Exquisite Collaboration Poem: IN THE GARDEN

the gardens of the Environmental Studies program at Allegheny College, 2023

(This poem is written by participants in my Collaborative Creativity workshop at the St. Davids Christian Writers’ Conference, June 2023)

IN THE GARDEN

I am the air, carrying the sweet scent of a flower and the musical melody of a bird to a mournful heart; bringing moisture to lift dry soil back to life; replenishing the lungs of a tired body; and rejuvenating the spirit of a weary soul.

I am the mulberry tree, looking so simple – green with 1000s of differently identical leaves, but now showing no evidence of my flowers and fruit, that will come in their season.

I am the rich, dark soil; broken, raked, overturned; teeming with complexity and filled with nutrients to nurture growth.

I am a wildflower, deeply rooted, yet aimless; persistent, thriving despite being untended; faithfully showing up, not to lead but to perhaps encourage; a supporting actor in the summer bouquet.

I am a rock, steady and solid, small and fragile, immovable but easily tossed, porous but impenetrable.

I am the succulent that thrives by bending my leaves and resting them in the soil.

I am suspended by the flow of liquid that ripples around me and through me. I am in a serene space inches below the surface of chaos and I am at peace. I am a golden splash of sunlight called fish.

I am a leaf that used to be a bud, but I’ve unfolded, steeping in sunshine, soaking up rain, preparing to become crimson in my last flash of glory before I turn brown, fall off, and crunch under your feet…never to leave your memory.

I am the soil, gathering the spent blossoms of last year, the castings of worms and what seems worthless. I hold them and over time transform them into something precious to nourish the roots of today’s new growth. I waste nothing.

I am the weatherworn pine, with branches no longer in service, hidden behind fragrance and foliage with far greater appeal. And yet I offer shelter and new growth and proof of life in the seeds offered to a world hungry for new beginnings.

I am the air, carrying senses in and through the lives of those who live.
I am the ground, sealing off for the frost and softening for the growth.
I am the wood, using moisture to build strength.
I am the storm, causing chaos to bring change.

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

THE POEM & POETS

This poem was the result of a writing prompt I gave participants in a workshop I led on Collaborative Creativity at the 2023 St. David’s Christian Writers’ Conference, held at Allegheny College. The prompt was to go outside into the gardens or stay inside in the living atrium and connect with nature in some way. Then write a statement beginning with “I am….”, suggesting they use nature as a metaphor for some part of themself.
I collected the responses, compiled them, and read the poem at the ending night banquet.

THE ARTWORK
A photo I took of the gardens at the garden at the Environmental Studies building on the campus at Allegheny College, where the conference took place.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

This Exquisite Collaboration Project is based on the Exquisite Corpse, a technique created by Surrealists in the early 1900s, in which participants add to a work with no one seeing what the other participants contributed. My goal is to encourage non-writers and artists to embrace their creative selves in a safe, supportive, “you can’t fail” environment.  What began as a way to maintain some sort of connection with other people during the early days of the Covid lockdown has continued to unite strangers from around the world in creative collaboration.

Click here to read the series of Exquisite Poems and to find the links to the current prompt so you can join in the fun.

To learn more about my workshops and upcoming events, or if you’d like to learn how I can support you on your own creative journey with one-on-one coaching, visit my website.

 

Exquisite Collaboration Poem: OUR NEW STORY

In the garden at Allegheny College’s Environmental Studies

OUR NEW STORY
written by the conferees at St Davids Christian Writing Conference during a general session, June 2023

I used to be spry and now I am stiff
I used to be young but now I am older
I used to be young but now I am old

I used to be ugly but now I am passable
I used to be thin but now I am thick
I used to be healthy but now I am sick
I used to be a Masters in Social Work student but now I am a writer, because I got sick
I used to be a writer but now I am a waiter

I used to be an irate driver, road raged but now I am serene, calm and cool, despite what is going on around me
I used to be broken, disheveled but now I am peaceful
I used to be an orphan, now I’m a favorite daughter

I used to be afraid, but now I’m tentative
I used to be afraid, now I am unsure
I used to be eager to please but now I am obstructive

I used to be bound but now I am coming undone

I used to be overwhelmed but now I am not as bad
I used to be an English teacher, now I’m an anything teacher
I used to be a professor, but now I am retired

I used to be scared but now I am excited

I used to be shy but now I am able to express myself
I used to be a dreamer but now I am a wonderer
I used to be shy but now I am outgoing
I used to be shy but now I am bold

I used to be very pressured about control and others expectations but now I am enjoying the freedom
I used to be married but now I am happily divorced
I used to be ME but now I am…me. Can I find again? Can I see?
I used to dislike who I was until I realized that God made ME me

I used to be a white crayon but now I am a rainbow
I used to be invisible but now I am seen
I used to be invisible but now I am invincible

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

THE POEM & POETS

I led a general session at the St. David’s Christian Writers’ Conference in June 2023, on turning self-limiting statements into new stories. At the end, I had everyone respond to a prompt I use often for self-reflection:
I used to be _________ but now I __________.
I collected the responses, compiled them around themes, and, at the request of the venue director, read the poem at the ending night banquet.

THE ARTWORK
A photo I took of the gardens at the garden at the Environmental Studies building on the campus at Allegheny College, where the conference took place.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

This Exquisite Collaboration Project is based on the Exquisite Corpse, a technique created by Surrealists in the early 1900s, in which participants add to a work with no one seeing what the other participants contributed. My goal is to encourage non-writers and artists to embrace their creative selves in a safe, supportive, “you can’t fail” environment.  What began as a way to maintain some sort of connection with other people during the early days of the Covid lockdown has continued to unite strangers from around the world in creative collaboration.

Click here to read the series of Exquisite Poems and to find the links to the current prompt so you can join in the fun.

To learn more about my workshops and upcoming events, or if you’d like to learn how I can support you on your own creative journey with one-on-one coaching, visit my website.

The Magic of Creative Community

This morning, I hosted a Creative Open Space with the lovely Misty Yarnall. Like every event I host, we put the event out there, planned as best we could, invited everyone we know, and then left it to the creative gods to make the magic happen.

Here are some thoughts after this event:

* As we were nearing “start” time, I told Misty that I’m never sure if I hope no one shows up or everyone shows up. I love being a good host but I also just want to set the scene and then crawl under a table to watch what’s going to happen.

* In the end, people always show up, and it’s the right number of people every time.

* I have a loving core of humans who support me by putting their collective energies and spirits in the same space at the same time, over and over again. And while they are acquainted with each other and always seem happy to see each other, they don’t actually “know” each other. And yet there they are, together again, right on time, making the world a better place because they are there.

* People I don’t know, or who I haven’t seen in forever and two days, will also show up, because “I just felt like I was supposed to be here” or “I was craving community” or “I’ve been wanting to talk to you about…” and they will add to the beauty.

* This combined group of people will always be exactly the right people to be in that space and time. Call it destiny, call it divine guidance, but things are waiting to happen in the universe and all of the pieces need to be together to get things started, and today’s the day, folks. I can see this happening in real time, even if the people involved don’t. It’s like clear, calm space one minute, and the next minute sparks are flying all over the room.

Exquisite Collaboration Poem: SPARSE WORDS PAINT VIVID PICTURES

(c) Mark Groaning; used with permission

April is National Poetry Month, so let’s celebrate with the responses to the prompt from March, in all of its glorious wonder. Contributors were asked to provide five words in this format: Adjective, Noun, Verb, Adjective, Noun. You can learn more about the poem and the 20 contributors at the end of the post.

sparse words paint vivid pictures
(a collaborative poem)

careless cowboys singing stupendous sonnets
pestilent guitars loan slow liabilities
recalcitrant ideas spawn useless nonsense
singing Enya soothes my soul

obsessed man plays devious game
rough stone greets random parallax
antique cardboard rusts brown sugar
old washer rattles moldy basement

strong coffee awakens sleepy people
warm bread comforts hungry noses
facetious umbrellas steal beloved elbows
sultry trains await hidden futures

bored crows crowd crowned corn
lofty towers descend yellow corridors
green grapes dance purple grapes
shining shamrocks shade green gypsies
blue kittens run wild toys
spoiled felines crave warm sunshine

talented calligraphers create beautiful art
brilliant words beckon beautiful poems
lively tunes speak grand patterns
opalescent eyes dream golden harmonies

life-giving water sustains life-giving women
feisty females make fabulous friends
delicious nerds dance willing flowers
crazy hearts run roaring times

busy bees hover soft sky
shuddering poplars share modest dreams
colorful birds sing perching branches
free souls want only time

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

THE POETS

Jen Tissot
Mindy Hoffbauer
JS
Laurie B
Coriander in the Spice Rack
Robin Murphy
Sue A. Fairchild
The Jackalope
Kay Ross
Chris Johnston
A. Moses
LDA
Lynne
Jack
Ty
Justin Rielly
Yvonne DiVita
Christina
J.M. Roth
JudyW

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THE ARTWORK

Thanks to artist Mark Groaning for sharing the image used with this poem. I gave him just the poem title, and he sent a few photos to choose from. This was the first that came through, which is the one I used, and it was perfect.

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THE POEM

For our March prompt, contributors were asked to provide five words in this format: Adjective, Noun, Verb, Adjective, Noun.

I’ll be honest. As I compiled the 30 lines from 20 contributors, I experimented with tweaking the verb tenses and adding in articles to make more “sense”. That’s no uncommon to do with this prompt, and sometimes I make tiny tweaks in the final poem to help the pieces flow. But in the end, this poem wanted to be presented to the world raw, each line as it was contributed.

I agree. Everyone who reads this will see and hear and feel something different, and that’s the point of these Exquisite Collaboration Poems. But one thing is for sure…sparse words paint vivid pictures. (See what I did there with the title?) The only changes I made were to punctuation and capitalization so it flowed visually.

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OUR POETS HAIL FROM

Rochester, NY
Ohio
Fredonia, NY
New York
Maine
Watsontown, PA
Houston, TX
Hong Kong
Fairport, NY
Minnesota
Binghamton, NY
St. Cloud, Florida
Bangor, Maine
Penfield, NY

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

This Exquisite Collaboration Project is based on the Exquisite Corpse, a technique created by Surrealists in the early 1900s, in which participants add to a work with no one seeing what the other participants contributed. My goal is to encourage non-writers and artists to embrace their creative selves in a safe, supportive, “you can’t fail” environment.  What began as a way to maintain some sort of connection with other people during the early days of the Covid lockdown has continued to unite strangers from around the world in creative collaboration.

Click here to read the series of Exquisite Poems and to find the links to the current prompt so you can join in the fun.

To learn more about my workshops and upcoming events, or if you’d like to learn how I can support you on your own creative journey with one-on-one coaching, visit my website.

Exquisite Collaboration Poem: THE TERRIBLE BEAUTY OF IT ALL

Image by Agata Mucha from Pixabay

THE TERRIBLE BEAUTY OF IT ALL

Love is like getting hit with a Mac truck,
a soft smelling, sudsy bubble bath with a gorilla during a blizzard,
a warm fuzzy kitten that draws blood with its claws when it’s had enough.
Even manipulations and rages and murders arise from love.

I wonder what the world would be like if we committed to cultivating kindness, respect and playfulness within, moment to moment, and quit worrying so much about love, if others really loved us?

Love is like salt on the tongue, wind in the trees, silk to the touch, a rose in bloom – at its height, but wait for the inevitable decay.
Love can destroy and cause new life in the same minute.
It is beautiful and terrible.
It is all of it.

Love is a longing for someone out there, that someone you wish you were with
the allowing of all and sharing it.

I can’t help but lose my balance; love is the world spinning beneath my feet.

Love is like a secret that tiptoes into your heart in the quietest of moments bringing unexpected joy to an ordinary day,
a warm blanket, keeping us warm and cozy,
a hand reaching down to lift someone out of the dirt.

What difference might it make in our moments if we chose to marry based on kindness and respect instead of love?

Love is like a father who marries his daughter off, but always keeps a light on and the door open wide enough to let her know home never lets go.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

THE POETS
Christina
Brigid
Jean Marie
Justin Rielly
Janyce Brawn
s
JM Roth
MEH
Jennifer Eagleton
Shikha S. Lamba
JudyW

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

THE POEM
This month was a simple prompt. Participants were asked to write a sentence based on the phrase:
Love is like…
Responses were edited slightly to remove the starting phrase “Love is like…” to help the poem flow, or for spelling or punctuation

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

OUR POETS HAIL FROM
Macedon NY
Pennsylvania
WNY
Hong Kong
Maine
Florida
Rochester, NY

* * * * * * * * * *

This Exquisite Collaboration Project is based on the Exquisite Corpse, a technique created by Surrealists in the early 1900s, in which participants add to a work with no one seeing what the other participants contributed. My goal is to encourage non-writers and artists to embrace their creative selves in a safe, supportive, “you can’t fail” environment.  What began as a way to maintain some sort of connection with other people during the early days of the Covid lockdown has continued to unite strangers from around the world in creative collaboration.

Click here to read the series of Exquisite Poems and to find the links to the current prompt so you can join in the fun.

To learn more about my workshops, visit my website.

Exquisite Collaboration Poem: THE FLIGHT OF GOODBYE

courtesy G. Lamar via wikicommons

THE FLIGHT OF GOODBYE

The clatter of the dog’s toenails on the kitchen floor, as she wanders into the kitchen to check on the progress of the toast, has gone unheard for months. The silence is deafening.
I’m letting go of fear and I’m grabbing a hold of faith.

I am getting rid of clothes I no longer wear, canned foods beyond their use-by dates, coffee mugs I never use, and unrealistic expectations and goals,
fatigue, disappointment, and dust on books,
disorganized clutter, because I’m ready to dance and I need space to flail,
saying goodbye to old assumptions as to “who I should be” in order to embark on new adventures and new ways to become my best self.
Goodbye to resistance, because I’m ready to fly.

I’m saying goodbye to places I used to know, because I’m ready to celebrate in other places without snow;
anger, because all it does is create fire in the face of kindness, no matter how clumsy or nervous the form it takes;
fear, because healing becomes trapped in its snare, and to heal is to be free and defined the broken bits of me;
the need to please other people, because I’m ready to be pleased myself.
The heavy weight of fear and regret must go so this midlifer mama bird can fly.

Farewell sins of others, I will not feel your shame any longer, as now is my time to heal.
Goodbye toxic people, because I’m ready to feel less lonely,
letting go of the negativity that weighs me down – people, things and thoughts,
shedding fears, anxieties, “what ifs”, because it’s time once again (at long last!) to fly–someone has left the gate open!

I’m leaving behind the old version of myself that was defined by other’s expectations, as I carefully craft the me I want to be,
shedding high-heeled shoes and skates and skis, to keep intact my septuagenarian knees,
goodbye timelines, because all I’m good at is breaking their continuum by interfering. I just need to let things be and untie the plans that just want to fly away.

Goodbye bland acquiescence and getting by, you are the the round belly of my personality – making deep breaths really uncomfortable. Hello to creating space for myself and others, as we are and as we are not.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

THE POETS
Brigid
Paula K. Parker
Coriander in the Spice Rack
Jenean M. Roth
Lori Duff
Marcia Gunnett Woodard
Tracy Gerhardt-Cooper
Sara Zavacki-Moore
Justin Rielly
Jen Tissot
Lynne
Lisa A. Johnson Speaks Life
WAK
Margaret
Fred
s
Anne Murphy

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

THE POEM
To close out 2022, participants were asked to “write a sentence discarding what you don’t need to make room for what you do.” Their contribution could take any form they wanted. Responses were edited very slightly, occasionally removing punctuation and opening phrases like “I”m saying goodbye to” or “I’m letting go of”, allowing their words to flow in a powerful collaboration.

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OUR POETS HAIL FROM
Dallas, TX
Rochester, NY
At my desk at work
Istanbul
New Jersey
In the neighborhood
New York
Webster, NY
Western NY
Tullahoma, TN
Florida
Loganville, GA
The Only Swayzee in the World!

* * * * * * * * * *

This Exquisite Collaboration Project is based on the Exquisite Corpse, a technique created by Surrealists in the early 1900s, in which participants add to a work with no one seeing what the other participants contributed. My goal is to encourage non-writers and artists to embrace their creative selves in a safe, supportive, “you can’t fail” environment.  What began as a way to maintain some sort of connection with other people during the early days of the Covid lockdown has continued to unite strangers from around the world in creative collaboration.

Click here to read the series of Exquisite Poems and to find the links to the current prompt so you can join in the fun.

To learn more about my workshops, visit my website.

Exquisite Collaboration Poem: ON THE HORIZON

(photo courtesy of pixabay, user kordi_vahle)

ON THE HORIZON

It’s funny how we run for the things on the horizon,
the storms that chase us with fierce wind and darkness as we gaze other days, all the quiet glow of the setting sun.
And we wonder, will we see another day of storm and sun?

As she watched the sun rising on the horizon
she realized that her life would also.
“On the horizon I see my future,
just waiting for me to put one foot in front of the other
and claim it.”

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

THE PARTICIPANTS

Jen Tissot
Mickey Cherry

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

THE POEM

This month, our poem prompt offered lots of room for experimentation as participants were asked to contribute up to three lines prompted by the word “horizon.”

For me, most of January was one snag after another as Covid number surged, events and classes cancelled, and quirky technology mucked up the poem prompt link and monthly mailing. All of which is to say that in the midst of that two poem participants picked up the ball with this reminder that while we might be in a momentary muddle, new opportunities are just over the horizon.

* * * * * * * * * *

This Exquisite Collaboration Project is based on the Exquisite Corpse, a technique created by Surrealists in the early 1900s, in which participants add to a work with no one seeing what the other participants contributed. My goal is to encourage non-writers and artists to embrace their creative selves in a safe, supportive, “you can’t fail” environment.  What began as a way to maintain some sort of connection with other people during the early days of the Covid lockdown has continued to unite strangers from around the world in creative collaboration.

Click here to read the series of Exquisite Poems and to find the links to the current prompt so you can join in the fun.

To learn more about my workshops, visit my website.

Exquisite Collaboration Poem: BRIGHT MORNING I AM MEANT TO BE

This image was provided by Anne Murphy.

BRIGHT MORNING I AM MEANT TO BE
(a collaborative poem)

Hello darkness, my old friend, as time’s incessant pendulum swings yet again.
Adios thinking, being, self-realization.

Billionaires with their dragon-hoards
Sit still and get stupid.
Fields of control rampant,
Strength in numbers, working poor,
Deeper questioning, open-ended.

Hello frigid, bright morning

There is a light on in the living room – just a candle in the window, but it lifts my heart with joy because I know he’ll be up, anticipating.
Goodbye to what you knew, to what you said,
Hello to what you will know, to what you will say.

Hello another trip around the sun.
.
She raises her hand and waves it, but it’s nigh on dark and I can only imagine her there, hand up, lips in a smile, standing a little on tippy-toe, to reach over the high gate.

Goodbye Daylight.
Goodbye short sleeves and sandals.
Goodbye the last trip around the sun.
Goodbye to what no longer aligns with me.

Hello to what I believe is what I am meant to be.

* * * * * * * * * *

THE POETS
Janet Coburn
Miki M
Maur J DeLaney
dwa
Jack
Justin Rielly
Yvonne DiVita, founder of Nurturing Big Ideas
Lynne

* * * * * * * * * *

THE IMAGE
Photographer and artist Anne Murphy provided the image for this poem, altering a photo she found on Pixabay. Anne was given only the prompts when she offered to provide the image.

* * * * * * * * * *

THE POEM PROMPT
Our contributors were asked to provide two lines, the first prompted by Hello and the second prompted by Goodbye. They could begin the line with those words or just use them to inspire their contribution. Their two lines could be full sentences, fragments, lists, single words – whatever they wanted. The two lines were then separated from each other and rearranged to create the poem you just read.

* * * * * * * * * *

This Exquisite Collaboration Project is based on the Exquisite Corpse, a technique created by Surrealists in the early 1900s, in which participants add to a work with no one seeing what the other participants contributed. My goal is to encourage non-writers and artists to embrace their creative selves in a safe, supportive, “you can’t fail” environment.  What began as a way to maintain some sort of connection with other people during the early days of the Covid lockdown has continued to unite strangers from around the world in creative collaboration.

Click here to read the series of Exquisite Poems and to find the links to the current prompt so you can join in the fun.

To learn more about my workshops, visit my website.

Exquisite Collaboration Poem: THE WEIGHT OF IN BETWEEN

Photo (c) Beth Boatright

THE WEIGHT OF IN BETWEEN
(a collaborative poem)

Transition is the main theme of my life,
trepidation around stepping into the unknown.
The transition from wife to widow is like the transition from spring to winter;
something was lost in translation.
No longer allowed to teach Mockingbird?
So impossible to understand.
Did anyone fight this?
Get off your ass and do something!
I feel the sun pulling me outdoors.
Another warmest month ever recorded,
helping me transition from there to here,
never knowing if the demons in the shadows are real or only my imagination.
Sometimes the burden of coming out repeatedly is heavy, like elephants swimming.
Or transition.
Vulnerability to overflow the confines of expectation and assumption,
strength to expand into galaxies of authenticity and wholeness,
curiosity and excitement about the future.

* * * * * * * * *

THE POETS

C.W. Rainbeaux
Mickey Cherry
LDA
Greene King
Maur J DeLaney
Jack
Yvonne DiVita, Founder of Nurturing Big Ideas

* * * * * * * * *

THE PROMPT

For this month, contributors provided two lines prompted by the word TRANSITION. Those lines were then used to create a free verse poem.

* * * * * * * * *

THE PHOTO

For every poem, I ask someone to provide an image, photo, picture of their own artwork, whatever they want offer up to go with the poem. Here’s the thing: they get ONLY the prompt. They don’t get to see anyone’s submissions or the finished piece. This month, I posted on Facebook, said I needed an image, explained the prompt was “TRANSITION”, and I’d take the first image offered up and that it would be the right answer.

Beth Boatright, who’s participated before in some off these poems and gets that the process really is about making an offer and letting the creative gods sort it out, responded right away with this photo of the produce section, saying, “That’s the first pic in my camera roll that strikes me as evocative of transition. I was surprised that they [the bananas] were edible in just two days.”  Perfect.

* * * * * * * * *

This Exquisite Collaboration Project is based on the Exquisite Corpse, a technique created by Surrealists in the early 1900s, in which participants add to a work with no one seeing what the other participants contributed. My goal is to encourage non-writers and artists to embrace their creative selves in a safe, supportive, “you can’t fail” environment.  What began as a way to maintain some sort of connection with other people during the early days of the Covid lockdown has continued to unite strangers from around the world in creative collaboration.

Click here to read the series of Exquisite Poems and to find the links to the current prompt so you can join in the fun.

To learn more about my workshops, visit my website.

Exquisite Collaboration Poem: HOPE FOR THE NEW YEAR 2022

One of my new paintings, as yet untitled. (c) Joanne Brokaw

A note about this poem:

During the November Holiday Shop Hop at Central Creatives Co-Work of Art, I invited visitors and shoppers to write on an index card one hope they had for the new year and then clip the card to string I had hanging around the entrance to my studio. I explained that these would then be combined to create a community poem. This was the first in-person poem I’d facilitated since the Covid lockdown began in 2020.

Most people were skeptical at first, until I explained that they only had to  write one hope they had for the new year – the rest of the poem would work itself out. I added that they shouldn’t try to be funny and don’t overthink it. I loved watching people’s faces when they finally grasped the concept; even the most resistant took time to jot down a thought and quietly clip it up with the rest of the cards.

Well, here’s what you all came up with!

Every contribution was included: 37 cards, 37 lines, from all ages, sorted into hopes, frustrations, and positive intentions for the coming year. The only changes I made were to capitalization and punctuation. Nothing else was changed to force it to fit. This is what is is, and that’s what it is supposed to be.

My hope for the new year is that you know that you are born of the heavens and stardust courses through your veins. May you be a willing portal for creativity, innovation, and community in 2022. xo

At the end of this post, you can read more about the Exquisite Collaboration Project, and find links to past collaborative poems.

And now, the poem….

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

HOPE FOR THE NEW YEAR 2022

My hope is that Melania and Ivanka can bury the hatchet since they’ll be roommates at the crowbar hotel.

I hope that empathy find its way back into the hearts of the people,
for everyone to be treated equally,
hoping that people can be kind to each other and respect one another again.
More common sense.
Less division.

Will it get better?
For the new year, I want Covid 19 dead.

Celebrate the small things:
Happy, healthy family
Beautiful clouds
Rock hunting Lake Ontario by moonlight
Finding joy in my art
Healthy new granddaughter; a peaceful, loving community; an end to the division in our country.

I hope my fantasy football team wins.

To discover my purpose and live it every day,
I want a cat.
I would like to stop putting things off until tomorrow,
find more “heart” in all I do.
I hope for improved health and well being for all of my loved ones and a bright future for all.

My hope is to find my soul-mate in 2022.

My sister and I have a better relationship.
More open hearts, ease,
more sunshine, less pain.
Joy and self love!

Finding hope again.

My hope is for the humans to treat other humans equally,
build bridges to end these divides,
find more gratitude,
joy and peace, contentment,
the end of Covid worldwide.

I hope that I will be successful in going through the college process.
I hope my future explodes like a supernova, so bright!
To take a journey, enjoy the adventure and have a new story to share,
to be happy without others,
you are exactly where you’re supposed to be right now. You can only compare yourself with yourself.

Hoping that the world heals, in as many ways as possible.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

THE POETS, in no particular order:

Laurie Dobson
Chris Hipps
Lynne
Ella Eckert
Amy Krecker
Nancy@scavengedthoughts
Joan R.D.
Christina G
Wendy Kaiser
Connie Gaylord
Marilyn
Sue Anulis
Remi
Marcella
Mark Groaning
Beth
Maxwell M Clement
Alex Eckert
Toto
Lisa
and those contributors who wished to remain Anonymous

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

THE PAINTING

The method I use to paint requires a lot of mess, some experimentation, and then patience to let the paint do its own thing and let the images or message reveal itself in its own good time. This is one of my new paintings. It started as a giant mess – I mean, it was a disaster – and I was going just to scrape the canvas and start over. But I was tired and decided to leave it overnight and deal with it in the morning. I was delighted when I checked on it  – the colors had settled and images started to emerge. It’s exactly the process we used in this poem – I took what we had and let it reveal itself when it was ready..

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

This Exquisite Collaboration Project is based on the Exquisite Corpse, a technique created by Surrealists in the early 1900s, in which participants add to a work with no one seeing what the other participants contributed. My goal is to encourage non-writers and artists to embrace their creative selves in a safe, supportive, “you can’t fail” environment.  What began as a way to maintain some sort of connection with other people during the early days of the Covid lockdown has continued to unite strangers from around the world in creative collaboration.

Click here to read the series of Exquisite Poems done during the Covid lockdown along with other collaborative projects, and to find the links to the current prompt so you can join in the fun.

To learn more about my workshops, visit my website.

Join author & artist Joanne Brokaw on Small Business Saturday, November 27, 2021

Join me and the other artists at Central Creatives for a three day holiday pop up event on Black Friday weekend. Stop up Friday 11/26, Saturday 11/27, or Sunday 11/28 for some beautiful, unique items from local artisans.

I’ll be there throughout the weekend but I hope you’ll stop up on Small Business Saturday between 11 am and 4 pm!  I’ll have signed copies of “Suddenly Stardust” available for purchase as well as a selection of jewelry, bookmarks, ornaments, photo frames, and a bunch of discounted “less than perfect” items. And as an added treat, throughout the day I’ll be doing mini-readings of some of your favorite columns as well as book excerpts and new micro flash fiction. All weekend you’ll be able to contribute to a collaborative poem, and who knows? I might even give some stuff away.

Central Creatives is located at 349 West Commercial Street, in the Piano Works Mall, East Rochester, NY, 14445, right off 490. Park at the end of the plaza near Ferrari Pizza and enter through the red door between Weaving Arts Guild and Penn Fair Golf. Then just follow the signs to the second floor (via stairs or elevator). Use the gallery entrance to get to my studio. There’s plenty of free, accessible parking at Piano Works and lovely restaurants nearby – make a day of it!

Visit me at online http://www.joannebrokaw.com.

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Exquisite Collaboration Poem: The Land of I Don’t Know

(c) Rebecca Flanders; used with permission

THE LAND OF I DON’T KNOW

I used to be in a town called Panic
in Charleston, SC,
floating in a lake of despair wondering, “How many clouds do I swallow to keep my head above water?”
I once was lost, but now am found,
involved,
trapped between layers of ether,
in steamy heat and a cacophony of cicadas surrounding me

I don’t know where I’m going now.
To the land of I don’t know?
Let it go, let it go, that perfect girl is gone,
back to Alaska someday
to trust my inner voice again and walk into the thick mist which seems to wrap its arms around me.
I’m going to create magic, mischief, & mayhem
wherever I choose.

I learned what everyone else learns – adulting can be hard sometimes.
I’m going to continue traveling because I enjoy learning about history
to embrace the chaos in order to organize it.
Together we will seek out and entwine our arms around each other like the roots of the tree and walk onward grounded in our truth,
everything, and nothing at all.
If it makes you happy do it!
You belong among the wild flowers; you belong somewhere you feel free.

*    *    *    *    *    *    *

THE POETS

Justin Rielly
Laurie Borcyk
Penelope Horan
Mindy Wells Hoffbauer
Mickey Cherry
Coriander in the Spice Rack
MNL

PHOTOGRAPHER
(c) 2021 Rebecca Flanders

* * * * * * *

THE POEM

This month’s prompt asked contributors to respond to three questions:

Where did you used to be?
Where are you going?
What’s something you’ve learned along the way?

Originally, each person’s responses were going to stay together to form each stanza, but when I saw the submissions it was clear that if I removed the the sentence intros of “I used to be” or “I am doing”, collectively each person’s responses to each question  organically built on each other.  So in the final poem, the seven answers to “Where did you used to be” make up the first stanza; the seven responses to “Where are you going?” make up the second stanza; same with the last.

I confess that this might be one of my favorite pieces so far.

Thanks to Rebecca Flanders who has been chronicling her up close and personal interactions with cicadas all summer, and was willing to share a photo to go with this poem.

*********************

This Exquisite Collaboration Project is based on the Exquisite Corpse, a technique created by Surrealists in the early 1900s, in which participants add to a work with no one seeing what the other participants contributed. My goal is to encourage non-writers and artists to embrace their creative selves in a safe, supportive, “you can’t fail” environment.  What began as a way to maintain some sort of connection with other people during the early days of the Covid lockdown has continued to unite strangers from around the world in creative collaboration.

Click here to read the series of Exquisite Poems done during the Covid lockdown along with other collaborative projects.

To learn more about my workshops, visit my website.

To be part of future poem projects, follow me on Facebook @joannebrokawwriter for prompts or join my mailing list by filling out the form on my website.

EXQUISITE COLLABORATION POEM: A Day In Our Room

12:59 pm. Building a kitchen, Dansville NY
(photo courtesy Mike Clemons)

Note: This collaborative work was created during National Poetry Month with participants across the US and around the world. At the end, you can see a list of the participants and information about the prompt.

A DAY IN OUR ROOM

A chilly, rainy spring morning
In my Springboro, Ohio, US kitchen
Shiny granite countertops, stained-glass back splash, a blooming white orchid, new leaves emerging from acres of trees, a sleepy ginger tabby tom
My bougie cat’s water fountain, the refrigerator humming, typing fingers click-clacking away in fits and starts, slow deep breaths
A chair warm from sitting too long, the lined texture from my mouse’s scroll wheel, the random whiskers on my chin
The kitchen hand soap’s lingering vanilla scent, freshly ground coffee beans
My cinnamon toothpaste

8a.m.
Bedroom, Rochester, NY
Cat, morning light, curtains, photos, memories
Purring, birds, quiet, hope
Fur, bedsheets, comfort
Candle, morning
Peace

9:30 a.m.
Rochester, NY, 2nd floor home “office”
“I Voted Today” sticker, jar of butterscotch candies, upstairs hallway, calculator, Wi-Fi thingie
Keys on my laptop, Pandora music stream, my breathing, scratchiness of unshaven face
Fingertips on fingertips (spider doing push-ups on a mirror), computer mouse, scissors
Soapy smell of hands, coffee – really, you too?
Triple berry yogurt

9:30 a.m.
Living room, sitting in my rocking chair, looking out the window
Snow, trees, yellow, pillows, hands
Birds, furnace, thoughts, breath
Mug, pen, heart
Heat, citrus
Coffee

9:32 a.m.
At my desk in an international school in Hong Kong
Smelly markers, green grass, masks, lipstick, my lunch
Vowel practice, playground chatter, air con humming, chair squeaks
Curly hair, a new wart, tangled phone cord
New Jo Malone, bleach
Lavender toothpaste

10:25 a.m.
My couch in Texas
Squirrel, creek, tree, sculpture, sky
Airplane, siren, traffic, voices
Laptop, blanket, mug
Fresh air, leftovers
Coffee

11:16 a.m.
My desk
Computer, lamp, mug, scissors, frame
Chirping, snoring, raindrops, train whistle
Paper, printer, phone
Lotion, lemon
Water

11:29 a.m.
My favorite chair in the family room, Vero Beach, Florida, US
Mug, sofa, cat, computer, bookcase
TV, traffic, air conditioner, husband talking
Keyboard, computer mouse, pencil
Remnants of breakfast, coffee
Aftertaste of peach yogurt

11:30 a.m. in the morning
Sitting at the table in my great room looking outside in the suburbs of Pittsburgh, PA
Birds, butterflies, books, bench, beauty all around me
Music, wind chimes, clock ticking, birds chirping
Mug, table, chair
Coffee, wet plant soil
Coffee

11:58 a.m.
East Rochester, NY, US
My sister, the television, three lamps, a dreary day outside, dog toys
Voices on a TV show, music from the same show, dogs outside talking to each other, birds chastising the squirrels in the food dishes
My iPad screen, my coffee mug, the remote
Coffee, air freshener
Coffee

Morning work hours
A safe place, USA
Roses in a vase, computer screen, credit card, reminder note, rain
Children bustling, husband’s work meeting, food wrapper, rain
Wood desk, smooth keys, cozy sweater
Dust (ha!), rain
Oatmeal

12:25 p.m.
On a couch in my daughter’s home in Lititz, PA, USA
Folded laundry, three lime green pillows, a bag of Reese’s pieces, a pencil with a cow topper, a charging cord
The fire siren, an amber alert on my phone, a ticking clock, clicking of laptop keys
A TV tray, my laptop, my coffee mug
Rotting lilies in a nearby vase, a watermelon candle
My morning coffee

12:55 p.m.
Rochester, NY, USA, my bedroom office
Computer monitor, window, printer, wall, calculator
Rain, computer fan, grandkid singing, cars on wet road
Chair, desk, keyboard
Cat box, the shoes I just took off
Left over pieces of lunch in my teeth

2:00 p.m.
Home office space, in a comfy office chair, green screen behind me, in Bangor, Maine, USA
Zoom screen, cup of coffee, water bottle, cell phone, cat
Zoom meeting, keyboard, can of air, cat
Cat, keyboard, cushion
Coffee, litter box
Coffee

2:45 p.m.
Sitting in my home office
Coffee, cat, dinosaur, cape, sword
Fan, chewing, computer humming, rattling
Lunch, keyboard, phone
Smoke, litterbox
Pineapple

3:10 p.m.
Rochester, NY
Cup, wallet, books, boxes, stars
Car horns, rock music, water dripping, bees buzzing
Alabaster, apples, records
Barbecue, cough medicine
Chocolate

3:43 p.m.
Computer room chair
Daffodils, tulips, bunnies, chicks, dogs
Birds, trains, church bells, rain,
Fur, dirt, skin
Grilling, grass
Mint

3:57 p.m.
My dad’s recliner
Acorn TV, old chairs, a journal, a flat box, an old microwave
Thoughtful dialogue, telemarketing spam, flutes, mom’s remarks
Phone screen, denim jeans, Bic pen
Dad’s recliner, clementines
Pizza

4:36 p.m.
Maine, USA
Citrine, beads, dragon, mug, box
Whirring, creaking, breathing, clunk
Blanket, pillow, mattress
Garlic, yeast
Pumpkin

5:50 p.m.
My Office Chair, Georgia, US
Paper, computer, mug, deck of cards, stapler,
Hum of the computer fan, clicking of the keyboard, my own pulse, notifications
The letters on my keyboard, the linen of my shirt, the plaque on my teeth
Leftover lunch, stale coffee
Fermenting sugar

6:00 p.m.
A Dining Room in Western NY
Chinese Checkers board, Thimk board, Parcheesi board, Chess board, Scrabble board
Neighbor’s ATV, the Thruway, clock ticking, footsteps
Laptop keys, notebook, placemat
Hand soap, coffee
Werthers

8:15 p.m.
My kitchen, Chelsea, Michigan, United States
Houseplants, ceramic piggies, stove, bananas, plates
Pages flipping, refrigerator humming, dog whining, husband talking
Measuring cup, spatula, oven timer
Bacon, peanut butter
Syrup

10:45 p.m.
In bed in Rochester New York
Philip Glass reminds me
The hours that pass by blindly
While it snows in April
I am lost in thought through mines
From borrowed ideas recycled like the cans on these pages

12:30 a.m.
Bedtime in an American suburb
Two black cats, one yellow dog, my 4-year-old daughter, a wall full of art
White noise, crunching, a snoring cat, my own heartbeat
Fur, a warm cheek, a cool window
Vegan cheddar puffs, damp sphagnum moss
Cinnamon

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

THE POETS
(in no particular order)

Exquisite Collaboration Poem: WILLIAM IS A CAT

William, a self portrait

WILLIAM IS  CAT

William is a cat.
A companion to his humans, the mayor of his neighborhood, the center of his own universe.

William is a cat who hides his scat.
He’s not sharing and that’s that.

His tiny turds of kitty poo-poo, all speckled with litter,
Dropped into baggies. Hip hip hooray!

William the cat keeps to himself most of the time,
but his heart is big, he cares deeply, and is a true friend.

The son of Prince William
He’s a gentle fellow, soft as a marshmallow.

William is a very intelligent cat
He knows that while the birds are off limits the mice aren’t.

William is happening and all knowing, just as a cat should be.
Any further input would be redundant and superfluous.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

THE POETS
Zeina
Al
Anonymous
Joanne
Daniela Gitlin
Crystal Hayduk
Mickey Cherry

(William’s portrait provided by Zeina Salame)

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

THE POEM
Earlier this year,  I took an Impro for Collaborating class with Theresa Robbins Dudeck through the Artists Repertory Theater in Portland, OR.  One of the participants, Diane, talked occasionally about William. Most of us just assumed William was her partner, until one day she talked about William using his litter box. “William is a cat?” someone asked, and we all had a good laugh about it – and then met William, the cat, via Zoom.

What better way to capture the moment of collective, spontaneous delight than with a collaborative poem! The prompt, of course was “William is a cat”. Contributors could include the phrase if they wanted it wasn’t required. And just for fun, I asked a few non-classmates to add a verse.

This is for you, Diane! xo

Exquisite Collaboration Poem: TIME FOR THE CROCUS

Image courtesy of Penny Higgins, PaleoPix

 

TIME FOR THE CROCUS

I broke my ankle
On Saturday before last
And now I just sit

There’s no community
To show me I’m not alone
Where’s the love gone to?

Testing
Testing
Testing

Ones and zeros dash
Across a liquid surface
And pixels conform

Looking like seeing
One you can do with eyes closed
Different result

The air teases warmth
Confusing us with snowflakes
Time for the crocus

Upside down lighthouse
Hermit crabs walking on clouds
Tide pool reflections

Shuffles slowly past
Heavy burden on his hunched back
Tenacious tortoise

Instructions for life:
Explore possibilities,
Surf the waves of change.

*     *     *     *     *     *

THE POETS

Jane S
Justin Rielly
Jackie Dishner
Kay Ross
Catherine Valleroy
Anne Waterman Murphy
Joanne

THE ARTIST

Penny Higgins, PaleoPix photography

*     *     *     *     *     *

THE POEM

Haiku is a form of Japanese poetry comprised of short lines that don’t rhyme but work together to create powerful imagery. For this Exquisite Collaboration, participants were asked to write a haiku following a 5-7-5 syllable structure. The following prompts were offered for inspiration.

– exploration/discovery
– joy/happiness
– fear
– technology
– community

You’ll notice that one of the verses doesn’t follow the haiku format. That’s the test entry I did to make sure the form worked before the prompt went live. I forgot to delete it from the contributions but when I saw it I realized that it still worked as part of the collaboration.

I’m trying these days to embrace mistakes as creative gifts. This was one of those mistakes.