Dry mouth, wet heart

[rumisong]

Ive been reading everything that is posted here- daily, certainly... but I find myself "dry" on commentary...

 

is that ok?

 

its possible right?

that a poet can be dry on something to say about another poem, just as one is (ever so likely) to come up dry on poetic inspiration...

 

I just find, that there is nothing I see that I want to say... its like a "catch" in my throat, and it has the sense of being part and parcel of this poetic journey - of this poets life...

 

the depressing part is, that we sort of have an agreement here, to make commentary for each other... we understand how meaningful and helpful that is... but... its just not coming... I sort of "fall back" or something, when I come to reading a work here- and I just dont want to comment my way out of it....

 

oh lord, Im not making much sense am I?

 

oh well... posting this anyway...maybe someone can help sort out what Im saying...

 

there is a guilt associated, like one should (always a loaded word- "should") discipline oneself to say something- but as a poet, we have lived our lives raging against the discipline of "shoulds" - havent we? isnt it the poets lot to steer a different course, and follow ones heart to where the spirit leads?

 

ok, sorry- enough of that... Im going to fall back now...

 

edit:

 

let me just say this- I love that you are all here, I love that you share the parts of you that you do, I love that it comes out poetry, I love the opportunity to meet you all, and be a part of it... even if you dont hear it from my "mouth"- it is there in my heart...

 

see, I DID mean that- I titled this post that!

[tonyv]

Rumisong, I understand. You're probably in a little bit of a rut -- it happens to me all the time! -- and I hope you are otherwise okay.

 

For me, it's usually the other way around: I'm primarily blocked from writing poems, not so much the comments. When that happens, it's very frustrating because the creative process itself is blocked. I could have an abundance of time, but something stops me from using it creatively. That's when I find that all I can do is work on comments. Someone else has already done the creative part and written the poem, and I just have to approach writing mechanically. Nevertheless, I tell myself that it's still writing and it all counts. But yes, there are times when I'm even blocked from doing that. Like you, I read here every day. Sometimes I don't write or comment for a few days (or longer ), but then I get the urge to do so again.

 

It does seem that activity on the writing boards comes in spurts. Sometimes it's quiet for awhile. At other times, there's lots of life. All the members (yourself included!) do what they can, so don't feel guilty. Your participation has been terrific, and I enjoy it very much. No one is taken for granted, and I like to think of the board as our home, where the door is always open -- no stress.

 

Oh, and by the way, thank you very much for your sentences that make no sense topic. It encouraged me to write my latest poem, and hopefully there will be more to come. Sometimes I don't write, because I am afraid to; I don't put words on paper, because I'm afraid that my writing will not rise to even a minimum level of competence and that my content would be boring. Your topic made me face those fears with the realization that, when it comes to creativity, nothing happens unless one acts. By acts, I mean writes ... even if it makes no sense. Some of the nonsensical phrases and sentences were fantastic in their own right and stoked the imagination in very "un-boring" ways.

 

We are fortunate to have such fine members. Some, like Tinker, have put in incredible amounts of work. Others, like Goldenlangur, have been consistent sources of encouragement with their dynamic ideas and spirited participation. Still, others have been cornucopias of verse. All of it makes the board buzz. Since your arrival, you have added excitement in the form of some fine topics and some new perspectives. None of it goes unnoticed. Thanks for yet another fine topic.

 

With appreciation,

 

Tony

[rumisong]

aw, Tony- you made me feel SO much better... thank you thank you...

 

yeah, there was a guilt thing there- you have helped me sort it out...

 

it is funny- I have dry spells in the poetry too, but that is overcome because I very rarely (if ever) have dry spells in the philosophy end of things- you know, the mystical sort of philosophy... that is always a rich well for me, and that takes care of whenever poetry doesnt "come" for me- because it is clearly still tapping into The Creative...

 

but the comments, and as you pegged it, the mechanical writing part of that, that is really a challenge for me- Im just not "mechanically inclined" that way... so I was feeling a bit down about it, exactly because it was challenging me, and I wasnt meeting it ... but I feel ok now, having received your reassurance- you are a good friend

 

cheers! and thanks again!

 

EDIT:

of course, we are NOT saying that the commentary is mechanical, that we are not really "FEELING" the things we say about of poem that one of our comrades wrote- but Im saying that the writing of a comment, a critique, can send me back to school-days, and request that a "mechanical mind" be present for the task... this is what I mean by using the word "mechanical" ... it requires some left brain writing ... yes! thats a better word!- I wont bother to rewrite my post now- but thats what I mean to say- left brain writing rather than right brain writing...

 

EDIT II:

hehe... SEE?

I can write edits all day, because its a right brain thing for me- but to go and correct the word mechanical for "left brain" - THAT would be a left brain thing for me to do!

 

something in me rejects that - it drains me so... dont know why...

 

I have ADD, and am right brain oriented, and an INFP on the Jung scale... so, yeah, left brain stuff drains me

[Larsen M. Callirhoe]

i wouldnt feel bad rumi,

 

i only comment on about one tenth the poems i read. i ususally find and figured out it is poems about subjects that dont interest me or grab my attention.

 

hope that helps!

 

i do however read almost everything that is posted on the five forums i belong to because you never know what will inspire you to write something that is magically inclined.

 

vic

[rumisong]

thanks vic!

[tonyv]

Well, perhaps mechanical wasn't the most accurate word to describe the mode I'm in when I'm writing a comment. What I meant was that I find I'm not creative when writing a comment; I'm merely objective. One thing is for sure: no matter what I'm writing (poem, comment, letter, email, etc.), it takes me a LONG time. Even the short reply I wrote above seemed to take forever. I think the only things I ever wrote fast were my contributions to the "sentences that make no sense" topic. In addition to improving the quality of my writing, I definitely have to work on the speed. Perhaps for me writing more sentences that make no sense is the key to improvement and increasing productivity with the right side of the brain ...

 

Tony