What a strange and beautiful moment it is.
Mid-spring and you are slowly emerging from isolation
to see what’s beyond your pandemic bubble.
Maybe you’ve been able to visit with an old friend.
Maybe you’ve dared to host a small gathering in your home.
It’s wonderful and also weird
to sit without your mask
your whole body in view
and do something normal
like meet for coffee.
As you move into the light of this new
post-vaccination phase of the pandemic,
what will help you feel grounded.
What will feed and your writing and your spirit?
Because it’s national poetry month,
I’ve been spending the early hours of morning
copying favorite poems by hand.
It’s an old practice that yield much pleasure.
Slowing down, you see the writer’s moves,
how she put the poem together.
Slowing down, the poem sinks into you.
Through your hand,
you bring it into your belly.
Copying poems informs your writing,
whatever your genre.
You remember things like rhythm and rhyme,
the way soft consonants feel inside your mouth.
But copying poetry doesn’t have to be productive.
You can simply return to pleasure of practice.
Because you love language,
Because you worship at the cathedral of words.
As the date for annual chicken soup retreat approaches,
I’m disappointed we won’t be brewing a pot of soup together,
although I will share my recipe, give you the secrets
of a Jewish mother’s brew.
What I can offer you:
A day of writing, reading poetry, and rest,
to fortify you for the new season.
Let’s spend the day practicing together.
Let’s spend the day taking deep care
of body and mind.
Information about the online retreat here.