Poetic treasure in my letter box

On Wednesday I received an exciting package in my letter box. It was from Maya Stein, a poet from San Francisco. The contents were declared safe for entry into Australia. 

Last year Maya undertook a fascinating project called Tour de Word, a travelling poetry project. She travelled around the United States and held writing workshops in various places. The project was funded by her supporters. This was the reason for my receiving the package. I was captivated when I first read about the project. It struck me immediately as something amazing and I decided I wanted to be a part of it. I couldn't do a lot living in Australia and unable to physically attend the workshops. I was, however, able to give some financial support and to follow the project through internet updates on the Tour de Word blog. 


The bonus for offering some financial support was the supporter bonuses which I received on Wednesday. I received Maya's book called "enoughwater" as well as 3 versions of "verse purse" which are just gorgeous. Each "verse purse" has 15 of Maya's poems. I haven't had a chance to read them all yet but flicking through I definitely have a few favourites already.
The book is gorgeous too. Maya sends a 10 line poem out by email every Tuesday. This book is a collection of all the poems she sent out the first year she did so with each one accompanied by a gorgeous photograph. I look forward to a good read later. I also am looking forward to the anthology that Maya is putting together as a result of the project. It will contain writing from participants from the workshops she ran. 

Thanks Maya! Thanks for the project and thanks for the package. And a thankyou to myself as well for deciding to support this project. The project was actually launched on my birthday last year so I considered my support in part a birthday present to myself. Happy Birthday to me!

Sunday scribblings - February 6th, 2011

My second offering for Sunday scribblings. This weeks prompt: 


Tell us your story.
Tell us a story.
What story matters to you?
What story do you need to hear?


This provoked much continuing thought! I decided to rewrite a poem to post here. So here is one take on story. 


Shining the pebbles 


Tell your own story 
share and reframe 
turn it around 
over 
inside out 
tell the same story 
and tell it again
let the telling change 
and the listening too 
sift through your life 
and discover yourself 
shining the pebbles 

The delights of doing just a little...

I was planning to title this post 'The benefits of doing just a little...' but I typed delights and I think I like that better so it will stay. 


This is my 100th post for this blog. Wow. 100 posts on from that day I sat in front of the computer thinking that I may as well just start and one small action of looking for information about how to set up a blog resulted in many more small actions and this blog was the result. Wow again. 100 posts! Plus another blog has resulted along the way. Which is what I planned to write about in this post. 


January is over and I am still writing small stones! I set up my blog pausing to pick up small stones as a place to store the small stones I wrote during January. Fiona Robyn was the inspiration behind this worldwide project. She states that a small stone is "a very short piece of writing that precisely captures a fully-engaged moment". Lots of people all over the world wrote a small stone each day in January and posted them to their blogs. Many are still continuing to write a small stone each day or nearly every day. I am one of them. I enjoyed the project a lot and continue to write and post a small stone each day. 


I have found this project has contributed to me paying more attention to my world. I am noticing and paying more attention to things that may have otherwise escaped my attention.  Part of the beauty of this project, I think, is its smallness. It is something I found quite easy to do and not too much of a commitment. Starting small has lead to a lot more. I am fairly certain that doing a little bit of writing each day will benefit my writing overall. It feels like practice or stretching. Sometimes I go on to write more than I think I would have that day without participating in this challenge of writing a small stone each day. Each day I get to focus for a short while on getting the small stone written for that day so I am being mindful for at least a short time every day. It seemed like quite a big task to write 31 small stones but it seems not nearly as difficult when broken down to writing one a day. Now I am aiming for 365 stones. That seems like a lot but one a day seems quite achievable. 


Thinking about how writing a small stone each day has lead to more writing has gotten me thinking about how starting something small often leads to more. Sometimes a task seems overwhelming but breaking it down into smaller pieces and just concentrating on one small thing can be useful. As Anne Lamott (1994), writes in her book 'Bird by Bird' 

"Thirty years ago my older brother, who was ten years old at the time, was trying to get a report on birds written that he'd had three months to write. (It) was due the next day. We were out at our family cabin in Bolinas, and he was at the kitchen table close to tears, surrounded by binder and pencils and unopened books on birds, immobilized by the hugeness of the task ahead. Then my father sat down beside him, put his arm around my brother's shoulder, and said, 'Bird by bird, buddy. Just take it bird by bird.'"

I love that book! I love that passage! I often think of it when a task seems overwhelming. Just concentrate on what needs to be done immediately and let the rest follow. I took this approach when I began attending an art group a couple of years ago. More about that soon. 

Just take it 'bird by bird' or maybe 'stone by stone'. 

Sharing ideas

"Carrying an idea, even one that seems full blown, in one's thoughts

is far different from writing it down or

trying to speak it to share with others.

 

Taking the abstract to concrete carries its own challenges

and offers the rewards of connecting with others who are looking,

who have already discovered and want validation, or

who have arrived but like to remember the trip.

 

Sharing in writing or speech is a fundamental building block

for community."

 

Tammy Vitale

I really like this piece of Wylde Women's wisdom that arrived in my inbox yesterday. It particularly speaks to me I think because of the number of years I spent with big ideas that I seldom shared with others. 

I receive a short piece like this each day and mostly find I really like them and relate to them. To read more about Tammy Vitale's work or to sign up for your own piece of wisdom daily go to www.tammyvitale.com. There is amazing artwork there too!  

Sunday Scribblings - January 30th 2011

This is my first post for Sunday Scribblings, a site where a weekly prompt is given. The prompt for this weeks is: Safe. I originally wrote this one a while ago and just changed it a little tonight. 


Transformation 


The door slammed shut 
behind me 
locked 
the key gone 


So suddenly I know 
there will be no turning back 
for a while I have ventured 
holding doors open 
grasping tight the keys 
testing out this different world 
going on mini adventures 


Yet now
this is not the Narnia 
of my childhood fantasies 
an adventure followed 
by a return to home 
it is not like travel to faraway places 
the comforts of home 
waiting


No 
I am here to stay 
the door is locked 
my safety left behind 


I will learn to live here 
transform 
from a tourist 
to a permanent resident 
in a new home 

This is a free-range blog

I am a little addicted to adding badges to my blog I think. This morning I found another one - free-range social media. Doesn't it look fantastic? It was developed by Brene Brown. I found it as I follow her blog www.ordinarycourage.com. More than just looking good though, I strongly believe in what it stands for.

By adding it I am declaring that "I will do my best to make my online space cruelty, cage and copying free." To read more about what that means, go here. Or click on the badge in the sidebar to read more or to get your own.

...and now there's free compliments

Last week I posted a link to free positive thoughts. Now there are some free compliments available. This is from the Kind Over Matter website by Amanda Oaks. To get your own copy go here. 

I really like the tear off bits at the bottom.compliments. I said that about the last poster too!

New Year's Resolutions - check in

I mentioned some resolutions in a post earlier this month.


- to participate in a river of stones
- to continue blogging
- to continue writing poetry
- to recommence 20 minutes of free writing/timed response writing


It is nearly the end of January and I thought I would do a quick check in. 


I have been participating in a river of stones and writing a small stone and posting it the same day. I have managed to do this every day. The last few days I have lost a bit of the eagerness but have continued on. I am starting to think about whether I will continue on after January. I think I probably will. It will be interesting to see how many others keep going. There is going to be another challenge in July. That should be fun too. For more information about the project go to www.ariverofstones.blogspot.com or to read my small stones www.pausingforsmallstones.blogspot.com. I am really glad I decided to do this challenge when I read about it. I have done some writing I probably wouldn't have done otherwise. I think some of my small stones will also develop into poems and parts of poems in the not too distant future. Going well! 


I have continued blogging both here and on my small stones blog. Going well! 

I haven't written a lot of poetry. This is probably because I haven't had a lot of time on my own during the school holidays. I tend to write more after I have some time alone. I have jotted a few ideas done and look forward to more writing soon. Should improve soon!


I haven't as yet done 20 minutes of writing. I have come close and almost got the writing book out the other night but then it got too late. This will probably come too when I get more time alone as long as I push myself a little. It is something I often don't feel like starting but am glad I did it afterwards. I am also thinking of making myself a jar of prompts or an envelope of prompts or maybe asking someone to make one for me. I like to write to a random topic that I may not have really thought about otherwise. Will begin soon! 


All in all, quite a good New Year's Resolutions report! 

Roma tomatoes are ready!

I picked these Roma tomatoes this afternoon. These ones are a good size in comparison to earlier ones. I'm sure they will be just as tasty. 

The January garden update

It's nearly the end of the school holidays. Just one more week until the return of routine to our lives. I am still enjoying gardening. I haven't done as much in the garden as I thought I would with more spare time. Other pursuits have grabbed my attention more recently - blogging, jigsaw puzzle, cooking, the beach etc. 


I have been picking a few tomatoes (cherry and Roma) each day. Mostly they get eaten almost straight away. Very yummy! I am surprised at the difference in taste compared to those from the shops. The chilli plants have fruit on them now and some of the basil is growing well again now. The tomato plants are looking a bit dry but are producing a reasonable amount of fruit. One of them that I have staked up is taller than me. 

A couple of days ago Brianna and I dug up half of a garden bed and planted some seeds. The only plant left in the garden bed was a single celery plant. We planted carrots, radishes, zucchini, squash, tomatoes and some basil. We put a wire grid over the top to deter cats. The last seeds we planted didn't grow as cats dug up the dirt. Hopefully these ones will fare better. I just need to remember to water them.