Liminal Spaces

Tags

family, liminal, muse, names, poem, poetry, travel

I’m about to go on an extended trip to visit family…

and I have a ‘to do before I leave’ list
written in two solid columns,
because that’s less scary than two pages,
so what to do first? Write a poem
about liminal spaces 😆😂🤣😆
That is NOT on the list!
But muse insists…

Liminal spaces are the places
we go when what’s been is behind
and what’s coming isn’t yet in view.
Where no one knows your name,
apart from the one checking tickets
who’s so full of names they don’t care
where your name came from.

It’s freeing to be nameless a while,
from your perch on the edge
of what was and what will be,
browsing unfamiliar faces
who undoubtedly have a name too.
But you leave them be,
let them savour the liminal too.

Because all too soon
the world makes you return,
and you pick up your name
like a coat you left in the cloakroom,
almost surprised to find it still fits
because something’s changed,
and you put it on to face the new place,
where you’re welcome by your name
heard in the voice of one who loves you… ❤️💕

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He took off his tie

Tags

fathers day, ignite, lulu.com, poems, poetry, poetry collection

 

In honour of Father’s Day, and to continue yesterday’s theme of my love for the ocean, here’s a poem from my poetry collection, Ignite. Enjoy 😀Blessings on all the fathers, and all the stories, beginning, and ending, and beginning again…❤️

 

He took off his tie

 

 

The woman beckoned me to the bridge

and pointed.

The salmon were leaping.

 

Dad shared a memory with me recently.

It was a song that sparked it, played

by the guitarist doing covers

in the restaurant where we ate.

 

I saw Dad as a young man

taking off his tie to cast off

office life for adventure at sea.

I add this image to my own story, a preface

to well preserved childhood memories

of so many salt scented holidays.

 

The sea has always beckoned me, and

now I know a little more of why –

because Dad took off his tie.

 

How do the salmon know where to return

to after years spent maturing at sea?

 

Because I saw it myself, they do know,

that somewhere just upriver from that bridge

where I watched them fight the flow

is where their own story must return,

to begin again.

 

My collection, Ignite, is available from Lulu.com 

If you’d like a copy, please follow the link.

http://www.lulu.com/shop/harula-ladd/ignite/paperback/product-24091712.html

Writers’ Well – Home

Tags

creative collaboration, creative writing, creativity, home, poems, poetry, writing, writing prompt

 

Home. It’s a big word, in spite of being just four letters. There are other big four letter words… love, hope, free…but for now, let’s be with Home.

Finding myself currently between outer homes, this word has been very alive in me recently,  and I was reminded of a couple of lines from a poem I heard not long ago. I’ll paraphrase, as I don’t have the text to hand. A young woman, a refugee, said she had a home, put her hand to her heart, but that now she needed a house for it.

I realised I was at risk of disconnecting myself from my inner home, as a result of the stress of needing to find a new outer home. Not that I had any issue finding somewhere temporary, I am very blessed, but I am still unsure about where I will live longer term.

Inner Home.

Outer Home.

This became the reflection for one of our prompts during last week’s writing circle. First, we drew a circle in the centre of a blank piece of paper, writing the word Home inside it. Then we wrote words and phrases inside the circle, to represent ‘inner home’, followed by words or phrases outside the circle to represent ‘outer home’.

Then we shared those thoughts, and in 7 minutes, wrote a poem.

This is what I wrote.

 

Keys,  rent, walls.

Silence, safety, pause.

Photos, laughter, food.

Roots, faith, pause.

Garden, kitchen, washing machine.

Song, heartbeat, pause.

Coats hung up to dry,

shoes leave mud on the welcome mat.

Spirit, freedom, pause.

A spare room to welcome, entertain.

When are you coming back?

Private, love, pause.

Worldly shelter, anchor.

Family, ancestor, anchor.

Pause.

Welcome.

Pause

 

What is Home to you? I’d love to read your thoughts…

 

If you enjoyed this prompt, then you can find more here:

https://wordsthatserve.wordpress.com/upcoming-writing-workshops-and-some-prompts-for-you-to-play-with/

and here:

https://wordsthatserve.wordpress.com/writing-prompts-the-elements/

 

Don’t mind the gaps

Tags

creative writing, creativity, hip yak, poem, poetry, writing

I am still landing from the magical, life changing experience that was The Hip Yak Poetry School, organised by the phenomenal Liv Torc, with support from a truly awesome team of facilitators whose generosity and talent I need to create new words for. In the meantime, here’s a new poem.

 

 

The same teaspoon of salt diluted
in a glass of water, instead sprinkled
on a sea seasons differently.

Have you ever run, eyes closed
on an empty beach, anticipating
walls where there are none?

The same beating heart in
a newly expanded chest, no
lid to keep the love in, sounds

deeper, wider. Human eyes
can’t see the holes in skin
we think was only designed

to keep us in. But words find
the porousness of being,
and need no veins or arteries

to channel life giving properties.
They go straight to the heart.
They find the gaps. Circulation

is the above hitting ground and
being ploughed, like worms churn
the earth to goad rebirth.

Go. Run on a beach with
your eyes closed. Then stop.
Look up to where there are

no walls. Tend the heart
beating in a newly expanded
chest that doesn’t mind the gaps.

 

 

My Book! Introducing: Ignite

Tags

book, fire, ignite, lulu.com, poems, poetry, poetry collection, publishing

Some of you will know that, over the last few months, I’ve been ‘cooking’ something other than vegetarian meals for up to 90! 😆 I am now ready, and very excited, to introduce you to – my book!

Ignite is a collection of 42 poems written over several years, loosely gathered around the theme of fire, and its qualities of light, warmth, power and transformation. Some of the poems have been shared before, either through performances at open mics or here on my blog, as well as on Facebook. Others are entirely new.

I’ve published it through Lulu.com, and it is available to purchase now. Please follow the link.

http://www.lulu.com/…/ignite/paperback/product-24091712.html

I’ve received and learned sooooo much from the process of creating this, and now I setit free, to run wild. If it makes its way to you, thank you, and I hope you enjoy it.

With love and much joy…

Harula xxx

 

Here are a few links to some of the poems included in this collection, although some may have been slightly revised during the process of editing.

https://wordsthatserve.wordpress.com/2019/02/06/tune-your-ears-to-hope-2/

https://wordsthatserve.wordpress.com/2017/03/26/love-lets-go/

https://wordsthatserve.wordpress.com/2013/10/04/thats-how-soft-re-post/

 

 

 

Safety briefing for travel aboard planet earth

Tags

climate change, climate crisis, humour, planet earth, poem, poetry

 

 

Ladies and gentlemen,

on behalf of the cosmos and her crew

it’s our pleasure to welcome you

to this life aboard planet earth.

 

Your safety during this life

is important to the cosmos and her crew,

so we ask that you give us your full attention

while we explain the safety features of this planet.

 

While aboard this planet you are advised

to wear a belt, and be prepared to tighten it

should you be advised to do so,

as we may encounter periods of greed.

 

While aboard this planet you’ll

be glad to know that oxygen levels are

being carefully monitored and maintained

for your safety and well being.

 

However, should we lose forest cover

oxygen masks will not fall from above your head.

Instead, please immediately leave your seats

and go and plant some more trees.

 

For your information we will now

point out that emergency exits are

not situated here, here or here as

there are currently no alternative planets.

 

Should we encounter an emergency,

please assume the position of truth,

keep your feet firmly on the ground,

and use your head. Remember,

 

there are no emergency exits,

so we must all offer to assist,

and do whatever necessary to

ensure life can continue to exist.

 

However, should you encounter fear

you will find a high visibility vest

stowed within easy reach

to alert a member of our crew.

 

Please take the vest,

place it over your head

and tie the straps

around your waist and wait.

 

If a member of the crew

does not immediately come to you

please blow into the whistle

attached to attract attention.

 

Ladies and gentlemen we kindly ask

that all minds now be switched to ‘awake’

mode, and remain so unless

advised otherwise by a member of the crew.

 

You are further reminded that this

is a no smoking planet, and therefore

should you see or smell any smoke

this is an indication of a fire.

 

Even if you cannot see the flames,

we strongly advise you to listen to those

who can and take appropriate action,

for the safety of all on-board.

 

This completes the safety announcements

and we thank you for your attention.

Should you require a reminder

you will find relevant books and documentaries

 

listed in the google search in front of you.

On behalf of the cosmos and her crew,

thank you for choosing planet earth.

We wish you a pleasant life.

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

Writers’ Well – Simplicity

Tags

creative writing, creativity, poem, poetry, simplicity, writing, writing prompt

Ahhh, the simple things. I’ve been buried in busyness and complexity quite a bit recently, so it was both an offering and a personal need to focus last Friday’s creative writing session on the theme of simplicity. I found it incredibly nourishing.

The particular prompt I’d like to share with you worked like this. First, we wrote the word simplicity at the top of a piece of paper (one piece each) then wrote a brief example of what we feel that word means. We then passed our papers around, adding more ideas, until we’d gathered several examples, which we then read aloud.

We then turned the sheet over, and divided it into four; work, relationship, play and inner world. The idea was to make a few notes about how you might go about simplifying those areas of your life.

And then, use all that thought gathering to inspire a poem, in just ten minutes! This is what I wrote:

 

 

Take a brand new day

open the front door and explore

walk a path you’ve never taken before

and look up

enjoy the cinema in the sky

the vast ever changing images

of clouds passing by

breathe

 

Take a brand new friend

ask them a question

listen

wait until they’re done

then ask another question

while sharing tea in a cafe

chips by the river

wine in a bar

smile

 

Take a brand new page

dive into the emptiness

and write what you 

feel, see, hear, think

as the page’s new look

takes shape before your eyes

in unique, never before ways

write

 

Take a brand new month

check your bank balance

living within your means

helps you to breathe

with more ease

and the planet too

there is no waste in nature

it’s all for a reason

so don’t buy things designed

for a single season

balance

 

Take a brand new breath

notice it filling

your chest and let out

what wants to be released

noting you don’t need to interfere

or control how you breathe

it happens anyway

so give it space to do its thing

breathe

 

Do you enjoy the simple things in life? Do share you thoughts in the comments if you have a moment…

 

If you enjoyed this prompt, then you can find more here:

https://wordsthatserve.wordpress.com/upcoming-writing-workshops-and-some-prompts-for-you-to-play-with/

and here:

https://wordsthatserve.wordpress.com/writing-prompts-the-elements/

 

Writers’ Well – Food

Tags

creative writing, farming, food, poem, poetry, writing, writing prompt

 

Food is something that’s, let’s face it, is always on my mind BUT particularly at the moment, and in new and deeper ways than – step away from the fridge, and let me in!

I recently read two fantastic books, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver (of The Poisonwood Bible fame) and The Dirty Life, by Kristin Kimball. Both are memoirs exploring the daily reality of growing food, from seed to table. The beauty, the abundance, the challenge, the exhaustion and the broken and poisonous current large scale food production systems we have created, and that have distanced us so much from the meal on our plate. I highly recommend them both.

Rather than explore this topic in essay form, I decided to feed it into (!) last week’s writing session, as a prompt for a poem. The form of the prompt was this:

Draw a line in the centre of a blank page.

Above the line draw a tree trunk, with (to start with) three branches leading off with the words WHO (do we eat it with?), WHERE (do we eat it?) WHAT (do we like/not like to eat?).

Below the line, draw roots, again labelled WHO (grows it?) WHERE (does it come from?), WHAT (does it need in order to grow?)

Now, at your whim and pleasure, extend those branches off in any direction with your own spontaneous answers/responses to those questions, until you end up with something like this:

 

Of course, that activity alone could go on for a very long time, we spent no more than five minutes harvesting thoughts and ideas, and then shared them for some fruitful creative cross-pollination. Then, I invited each writer to pen a poem, in just ten minutes, inspired by that exploration. This is what I wrote:

 

I say I eat alone

Often alone, with my computer

And iPlayer for company

But if the essence of all those

Involved in the meal

that waits on my plate

were present as I ate

my bedroom would be pretty full

 

of the worms that turned the soil

and the people that toiled in

all weathers, somewhere on this planet

we share, there’s a man, woman or child

with a name and a family of their own

who played a part in growing

this food that waits on my plate

 

so am I really alone

when I eat? Would I slow down

eat less fast if I knew, if I felt

the aching back, the cold wet hands,

the burnt skin on the cheeks of

those who spent hours, days, weeks

growing harvesting, transporting that food

that waits on my plate

 

if they stood watching over my shoulder

would I be more aware of the taste

before I swallow, give thanks for the

rain, sun, earth and air that

conspired in this everyday alchemy not

to ensure I was fed but simply to honour

the cycle of give and take and life

and death and nourish and be nourished

that has been in place long before

this meal that waits on my plate

 

I was very moved by all the different responses, and to discover that most of us in the writing circle that day ate most of our meals alone, which leaves me with many questions…food for thought 🙂

 

 

If you enjoyed this prompt, then you can find more here:

https://wordsthatserve.wordpress.com/upcoming-writing-workshops-and-some-prompts-for-you-to-play-with/

and here:

https://wordsthatserve.wordpress.com/writing-prompts-the-elements/

 

Writers’ Well – Beauty, Zoom in/Zoom out

Tags

apple blossom, creative writing, poem, poetry, writing, writing prompt

Photo by Abby Chung on Pexels.com

 

This prompt, from last Friday’s session, began with each of us writing down the name of a place or thing we consider to be beautiful, each on our own sheet of paper. We then passed that paper on, receiving another from our left, and added a further example, until our own sheet was back with us…

 

 

When we had our own papers back, I asked each writer to choose one from their list, and turn over. We then divided the blank side into three columns. In the middle column I asked them to write five words they associated with, or that described, the beautiful place/thing they’d chosen.

 

In the column to the left, I asked them to write a heading ‘Zoom-in’, and I asked them to imagine zooming in on their thing/place. What did they see/notice now? Again, five words.

 

Finally, in the column to the right I asked them to write the heading ‘Zoom-out’, and again write five words as they imagined zooming out on the image of their beautiful thing/place.

 

All of which was a gathering of words, and a thematic exploration in preparation for…the writing of a poem. In ten minutes. This is what I wrote, raw and unedited – enjoy!

 

 

Pink, white, tiny

Petalled flags that signal life’s

Generosity and willingness

To feed if we’re willing to wait

Because they are just the beginning

 

Bees nuzzle in

Getting up close and personal

Drawn by the sweet scent

Life is full of sweet and sting

So very close together

 

Trees in rows

And rows the fruit

Grows beside longer days

Until some branches need help

To hold the weight of abundance

 

Children play among daffodils

And get chased by the wasps

Hidden inside, burrowed

Deep into the white pink

Tinged juicy flesh until

 

The sun has sunk a little lower

And the ladders come out

To lean against laden trees

Who keep their best at the tips

Of top most branches that

Sway just out of reach

Reach up and pick

 

An apple eaten straight

From the tree to fuel

Those gathering and placing

Carefully in boxes lest

They bruise the fruit that began

As blossom on a branch all

Those months ago

 

All those years ago

We had an apple tree

At the bottom of the garden

Plum and pear too

I wonder if fruit still grows

In the orchard of my childhood

 

If you enjoyed this prompt, then you can find more here:

https://wordsthatserve.wordpress.com/upcoming-writing-workshops-and-some-prompts-for-you-to-play-with/

and here:

https://wordsthatserve.wordpress.com/writing-prompts-the-elements/

 

NaPoWriMo – Day Two, Donate Books

Tags

books, NaPoWriMo, poem, poetry

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

 

Day two – Donate used books to a library…so, the topic is simply – Books!

Oh books, how I read thee
Let me count the ways
(well, five anyway)

Open
Read
Enjoy
Close
Thanks
Next

Open
Read
Close door
Phone off
Open door
Make tea
Close door
Read read read
Temporarily leave earth
The end
Land
Wow!

Open
Read
Enjoy
Read
That is NOT an ending!
THAT IS NOT AN ENDING!!!
Throw (trying not to break spine
of book)

Open
Read
Smile
Love
Hug
Keep…
Shit day
Go to bed with shelf mate
Read
Breathe
Repeat
As often as needed
(best with a whole series)

Open
Read
Enjoy
Close
Cool!
Write
Write to author
Thanks!
Write
Read again
Take notes

 

Any suggestions as to which books you would put in which category?! Or want to guess mine 🙂 Comments section awaits…