Tuesday 21 January 2014

Write...Edit...Publish : January 2014, New Beginnings












Nothing that can't be broken.  Take it as it comes.  Let it go and let it be.  Those have been my NY resolutions for pretty much every year for the last decade or two. 

The past year’s been more good than bad – writing-wise and otherwise, chockfull of changes, of milestones.


I wrote my 1000th poem last year, earned the right to call myself a poet, methinks. I moved into my 20th, and another stopgap home.  I also knocked off, with great relish, two long-hankered-after journeys/destinations from my bucket list.  Okay, make that three.

A poem of mine got published and  I won a couple writing contests – the Get Published one run by Harper Collins India was the biggie. It’s a different story that it’s taking its own sweet time winding its way from my dubious epiphany to a concrete story-in-a-book, but it’s all about the journey rather than just the destination, so I am thinking positive, trimming all lamps within reach and keeping hopes well supplied with fuel.  It’s been a learning experience, the whole past year, 2014 will have its work cut out to top all that.

Now to get to the point.  The prompt this month at  Write...Edit...Publish is “new beginnings”.  My entry is a short verse.  Not that a shorter verse means less agony over the right words to use, but I am working on that agony bit.  There is a long tradition of form poetry both where I come from and where I live, and one of the rules in many of the forms is that each stanza must be self-sufficient and independent, yet string together as a whole.  As I get older I find this not only attractive to write to but good to weave into some sort of weird lifestyle philosophy.  Ah,  forgot to mention - maybe it will help to explain the verse better if I told you that I hit another big milestone last November, an age where I am supposed to count my blessings and shop for spectacles.  I find I have more than enough pairs of both.

Generally taking it a little easy on the writing front right now, I shall pretend that too is a new year resolution – less panic, more chill. Less of the agony and drama, more about stillness and satisfaction.  On all fronts.  Write it as it comes. 

That is going to be my personal new beginning.  A tiny change in attitude, but I'm hoping to go big places with it. 
 
Happy New Year 2014 to you. What are your new beginnings this year?



Winter Harvests


Some fruits only winter brings.
The lake fills up with migrant birds,
the far shore a shimmer of wings;
the same routes nudge new beginnings -
harvests can't be neatly stickered.



Fire beckons when the courtyard's cold,
much time has been spent outside.
Love shows up subtler when it's old,
silver streaks among what's gold
and there's no need to have it dyed.



Just two stanzas can be enough
to make a poem, just two words
can be a couplet off the cuff.
It’s time this winter to learn to love
pared back poems; and migrant birds.

 

The fledglings fly, they come and go;
shorelines change, bird wings or green
keeps them filled; it’s time to know
that stillness can weave to and fro,
that meanings migrate unforeseen. 

 

The courtyard’s paved and windswept;
the lakeshore's choked on wild, dried grass.
Stillness, love in the time that’s left;
less frantic and more in-depth
views on fruits that come and pass.

 
 

WC ~ 600 approx
All feedback welcome

 
Read the other entries and/or sign up for posting your own here:










 

30 comments:

  1. Excellent poem. And congratulations on your 2013 success and personal new beginning for 2014.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Nilanjana, I love your new attitude: less panic, 'more chill. Less of the agony and drama, more about stillness and satisfaction. On all fronts. Write it as it comes.' Your success in 2013 is considerable and I know you're going to enjoy further success in 2014.

    As always, I adore your verse. Not being a poet, I find it hard to put into words, but just know that your imagery always touches my heart. This poem is replete with new beginnings. It is good to know your life is going to be 'less frantic'. AND congratulations on your milestone birthday!!

    Thanks for posting for WEP. I hope you're going to be able to continue to post for us in your new chilled life!

    Denise

    ReplyDelete
  3. And have I told you how beautiful your blog is?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Denise, for everything. Certainly I hope to join in the fun over at WEP, love the prompts, and the relaxed approach. Basically, I am going to write smarter, edit more. So glad you liked the poetry, and the new look blog too. Def plan to use more images this year..All part of the chilled new life :)

      Delete
  4. Congrats on your wins! :)
    Hope this year rewards you with many more!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Lovely and peaceful to read. Thank you for sharing this. Your blog was the last on the list, and seems a perfect segway into my day. I feel honored by the peace your poem has given me.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, that was a beautiful comment. Peace too lies in the eyes of the beholder, a reader gets back what she puts into the reading in the first place. Thank you for bringing such gentle eyes to my poetry, I am truly touched.

      Delete
  6. Sorry! Just realized yours isn't the last! Still, I take the peace you've offered and will enjoy it all day...

    ReplyDelete
  7. Your lovely words reminded me of the peace we find just watching birds, and especially birds near water. I find they lighten my moods. Enjoyed this poem, and stepping back every now and then is healthy for us. Good luck!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Agree, I find that birds and water, and being out in the open does help boost the mood. Thank you..

      Delete
  8. Lovely Nilanjana, but you never fail to produce the best. I'm so happy for your success and your wonderful attitude for the New Year - hold onto it and renew it everyday! I am looking forward everything this new year brings!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Yolanda! So am I. Fuzzy resolutions, and chilling is the way forward for me :) Wish you the very best for what 2014 has in store!

      Delete
  9. Lovely poem and it seems you had a successful 2013 ~ I wish you well for the coming year 2014 ~ Cheers & take care ~

    ReplyDelete
  10. This is a lovely poem! Thank you for sharing it. You certainly had a wonderful 2013. I hope that 2014 is just as kind if not kinder to you! Best of luck in your writing!

    Cheers,
    Jen (via WEP)

    ReplyDelete
  11. Beautiful poem. I had to read it aloud to appreciate the musical aspects of this lovely text. It is not easy writing a poem that has both a formal structure and exquisite images! That is a well-packed piece of writing.

    Thank you for sharing. You have written so many poems that have been a joy to read, since I first became acquainted with you.

    I'm so happy for your successes in 2013; that others appreciate your work, and I hope 2014 be be a winning year for you too.

    Best wishes,
    Anna

    Anna's WEP for January 2014

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I like doing that with poetry as well, Anna - reading them outloud. Increases the enjoyment some. Thank you so much for your warm words.
      Best of luck for 2014 to you too,

      Delete
  12. I was happy just reading all your adventures and successes Nila. Certainly you've started this year with great expectations, but much skill to carry through this year. Your poetry is beautiful.

    ......dhole

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Donna. Some of those adventures/successes would so not have happened without you, Denise, and RFW. Thanks much for your support.

      Delete
  13. HI, Nlianjana,

    My turn to apologize for taking so long to drop by. I am SO glad I had the pleasure of reading this exquisite poem!

    First, let me wish you ALL THE BEST for 2014! Sounds like 2013 pave a nice road for you to journey upon. Congrats on your publishing successes.

    As for your poem. It so reminds me of my long walks on Florida's coastal beaches. Many the morning I would slip through the sand, watching the sandpiper scurry to the water's edge. Gulls in flight, soaring over the crashing sea.

    Thank you for that lovely reminder as I sit in FRIGID Chicago in the minus temps, trapped inside.I needed this lovely escape.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you for reading and the wishes, Michael. Very heartily reciprocated, The sea and the seabirds - an eternal prompt!

      Winter in the higher latitudes this year has been/is being so difficult. Take care and stay safe.

      Delete
  14. I loved your poem - so much packed into so few words. Well done!

    ReplyDelete
  15. I love this poem and I enjoy all your poetry.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Hi Nilanjana.
    "Less panic, more chill" really hit me like a punch-in-the-gut moment...
    I should really adopt that motto.

    Congratulations on your November milestone birthday!

    I love the poem!
    ...and 1 000 poems later? Wow, what an accomplishment... you are a poetess of note!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Michelle,
      That motto should come with its own built in warning system. Easier written down than done.

      Thanks for coming by.

      Delete