Volume X, Issue 3
January 20, 2021
Dear ,
What "a heck of a day!" In all the best ways, by former North Carolina State college coach Jim Valvano's definition: "If you laugh, you think, and you cry, that's a full day. That's a heck of a day. You do that seven days a week, you're going to have something
special.”
Today's inauguration was, to quote Dan Rather, "broad, diverse, and beautiful." It repaired the pride I felt in Washington, D.C. when I visited with my daughter and her family in September of 2016. (My grandson Harry is tucked inside the baby carrier my daughter Amanda is wearing.)
It repaired my image of our capital as a place of hope and decency, from yesterday's twilight ceremony at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool as 400 candles were lit to honor the coronavirus's almost 400,000
American victims to the wholehearted renditions of our National Anthem and "This Land Is Your Land" and "Amazing Grace," as well as the
solemn vows taken by our new president and vice-president.
GETTY IMAGES https://www.marketwatch.com/story/biden-grieves-nations-coronavirus-victims-to-heal-we-must-remember-01611105462#
And when, after Biden's very presidential-in-all-the-best-ways speech, Amanda Gorman, at 22 the youngest ever inaugural poet—and the first ever National Youth Poet Laureate, read her poem "The Hill We Climb," I knew I would have to shift today's planned zine content to next week to share it with you.
Because maybe you haven't heard/read it, and you'd be missing out. And if you have heard and/or read it, you'll have it handy to enjoy again. I was so moved by her words:
It's because being American is more than a pride we inherit,
it’s the past we step into
and how we repair it
I loved learning that Dr. Jill Biden chose Amanda Gorman for the role of inaugural poet because she'd been wowed, along with many others in the audience, when she heard Gorman read original work at the Library of Congress back in
2017.
And that, according to Pop Sugar, Gorman was "struggling, "feeling exhausted," and
"worried she wasn't up to the monumental task" of "composing a poem about national unity" . . . and writing only a few lines a day until January 6, when rioters stormed the Capital. "She stayed awake late into the night and finished the poem . . . "
You can read "The Hill We Climb" below. And I hope that you'll also listen to it. It's even more powerful to hear, knowing that Gorman has a speech impediment and had to practice reading her poem over and over before sharing it with millions during the inauguration.
Wishing you the hope and peace, love and light, as we all roll up our sleeves to repair the pain and division that we can.
Maureen
Shaping Our Lives by Shaping Our Words
(Through the Pandemic and Beyond)
What benefits can writing provide—physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually, even in challenging times? We know now that the words we use and the stories we tell shape our daily experiences. Learn to shape words that bring out the best in you—and others. In this class
incorporating Dr. James Pennebaker’s ground-breaking work, you’ll practice holistic, whole brain writing approaches that broaden your perspectives and deepen your compassion. And, if you’re interested, you’ll create new poetry, creative nonfiction, and/or fiction.
For more information, visit www.wordplaynow.com/shaping-our-words/.
WHERE: From the comfort of your home (or wherever you happen to be). Classes will be recorded if you can't attend live.
WHEN: 2:30 – 4:30 p.m., Wednesdays, February 10th, 17th, and 24th & March 10th and 17th
COST: $165
TO REGISTER: Choose what's best for you from these options:
- pay via PayPal (you can use a credit card or PayPal) with this link
- send Venmo payment (@MaureenRyanGriffin)
- pay via Zelle online banking (704-756-4641)
- mail a check, made out to WordPlay, to me at
6126 Hickory Forest Drive, Charlotte, NC 28277 (be sure to email info@wordplaynow.com to let me know you're coming
so I can send class information)
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TAG, I'M IT!
Both the year-long TAG, I'M IT!
(on sale for 15% off for the New Year) AND three-month TAG, I'M IT! journals offer—in no more than five to fifteen minutes—a simple way to recap and celebrate the very best of each day of your life. The practice of writing out your “T’s” (things you’re thankful for), “A’s” (actions you can acknowledge yourself for), and “G’s” (gifts you’re grateful for) is a transformative one, especially combined with the final step, I’M IT!, in which you intentionally choose three do-able,
most-important-to-you actions you’ll take the next day.
The TAG, I'M IT! journal grounds you in two important habits: keeping your focus on appreciating and celebrating the good in your life and intentionally accomplishing what matters most to you. You’ll
also create a record of your most meaningful, happiest events and experiences.
Start your journal—or restart, if needed—whenever you like. (Though a new year is a perfect time!)
An introduction with tips and ideas will help you make this practice your own. Soon, you’ll notice that you’re living your days with more joy, presence, purpose, and intention.
More WordPlay opportunities coming soon.
Stay posted!
Featured
Writing
"The Hill We Climb"
by
Amanda Gorman
When day comes we ask ourselves,
where can we find light in this never-ending shade?
The loss we carry,
a sea we must wade
We've braved the belly of the beast
We've learned that quiet isn't always peace
And the norms and notions
of what just is
Isn’t always just-ice
And yet the dawn is ours
before we knew it
Somehow we do it
Somehow we've weathered and witnessed
a nation that isn’t broken
but simply unfinished
We the successors of a country and a time
Where a skinny Black girl
descended from slaves and raised by a single mother
can dream of becoming president
only to find herself reciting for one
And yes we are far from polished
far from pristine
but that doesn’t mean we are
striving to form a union that is perfect
We are striving to forge a union with purpose
To compose a country committed to all cultures, colors, characters and
conditions of man
And so we lift our gazes not to what stands between us
but what stands before us
We close the divide because we know, to put our future first,
we must first put our differences aside
We lay down our arms
so we can reach out our arms
to one another
We seek harm to none and harmony for all
Let the globe, if nothing else, say this is true:
That even as we grieved, we grew
That even as we hurt, we hoped
That even as we tired, we tried
That we’ll forever be tied together, victorious
Not because we will never again know defeat
but because we will never again sow division
Scripture tells us to envision
that everyone shall sit under their own vine and fig tree
And no one shall make them afraid
If we’re to live up to our own time
Then victory won’t lie in the blade
But in all the bridges we’ve made
That is the promise to glade
The hill we climb
If only we dare
It's because being American is more than a pride we inherit,
it’s the past we step into
and how we repair it . . .
Read the rest of Amanda Gorman's poem here. Listen to it here.
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 “repair.”
Write about a time you, or one of your characters, took on the repair of something that had been damaged—from an appliance to a relationship, an organization to a life . . . whatever comes to mind as you mull over what has been in need of repair.
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 three collections of poetry, Ten Thousand Cicadas Can't Be Wrong, 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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