YIKES! I changed up things today and abandoned my routines and systems. The result? I completely forgot about writing today’s poem until just a few moments ago!
It’s funny how a little change can lead to things slipping away and the very recognition of that loss can serve as inspiration for recovering what was forgotten and building upon it.
Thinking about the process of creation and writing today. Thought to action to construct, be it a mental or physical one, the bare bones of the process are all but identical.
My bride is home–cannot tell you enough how ecstatic that makes me. She’s definitely my touchstone. While she was away, I slipped from my routine and things I meant to get done quickly ended up takin much longer. Today, waking up with her, I was able to leap right back into things and completed a major milestone with one project and took the first major step in another, unrelated project. The momentum of completing the one fed into the other, which is the inspiration for today’s poem.
Speaking of inspiration and poetry, the first contest I’ll be looking to enter is called Wergle Flomp. Sound interesting? Sign up for The Daily Poet and I’ll tell you about it in our next newsletter! This one looks like it’s going to be a lot of fun.
You ever have your whole day planned out? You’re proud of it. Know that you’re going to be productive. Pleased that you’ve managed to work everything together just so. Why, your schedule is practically a work of art.
Then a phone call. Good news or bad. Disruption. The plans are shattered and you’re left rushing forward through the day trying to pick up as many of the original pieces as you can along the way. Blessings in disguise and lessons to be learned here.
I am one of those people who does exceptionally well when I know what is going to happen. Routines, systems, habits–these things help to energize and propel me forward. I like structure and knowing the next piece I’ll need to build with. There’s a power to this that is sacred and it occurred to me that like so many of the tools we have available at our fingertips in such abundance, how we use this tool, or misuse it, can alter the course of our entire life.
If you are a creative and you have not read The War of Art, I highly encourage you to do so. The author speaks of the enemy of creatives and calls it “resistance.” I was thinking on it today as I push myself to create more and more works.
Had some interesting thoughts about the nature of thought, the transformation of thought into action, the process that undergoes, and how the way we choose to think, the thoughts that we focus on and allow ourselves to have, shape who we are and what we are capable of. While dwelling on this I reread Frost’s “The Road Not Taken” and the idea of thoughts following highways in our brains that we have constructed occurred to me. Hardly a new concept but it stuck with me and insisted upon being today’s subject.
I read a fascinating article the other day about a scientist in trouble in China for editing several embryos so that the children were immune to HIV. A brought this article up to an acquaintance who was shocked that the man was not in trouble simply for the fact that he had genetically modified human children (one set of twins has already been born) but because China has a strict policy against allowing carriers of HIV to have children. In his words, the man was tampering with God’s design. I have my own opinions on genetic manipulation and I have a hard time seeing it as “evil.” Thanks to this scientist there are now at least two people in the world who will NEVER have to suffer HIV. To me, that speaks of blessing, not blasphemy.
It does raise questions though. How long before genetic alterations become common place? How will we use this new technology? How will we abuse it? It’s coming one way or another.
I hate not feeling well. It’s like there’s a disconnect between my brain and the rest of my facilities that makes the entire creative machine malfunction. Hard to think, you know? So I’m feeling especially pleased with myself for cranking today’s poem out in spite of that.
I read an article on hypocognition yesterday that brought me back to some of my time in the classroom where we discussed the idea of the connection between words and concepts. For example, when you say “chair” what comes to mind? It’s not necessarily the same image or concept of a chair that comes to my mind. And what about stories and humor? How often do we lose things in translation or find that there is no significant equivalent in our language or another? Colors, concepts, even emotions–how many different forms of love are there?
Food for thought.
The Everyday Poet 