“Keep a green tree in your heart, and perhaps the singing bird will come.” Chinese proverb
I take this to mean that small ways of taking action, including listening deep within, are very powerful indeed.
Background on My Poem “A Gesture of Peace”:
Today’s poem, “A Gesture of Peace,” is about the power of intention to bring healing into the world even in the face of despair and paralysis.
Wishing You Peace in Your Heart and Peace in the World We Share–LESLIE
Kay Ryan has become one of my very favorite poets in the past few years. I go back and back again to her work. Today, I thought of her poem, “Cloud,” as a perfect example of ephemera.
Background to My Poem, “Renouncing Kleos”:
I first encountered the Greek word, “kleos,” when Julia and I studied Homer’s epics during our homeschooling days. Today, with the sky granite grey, it came back to me, and I thought about how humans want to create something that outlasts themselves but that ultimately seems foolish–and maybe particpating imaginatively in the ephemeral nature of things is a better way toward wisdom. And I wonder why it can be so difficult for humans to stay anchored in the present moment.
Still later, I thought how sidewalk pavers are a nice half-way place between making one’s mark in a permanent way and living in the present moment totally. And they are mostly kleos-free, since no name is attached.
Happy Reading! Happy Writing! LESLIE
I’m Nobody! Who are you?
Are you – Nobody – too?
Then there’s a pair of us!
Don’t tell! they’d advertise – you know
How dreary – to be – Somebody!
How public – like a Frog –
To tell one’s name – the livelong June –
To an admiring Bog!
Emily Dickinson (1830-1886)
After I wrote today’s poem, “The Quest,” about names, I realized that there was only one poem to spotlight today–this classic by Dickinson. It is one that I have memorized, that I repeat aloud irritatingly often, and in which I was see and hear something new each time.
Background for My Poem “The Quest”:
This week, I talked with a friend who needed to adjust her middle name legally on some documents, so that got me thinking about names and name changes. Then, this morning, I was reading Chapter Ten: “Our Real Names” from one of my go-to books on the craft of poetry (Poemcrazy: Freeing Your Life with Words by Susan Goldsmith Wooldridge) and a memory from childhood resurfaced.
I rather think I might eventually write a series of poems about dream names, pen names, nick names, secret names, unspoken names, the names of characters, children, and pets, and place names.
Naming is such a rich topic. Perhaps the naming instinct is what gave rise to language itself? Is a name something we are given or something we make?
Happy Reading! Happy Writing! Happy Leaping! LESLIE
A Holey Prayer Rug It’s when I wonder where I’m at That I unfurl my yoga mat. Although it’s tattered like a tarp, it Has become my magic carpet. On it I fly that sense of doom That seeks me daily in my room; No matter muscles—ached and pained— My inner poise can be regained. No matter where my thoughts have flown I chant, become one perfect tone. Leslie Schultz
My yoga mat used to be unfurled regularly in public but it is now a very private retreat.
Background on My Poem “Athleisure”:
This morning, I was musing about the word constructed not too long ago by marketing guru- trend analzyerTypes: “athleisure.” It is very true that as a society we are both living longer and are “aging” more actively as a whole. I have many friends who have a couple decades on me and who are far more physically fit than I ever have been or probably ever will be. And yet, the recent combination for me of continued pandemic restrictions and a (now-healing, but still compromising my walking) pinched nerve have, over the past year have made me see the value of prioritizing comfort while still asking for some measure of style. The word “athleisure” makes me giggle but the concept is, I think, a sound one and here to stay.
