Volume IIII, Issue 29 July 20, 2015 |
Word of the Week: depends |
Click here to see where I found this picture! Bless teachers and the good work they do! Dear ,
I found out from
my sister last week that my beloved high school French teacher, Sr. Peter (AKA Soeur Pierre), passed away recently, and felt a huge pang of regret that I didn't ever go visit her and tell her how much she meant to me. She taught me so much!
For one thing, I have never forgotten her telling our Freshman Class
how easy it was to sound wise in French—all you need to do in response to almost any question is to stare dreamily into space for a moment and then answer, "C'est depend." (It depends.) It's rather uncanny how well this works much of the time!
I came across William Carlos
Williams's "The Red Wheelbarrow" not long after this, and the two are woven together in my brain. So much depends... on what? What would you say? It depends, right? On so much!
This 16-word poem delighted me from the first—yes, even in
high school I was a fan of ambiguity. I loved learning through my friend Vivé Griffith that The New York Times recently published an article called "The Forgotten Man Behind William Carlos Williams’s ‘Red Wheelbarrow’" that details the research done by University of Florida professor and scholar William Logan to discover the identity of the man who inspired it.
The article shares that Williams described his experience of seeing the wheelbarrow in this way: “The sight impressed me somehow as about the most important, the most integral that it had ever been my pleasure to gaze upon.” And later, he wrote of the African
American gentleman who owned the wheelbarrow, “I liked that man, and his son Milton almost as much. I suppose my affection for the old man somehow got into the writing.”
So much depends upon affection, don't you think? And, as always, attention we pay to the world around us. I'm sure you will not be surprised to hear that this article is this week's featured writing. You'll find the link below. Enjoy!
And if you can find a time,
thank a teacher this week. So much depends upon their dedication.
Love and light,
Maureen Upcoming WordPlay JOHN CAMPBELL FOLK SCHOOL (Fulfilling Writing Dreams and Goals; Creating New Writing; Revising and Polishing Your Writing) Does writing fulfill you? Do you wish you were writing more? Jumpstart your writing life and learn to keep your words flowing. Learn specific techniques and exercises to create
nonfiction, poetry and/or fiction. Whether you would like to keep a journal for your own personal growth, spin stories for your loved ones, or further a career as a professional writer, experience the satisfaction of developing a writing practice that works for you—come spin words into gold.
WHERE: John Campbell Folk School, 1 Folk School Road, Brasstown, NC 28902
WHEN: Sunday, August 23rd through Saturday, August 29th, 2015
TO REGISTER: Call the John Campbell Folks School at 1-800.FOLK.SCH (365-5724). Or register online here. $594 for one week-long session, plus lodging and meals. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
UNDER CONSTRUCTION (Fulfilling Writing
Dreams & Goals; Creating New Writing; Revising & Polishing Your Writing) This class is designed to fulfill your writing dreams and projects. You’ll set goals and support structures and watch your writing flow! You’ll also get feedback on your work (any genre) and learn revision tools and methods. Each week, writing prompts will generate material
for new writing or further a piece in process, whatever your preferred genre. Through examples of accomplished writers, you’ll learn techniques to aid you right where you are in the process.
WHERE: Covenant Presbyterian Recreation Center, 1000 East Morehead Street,
28204
WHEN: Wednesday mornings from 10:00 a.m. to noon:
September 2, 9, 16 and 30, October 7, 14, 21 and 28, November 18, December 2, 9 and 16
COST: $399 for 12 classes
TO REGISTER: To register by check, please email info@wordplaynow.com for details. To register online with a credit card, please click this secure link. INTERESTED IN A TUESDAY EVENING UNDER CONSTRUCTION CLASS? Email info@wordplaynow.com for more information. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
GIFT OF MEMOIR (Preserving Family History; Writing for and about Your Family; The Art of Memoir) Our life stories are a precious legacy. Putting them in writing is a gift to all who know and love
us—they can be treasured and enjoyed for generations to come. It is also a gift to ourselves. As best-selling author Rachel Naomi Remen says in her book Kitchen Table Wisdom, facts bring us to knowledge, but stories bring us to wisdom. If you are interested in writing family and/or personal life stories—those significant tales of adventure, transition, love, loss, and triumph, as well as lovely everyday moments from times past or the present, come learn specific tools and
techniques to retrieve and record them.
WHERE: Covenant Presbyterian Recreation Center, 1000 East Morehead Street, Charlotte, 28204. Click here for map.
WHEN: Thursday mornings, 10:00 a.m. – noon:
September 3 and 17, October 1 and 15, November 5 and 19, December 3
COST: $229 for 7 sessions.
TO REGISTER: To register by check, or for more details, please email info@wordplaynow.com. To register online with a credit
card, please click this secure link.
More WordPlay opportunities here. Featured Writing The Forgotten Man Behind William Carlos Williams’s ‘Red Wheelbarrow’
Thaddeus Marshall, the owner of the most famous red wheelbarrow in literary history
For decades, much has depended on his red wheelbarrow, streaked with rain, next to some white chickens, even if no one has known — or perhaps even wondered — exactly who he was.
But now, the owner of the humble garden tool that inspired William Carlos Williams’s classic poem “The Red Wheelbarrow” will finally get his due....
To keep reading, please click here for the original article.
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 "depends." PROMPT:
How can I improve upon William Carlos Williams? From your own point of view, or the point of view of one of your character's, write for ten minutes, beginning with the words "So much depends upon..." You may find that you write about one thing, or create a litany of many different ones. Your
choice.
|
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! |
|
|
|
