Day 118: Time to Tend the Garden

Today’s poem brought to you by the task before me this afternoon…uploading the poems I have fallen out of the habit of sharing as soon as I finish them. Here we go…

Time to Tend the Garden

Day 102: Chrysalis in the Cinders

I went to the park to walk my dog and de-stress from the day. It was a good day, just long and hard and I needed to unwind with my puppy.

The park backs up to some houses, one of which has a fence that is incomplete. The people who live there have a pair of dogs. They’ve gotten out before and caused some minor mischief, nothing serious. They got out again today and chased my dog, who chased them back. The woman who lives in the house came out screaming and cussing at me, furious that I dare walk my dog past her house and get her dogs riled up.

I have no idea why this bothers me as much as it does. It could be any number of combinations of things. This year, is a year of transformation and I think that right now I’m experiencing some growing pains.

Here’s to hope, to love, and to growth.

Chrysalis in the Cinders

Day 101: Let Go Let’s Go

Saw Pet Sematary with my bride, who toughed it out like a champ. Considering the subject matter of yesterday’s poem and having just watched this movie, today’s poem feels somewhat inevitable. Here’s to hope and life and love in the face of entropy.

Let Go

Let’s Go

Day 100: Snowball

Didn’t post it yesterday but I did write it! Today’s poem will be published later.

I originally thought I might do something significant for the hundredth day of poetry, but then I realized, it’s just another day. A benchmark to be sure, but the journey of a creative is one that doesn’t end just because a milestone is reached or a single project finished. We keep on.

Yesterday I found myself grateful for the blessing of new opportunities, of regaining my momentum, and of having reached a major benchmark in another project. It got me thinking about how much effort it is to create something and how easy it is to destroy. It all boils down to keeping on and working within a system that is designed to challenge us and to be unfair. Life is a perpetual battle against entropy.

Snowball

Day 98: Which Calm?

My bride and I went to An Evening with Margaret Atwood the other night, which began with her reading some of her poetry. After listening, I took away permission to ask more blatant questions in my own poetry. I’ve made an effort to steer away from that sort of thing overtly, but Atwood reminded me of one critical rule of creative writing: if it works then it works. Sometimes you don’t know if it does or not until you’ve done it. So, which type of calm do you pursue in your life?

Which Calm?

Day 97: Chase the Shine

Wait, Day 97? What happened to 96?

I missed it.

No excuse, I had an opportunity to do it during my break at work and I passed on. After that, when I got home I crashed. Hard. Been trying to do so much lately. Not the point.

I am proud that it took me 96 days before is missed a poem. New goal: try to go the rest of the year without missing another one. If I am to miss another, try to beat my 96 day streak.

Today’s poem is inspired by missing yesterday’s. I couldn’t tell you why Neverland and Peter Pan popped into my head, exactly, though in this context it certainly makes sense. Those stories are really depressing and downright frightening at their heart. Missed and stolen opportunities.

A piece of me mourns the loss of yesterday’s poem. It will never be written, never grow up, or go on adventures. It won’t even get to die because it was never born. Simply missed. An adventure not taken, an opportunity not explored. On the other hand, I am taking to heart why this is so valuable to me. The pursuit of dreams, seeing beauty realized and brought to fruition. Here is a rededication to never stop chasing the shine.

Chase the Shine