Beth Camp Historical Fiction

Wednesday, October 21, 2015

#18: Sometimes an Umbrella . . .


"Gulls by the Sea" by Morgan Dragonwillow

Sometimes an umbrella cannot hold back the rain,
or the gulls fly away before I catch their image.
What remains? A shadow, a memory, the umbrella
collapses, the sky above me empty of birds, 
yet those soul-healing blue waves 
surge in, warm over my toes, 
as I make my own flight,
umbrella forgotten, 
sketch book wet on the sand,
connections to sea and sky and you
now deep in the sea,
never forgotten.

Today's poetry prompt from Morgan Dragonwillow's OctPoWriMo came as a welcome surprise. For as Morgan reveals her struggles with balancing other commitments with her writing, I find myself in that same place. The prompt? Overwhelmed. 

Perhaps I will not be able to write a poem a day, but I have found inspiration to face down my own writer's block with this post from Joe Bunting, The Write Practice, called "How To Defeat Writer's Block and Write With Courage," also posted this week.

The lessons distilled for me are simply:
1. Put my writing first.
2. Accept my writing will be imperfect.
3. Save editing for later.
4. Persevere.

My favorite quote from Joe Bunting: “Instead of trying to be perfect, strive for the opposite of perfection: vulnerability, the courage to tell your story with your whole heart.”

I'm finally back to work on Rivers of Stone, feeling grateful for this online community of writers.

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