Awakenings

Poets & Writers came this week. On of the more exciting postal service deliveries I receive. Niece piece on W.S. Merwin written by Christopher Merrill. Merwin explains that a poem results from a sudden awakening of attention and goes on to say, "It probably took your whole life to arrive at that moment when you here it." Ah, I suppose that is what makes it so pleasurable.

Without a doubt I can attest to such awakenings. I've had a number of then, so I can certainly identify with the overall feeling. I would not categorize them as rare, but infrequent. I'd like to say I have them daily... weekly even. While they may well occur perhaps two in a week, there can be lots of open green space between them. Sometimes weeks pass without one at all.

I don't think that one even has to have a great poem for such awakening to occur. But the foundation for a great poem has to be there. I have one for example that I had such a feeling about some time back. I was preparing it to submit recently and decided that it that to change. I have tinkered with it for days now, but I still believe in the concept that was a part of that initial awakening. I just know that something, some tiny portion of it can be fine tuned for betterment of the overall work.

I have another poem that is new and I believe attests to that awakening feeling. It is a short three stanza piece but nearly twenty-four hours later I am looking at one line of the poem and listening to others and- well, I am stalled. I have sent it out to a number of other writers that I often workshop material with and I am awaiting their comments. The best thing that can come out of such action is that I will get a better feel for how the original text is working or not working. Of course the hazard of seeking the advise and council of twenty people is getting twenty different answers.

You can't believe how grateful I am that it is Friday. Being the end if the work week is almost like a salvation of sorts. Like a cell phone or something I really need to be recharged and I am hoping this weekend can be that.

My quote for the day is on Critics....

A critic can only review the book he has read, not the one which the writer wrote. ~Mignon McLaughlin, The Neurotic's Notebook, 1960

BWT - Stickpoet passed 14,000 hits! Yeah! Thanks to all the peeps!