue. The lines of demarcation were merely suggestions when it comes to colouring in.
And I didn’t correct it. As a parent it is easy to step in with good intentions and say, “The sky is blue, not purple.”
Or, “A person’s skin colour is pink or brown, not blue.”
She was more interested in colouring in and being creative than “getting it right.”
When you are doing something creative, don’t worry about “getting it right” on the first attempt.
The process of creating should be enjoyable and fun. Be in the moment and revel in the construction.
Creativity is about experimenting and having fun with new ideas. For the month of February I took on the creative challenge to write a poem on a Post It note every day. You can see the results here: Post It Note Poetry.
Make mistakes. Do it in an unconventional way. Learn how others do it and reverse their process.
And every once in a while, colour outside the lines. You are allowed to, you know.
Posted in Creativity, The Writer's Life
Tagged colouring in, creativity, making errors, writers, writing
February 20 – Conversations
Plucking at the topic
Yet mistimed with
Bum notes and fret buzz
The tuning slightly out creating
Dyssynchronous harmonics.
A pause before plucking
At the topic, adjusting the tuning pegs
So it resonates, oscillates
And runs the arpeggios
In synchronous harmony.
Posted in Ars Poetica, Creativity, Post It Note Poetry, The Writer's Life
Tagged conversation, creativity, guitar, poetry, post it note, post it note poetry, slice of life, writers, writing
February 19 – Dance Concert
Plumage of tulle
Bunched around bottoms
The perfect formation
Of conglomeration
Packed together
Cygnets learning to fly
In formation
By huddling together
This poem was inspired by the eucalyptus tree in blossom outside the office where I work.
I have two young daughters who love to dance and the bunch of blossoms reminded me of children’s dance concerts where they haven’t quite learned spacial awareness and clump together on stage.
If you are a native Antipodean, it will also remind you of May Gibbs’ creation, Snugglepot and Cuddlepie.
Posted in Ars Poetica, Creativity, Post It Note Poetry, The Writer's Life
Tagged creativity, dance, eucalyptus blossom, poetry, post it note, post it note poetry, slice of life, writers, writing
February 18 – Today’s Lesson
A quick kiss
Of spousal affection
Snaffled in the kitchen.
Two young daughters
Laugh hysterically
And learn a lesson
Untaught by books
Posted in Ars Poetica, Creativity, Post It Note Poetry, The Writer's Life
Tagged creativity, family, kisses, lessons, poetry, post it note, post it note poetry, relationships, slice of life, writers, writing
February 17 – The Paper Bark Tree
Layers peeling from the spine
A well-thumbed text with
Words on pages I cannot read
Interpreted through
The rustled utterances
Of the leaves
Unfolding their meaning
Of Nature’s gospel
I am an English teacher and drummer/percussionist with an interest in literary pursuits, creative endeavours, rhythmic permutations, theological amplifications and comedic outbursts.
Here you will find my creative detritus: articles on living a creative life and writing explorations.
And other ideas I have snaffled from the papers stuck on the fridge door.
Twitter: @RevHappiness
Instagram: @handwrittenpages
My collaborative epistolary novel, "Post Marked: Piper's Reach," written with Jodi Cleghorn (@JodiCleghorn) out now via Vine Leaves Press.
Come and browse through the library; there is no need to be silent.
A Fullness in Brevity - Adam Byatt 