Volume III, Issue 38
October 20, 2014
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Word of the Week: cherish |
Dear ,
The backs of these beautiful heads belong to my niece Kirsten and her brand new husband, Andrew, who inspired this week's word at their wedding this past Saturday. The gentleman in the tan suit and glasses is my baby brother, John, who is thanking all the guests for attending and telling us all how happy he is that we are here to celebrate this
special occasion. We have all just been reminded by the minister who performed the ceremony that the best way to ensure a long, happy marriage is to cherish your spouse as he/she is -- a precious child of God entrusted to your care. Amen to that.
I have loved the word cherish since the first time I remember encountering it, way back in 1966. Do you remember this song too? As important as lifelong romance is, however, it seems to me that a key to happiness is cherishing each and every good thing we have in our lives
while it is ours to hold.
John, my other three siblings, and I couldn't help thinking how much our mom and dad would have loved being at the wedding of their granddaughter. And we would have loved having them. Memory is a kind of cherishing, too.
Today's writing is a poem by a poet I have long loved, Marie Howe, that is full of cherishing. I hope you enjoy it, and I hope you enjoy this week's writing prompt, too, with its
opportunity to write about what you cherish.
Love and light,
Maureen Becky Gould Gibson, author of Heading Home (Winner of the 2013 Lena Shull Book Contest) wrote of " Ten Thousand Cicadas Can’t Be Wrong, my upcoming poetry book that "These exuberant poems find holiness in what we may overlook or refuse to think about too deeply—aging and dying, yes; but also pokeweed, dandelions, stinkbugs, crickets, oak gall, acorns, the
first wild strawberry, a mother ironing—all those ten thousand things that make up “the messy, glorious/ noise that is life." Order your copy for a brief time only for the hugely discounted pre-publication price of $8.50 by clicking on this
link today. Upcoming WordPlay
COASTAL WRITING RETREAT: PROJECT BOOK GET YOUR BOOK OUT OF YOU AND INTO THE WORLD (Writing; Publishing Your Book-length Writing Project) A hands-on workshop for any writer who would like to write and/or publish a book and 1) doesn't know how
2) doesn't get around to it
3) feels
a) intimidated
b) confused
c) overwhelmed
d) uninspired
e) all of the above Full details here. WHERE: The Sunset Inn, 9 North Shore Dr., Sunset
Beach, NC 28468
WHEN: Friday, November 14 - Sunday, November 16, 2014. TO REGISTER: Contact the Sunset Inn at 888.575.1001 or 910.575.1000 (if you would like to handpick your room, view your choices here first, then call).
-------------------------------------------------------------- COASTAL WRITING RETREAT Connect with Your Creativity at the Sunset Inn (Writing -- and more -- as Renewal and Inspiration) Full details here. Register now if you want to come: just one spot left!WHERE: The Sunset Inn, 9 North Shore Dr., Sunset Beach, NC 28468
WHEN: Friday, November 7 - Sunday, November 9, 2014. TO REGISTER: Contact the Sunset Inn at 888.575.1001 or 910.575.1000 (if you would like to handpick your room, view your choices here first).
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WINTER WRITING RETREAT (Writing — and More — as Renewal / Creating New Writing) Renew and delight yourself. The Winter Writing Retreat is an opportunity to create new pieces of writing and/or new possibilities for our lives. Enjoy various seasonal prompts; they have not failed to elicit beautiful material that can be shaped into essays, poems, stories, or
articles. After a communal lunch, you’ll have private time which can be used to collage, work with a piece of writing from the morning, or play with a number of other writing prompts and methods. You’ll take home new ideas, new drafts, and new possibilities. $97 includes lunch and supplies.WHERE: South Charlotte area. Details will be provided upon
registration.
WINTER WRITING RETREAT: Saturday, December 20, 2014,10 am – 5 pm
TO REGISTER: Register online here. Or email info@wordplaynow.com for details on
registering via mail.
More WordPlay opportunities here. WordPlay Featured Writing
"What the Living Do"
by
Marie Howe
You can read Marie Howe's poem here, in Atlantic Monthly where it first appeared in print. (If you're interested in publishing your work, especially if you post your work on the Internet, learn about "first rights" here.)
To learn more about Marie Howe, watch this wonderful episode of NPR's "On Being," hosted by Krista Tippett.
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 "cherish." In Marie Howe's "On Being" conversation with Krista Tippett, she discusses how her brother John taught her, in the last days of his life, that what she was really yearning for was right in front of her, in each detail
of everyday life. This knowledge infuses her poem "What the Living Do," all the way down to "a cherishing so deep/for my own blowing hair, chapped face, and unbuttoned coat" that renders her speechless. Have you, or one of your writing characters, ever experienced that deep a cherishing?
PROMPT: Write about what you, or one of your characters, real or imagined, cherishes, in any form/genre that you care to. If you write about someone that you cherish, share your writing with them.
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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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