DAILY PHOTO: Colorful Shopfront in Guatapé
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PROMPT: Genie
The genie grants you a wish. What is it?
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Oh no, I read the myth of Midas, I’m not falling for that one.
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DAILY PHOTO: Church of Santo Domingo, Cartagena
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PROMPT: Side-Hustle
What are your favorite side-hustle ideas?
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E-exorcist: the profession of those who come to the house of one who is possessed by electronic devices and dunks all the household’s screens in unholy water.
That one may need workshopping.
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American Beautyberry [Haiku]
Beautyberries,
dense clusters of fuchsia,
lure hungry birds.
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Autumn Shadows [Haiku]
autumn long shadows
of a tuft of tall grass
etch rocky ground.
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DAILY PHOTO: Santuario Nuestra Señora del Carmen
PROMPT: Five Simple Exercises
What are five simple exercises to do at home?
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Calisthenic:
1.) Squat (or suitable variation); 2.) pushup (or suitable variation); 3.) Russian twist; 4.) Pullup or inverted row; 5.) Burpee
Yogic:
1.) Sun Salutation (Surya Namaskara); 2.) Backbend (e.g. Dhanurasana or Chakrasana); 3.) Forward bend (e.g. Paschimottanasana;) 4.) Lateral Bend (e.g. Tiryaka Tadasana); 5.) Twist (e.g. Ardha Matsyendrasana)
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Two-Speed [Senryū]
static dragonfly
perched on a water lily;
speeds: zippy & dead.
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BOOK: “A Poetry Handbook” by Mary Oliver
A Poetry Handbook: A Prose Guide to Understanding and Writing Poetry by Mary OliverMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Publisher site — Ecco
This is an excellent soup-to-nuts primer on poetry writing. While it would be a great tool for someone just beginning their poetic journey — i.e. one who didn’t yet know iambic pentameter from trochaic tetrameter — it also offers some nuggets of wisdom for one who is farther down the road. Mary Oliver had some unique ways of thinking about, or expressing thoughts about, the art.
The book does cover ideas relevant to both modern and traditional poetry. In this regard it has an advantage over, say, Stephen Fry’s The Ode Less Traveled in that Oliver considered both free and metered verse to be poetry.
The author uses the occasional poem or fragment from a variety of poets to make her points but doesn’t get bogged down in examples or analysis of poems.
Among the discussions that seemed better or more insightful than those in other such books were reflections upon the role of imitative exercises as well as exploration of the value of workshops and feedback.
I’d highly recommend this book for poets and serious poetry readers.
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