Volume III, Issue 13 April 9, 2014 |
Word of the Week: anniversary
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Dear ,
Monday was actually my and my husband's 30th anniversary, and we are so fortunate to have been able to celebrate it at the Grand Canyon!
But as much as we all enjoy celebrating milestone events, whether we are conscious of it or not, each day of our lives is actually an anniversary -- of facets of our own personal history, and so much more. Today, for example, is the anniversary of the day, in 1859, that 23-year-old Samuel Clemens, AKA Mark Twain, was granted his steamboat pilot license. (I so love learning these kinds of things on The Writer's Almanac each day!)
The word anniversary, as you may know, comes from two Latin words that mean year and turn. The years do turn, and on any particular date, something worthy of noting happened, whether it was one year ago or seven, or thirty, or even a million.
There is no place like the Grand Canyon, with its layered rock record of what happened when, to remind us that the gritty details of ever-evolving life are notable.
I consider it a great honor to be a "geologist of the heart, mind, body, and soul" -- for isn't that what we writers are? As Natalie Goldberg says in her moving essay " The Power of Detail" from her book Writing Down the Bones:
"Our lives are at once ordinary and mythical. We live and die, age beautifully or full of wrinkles. We wake in the morning, buy yellow cheese, and hope we have enough money to pay for it. At the same instant we have these magnificent hearts that pump through all sorrow and all winters we are alive on the earth. We are important and our lives are important, magnificent really, and their details are worthy to be recorded. This is how writers must think, this is how we must sit
down with pen in hand. We were here; we are human beings; this is how we lived. Let it be known, the earth passed before us. Our details are important. Otherwise, they are not, we can drop a bomb and it doesn't matter." Our stories, poems, journal entries -- even the words we enter in our calendars -- allow us to remember what happened on any particular day, on any particular year. And each of these happenings -- the monumental and the seemingly insignificant, the silly and the serious, the jubilant and the heart-wrenching -- are a part of our own personal epoch.
So even if we must, to borrow a few geological terms, use relative rather than absolute dating, it's important to stop from time to time and take in the view the strata of our own lives provides. That's what anniversaries provide us, after all -- a layered look what has shaped us, as well as the impact we have had on the world around
us. And, just as important, an opportunity to celebrate them. So happy anniversary to you, whatever it is you choose to commemorate! Love and light, Maureen
P.S. There are some great literary events at Central Piedmont Community College in Charlotte for free
this week! Find out about them here. Upcoming WordPlay
DELICIOUS MEMORIES: WRITING ABOUT FOOD
IN ANY AND ALL GENRES Food not only nurtures and sustains us, it's a rich source of metaphor and memory! We'll explore our connections with food as we write of when, where, what, with whom, how - and even why - we ate! You can use your food writings
to create a family cookbook, creative nonfiction, poetry, a food blog, etc. - or just for your own pleasure. $89 for 2 sessions.
WHERE:Queens University, 1900 Selwyn Ave, Charlotte, NC 28207.
WHEN: Wednesdays, 6:30 - 9 PM, May 7 & 14.
TO
REGISTER: http://www.queens.edu/Academics-and-Schools/Continuing-Education/Program-Categories/Writing-CE/Writing-Delicious-Memories-with-Maureen-Ryan-Griffin.html
POETRY ROCKS: TAP INTO ALL POETRY CAN DO FOR
YOU
3 lively, interactive, online classes PLUS a "Poetry Creation Tool" in written and audio form each weekday in April (22 in all!) PLUS extra resources and a private group forum so you can share and learn from your fellow
participants. AND, an e-book that contains all your Poetry Rocks tools and resources. Would you like your writing -- prose and/or poetry -- to be more graceful, powerful, beautiful? Do you sometimes find poetry confusing or intimidating and wish you
could "crack the code"? Or do you enjoy writing and reading poems, but want a more thorough understanding of what makes a poem good? Then this poetry extravaganza is for you. Expect a lively good time exploring what makes a poem a poem,
gaining the knowledge you need to confidently create and revise poetry, and strengthening your writing skills in all genres. You'll also have the opportunity to ask any
question you've ever had about poetry but were afraid to ask! $95 includes three 90-minute classes plus audio replays, 22 daily poetry creation tools in both written and audio form so you can put what you learn into practice, plus additional
resources, as well as access to a private group forum so you can share and learn from your fellow participants. . At the end of "Poetry Rocks", you'll receive an e-book that contains all the information and resources covered, as well as your daily poetry creation tools. BONUS: All interested participants will be entered in a drawing to get a 500-word (or shorter) poem critiqued. The six winning poems will be shared in class to illustrate the revision process. WHEN: All April long, in celebration of National Poetry Month! The three online classes, available or via phone, web, and/or replay, are 7 to 8:30 pm, Tuesdays, April 1, 15, and 29
(or at your convenience, as these will be recorded). A poetry creation tool will arrive in your inbox each weekday in April, to be used at your convenience. The tools and corresponding audios will also be available on a special webpage made just for Poetry Rocks participants. It's not too late to jump in! Your first class is now available as an audio replay! WHERE: From the comfort of your own home, via phone, web, or replay.
TO REGISTER: Click here to register via credit card.
Or email info@wordplaynow.com or phone 704-494-9961 for instructions on paying by check.
Questions? Call or email! We look forward to hearing from
you.
WordPlay Now! Writing Prompt
This is WordPlay -- so why not revel in the power and potential of one good word after another? This week, it's
"anniversary." PROMPT: Even though wedding anniversaries are what married couples traditionally celebrate, my favorite anniversary with Richard is May 3, the day, in 1983, that we got engaged. Our family celebrated it each year with Krispy Kreme donuts, and our children loved "Doughnut Day" even more than we did. And here's the thing
-- I have never written down the story of that first "Doughnut Day" and what in the world a doughnut has to do with our engagement. Before the week is out, I'm going to do that! It's definitely, to quote Natalie Goldberg again, a detail "worthy to be recorded." Your job is to pick any event from your life (or from a character's) that's worth marking the anniversary of and record its
details. You may want to start with a list of favorite moments -- like seeing the Grand Canyon for the first time, like my husband just did, or any other beautiful and/or historic place, or the first meeting of a beloved friend, or the first day of a job, or even the first time you ate prickly pear, like I did last night. (If you're not a okra fan, don't bother, by the way.) Then write out the story, in any genre, and share it with someone you love. Extra credit: Take on recording -- and celebrating -- way more anniversaries! I'd love to see
what you come up with! Email it to me at info@wordplaynow.com -- you could be featured in a future Word-zine.
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MAUREEN RYAN GRIFFIN, an award-winning poetry and nonfiction writer, is the author of Spinning Words into Gold, a Hands-On Guide to the Craft of Writing, a grief workbook entitled I Will Never Forget You, and two collections of
poetry, This Scatter of Blossoms and When the Leaves Are in the Water. She believes, as author Julia Cameron says, "We are meant to midwife dreams for one another."
Maureen also believes that serious "word work" requires serious WordPlay, as play is how we humans best learn -- and perform. What she loves best is witnessing all the other dreams that come true for her clients along the way. Language, when used with intentionality and focus, is, after all, serious fuel for joy. Here's to yours! |
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