Last night I went to one of the writing groups I've recently joined, in an effort to stimulate the writing back into my life - along with some social life. We were given an exercise to do for about twenty minutes, with the prompt to write a poem answering the question above - considering the past month or so. I got confused and started listing things that had gone on in the past few weeks of my life, before finally twigging this wasn't what the poem needed to be. The poem finally flowed out in the last five minutes we had of the exercise. But first, I shall share, the list I'd put together, partly as an excuse for why there has been no writing in this past month.
- I've had my 22 year old daughter, freshly graduated from a university on the other side of the world from me, here for the last couple of weeks, giving me an unusual constant companion. She leaves later this week to go back to the other side of the world to start a new life.
- I've gone to Cardiff - down the A49, six hour drive, back the M5/6 three hour drive - to hang out for a couple of days with an old friend I met in California 18 years ago, who was visiting Wales with her mother. We had an interesting time wandering around the Cardiff area - saw a ruined abbey that Wordsworth wrote a poem about once upon a time and then an unruined Cathedral which had been bombed in WWII, but rebuilt. The next day we had some laughs going through the Dr. Who Experience after which I posted some selfies of me with monsters on FB - but I'm afraid most of my American contacts had no idea what that was about (but the few who do - REALLY did)
- found out I'd won first or second prize in a writing contest I'd entered, on a lark, mainly to support the people who were running it, along with the homeless shelter the contest was sponsoring. My flash story is now mounted in a gallery in Warrington and there will be a prize giving party next week I'm to attend.
- the 13 year pattern I'm observing is ticking along. The friend I went to see in Cardiff was last here, same time of year, 13 years ago as well. We were both on the verge of a big transition then and seem to be again.
- had another vivid Robbie Williams Dream. Haven't had those for years, like I did so much in the last half of last decade.
- went to a new writing group filled with little old ladies who have been meeting once a week for 25 years to write madly for about an hour on a topic, then share with each other the results. Am excited about continuing on with this for as long they'll have me.
- finished a waistcoat I've been making, which is very pretty - and too small for me.
- was invited to accompany my older daughter, to a seminar this Thursday, on Innovative Solutions for Urban Flooding. She's a civil engineer, I'm not. I declined.
- re-booted this blog site which I started 9 years ago but have never really done anything with.
but finally, the poem:
How have I been doing, you ask?
How long do you have?
There are the people I give a tight grin and say 'fine', that's all.
And then there are the few to whom I chatter without taking a breath, until I do.
It's always different.
Every week a new theme, a new task,
Observations get noted or not,
Serendipities, patterns, books to read, shows to watch, beauty imbibed,
Feelings, thoughts, musings, distractions galore,
Work with the hands, do a chore or two,
It's coming, it's coming, I'll let you know.
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