QUESTION TO POETS AND WRITERS......When will the rain be gone?........When can I see clearly?......Is there a Santa Claus Virginia?..........

Photo by: John P. Ford


Question to Poets and Writers


How does one get to be a poet? I believe it may be about intention, focus and writing and writing...which I am finding hard to do. Keep in mind,,,,I am not expecting to be paid. There is no punishment for writing...and obviously none for not writing. When does one know they have arrived? It is based on affirmation for others?

I do enjoy recognition, exchange and communication. It is not essential to me to do what I feel I want or need to do. I don't think I have to have permission. While I can see that all these things could feel warm and fuzzy, I don't think it is the totality of what I am wanting. Yes, it is about self expression but that is not the whole picture. I have wanted to be a poet since somewhere in the very early years.

While it would be fun to be published, if I really want that I could self publish. My intention is/has been to seek a community for learning and feedback, validation and connection and if I am brave, critique.. I have found some of that. Do I need a mentor? Five or ten mentors?

While I can spot a good and even a great poet from a snowstorm, I can't find my inspiration. Am I meant to be a muse and not a writer while wanting to be both? I tell myself things like....spring is almost here.

In rational moments I am not sure how that relates to being a poet. Great poetry can come from dark moments of life and in the middle of deep winter..

I could certainly write inspirational stuff. I am not feeling inspired. Maybe I really don't want to be a poet? Are there ten easy steps to at least learning to write consistently?

I do want to write with joy or intensity...with that feeling of flow or urgency that I have experienced. I want that feeling of needing to pull over to the side of the road to jot down the lines in my head that are becoming a poem even while I am driving. .

What is all this about do you think? Being a very action oriented person, I am seeking some magically inspired path perhaps? Direction?

Actually, I don't know. I am sure at some point something will be revealed to me .
What are your thoughts? What is the answer to the path needed?

Celebrate Your Life! ... Dreams do come true

Photo by: John P. Ford
Nashville Skyline

THE NEW YEAR

Quotes from the writings of Anais Nin...

Dreams pass into the reality of action. From the actions stems the dream again; and this interdependence produces the highest form of living.

It is the function of art to renew our perception. What we are familiar with we cease to see. The writer shakes up the familiar scene, and, as if by magic, we see a new meaning in it.

There is not one big cosmic meaning for all, there is only the meaning we each give to our life, an individual meaning, an individual plot, like an individual novel, a book for each person.
ANAIS NIN

The New Year is a time to celebrate life and to let go of the old and to rewrite any of our chosen scripts needing a revision. Now is one time to invite into our lives the NEW and the revised!

I believe we are stonger in connection so I am offering a small connection today. The dreams we are holding tight can be set free through our actions and our intentions. I am dreaming of a more organized environment, a revised budget I stick too and a healthier lifestyle!

I would love your thoughts and reflections on the New Year and what dreams are forming or coming together for you for 2009. What do you want to write in your Life's book?