Volume VIII, Issue 22
June 10, 2019
Word of the Week: convergent
Dear ,
This week's word comes, as always, from the featured writing—"Convergent" is a poem by Worthy Evans about his father that holds, as
you'd expect, convergence. It seemed the perfect choice, given Sunday is Father's Day, and also because I believe our world, with its ever-increasing divisiveness, could use more convergences, more "coming closer together, especially in characteristics or ideas." I am in search of the convergent in my life. Maybe you are too?
This past Thursday, I experienced convergence at Landsford Canal State Park, where I went with my friend of 40 years, Joan Kelly. (Our paths converged at Monroe Middle School, in
Monroe, North Carolina, where we were both first year teachers.) Joan wanted me to see the gorgeous stands of Hymenocallis coronarias (Shoals spider-lilies) that are in full bloom right now in the shoals of the Catawba River. The lilies were gorgeous, well worth a trip. And, in addition, there at the park, among the ruins of a canal built between 1820 and 1825 to bypass rapids on the Catawba River, I found a convergence with my own father, a boat lover
since boyhood. An ensign in the Coast Guard during World War II, Dad would have loved seeing the remnants of this canal and its locks. I closed my eyes, and I was standing with him watching boats go through the Hiram M. Chittenden Locks at the west end of Seattle's Salmon Bay. Then I was listening to his stories of adventures on the Erie Canal in his hometown of Rochester, New York. How he loved that canal! He would surely have noted that the Landsford Canal and the Erie
Canal were completed in the same year—another convergence, albeit a small one.
I was a true daddy's girl, so it's no wonder I'd feel his presence at this place. And also no wonder that Worthy's list poem about his father would make me think of my dad.
My path and Worthy's converged in March at the Upcountry Literary Festival in Union, South Carolina. (He's pictured here with the fabulous fiction writer Bobbie Ann Mason, who
looks kind, wise, and beautiful even with her eyes closed.)
Worthy, in his poem, finds his father convergent in his son and his daughter, just as I find my father convergent in my children, especially my son Dan, who looks so like him at times that it makes my heart hurt in the best possible way. Do you know that particular blend of love, longing, grief, and gratitude that converges when you find a lost loved one in the face, movement,
and/or mannerisms of a family member?
I hope you enjoy Worthy's "Convergent" and that this week's word inspires you to notice—and write about—convergences in your life. Happy Father's Day to you and yours.
Love and light,
Maureen
Upcoming WordPlay
POETRY ROCKS!
(Learning the Ins and Outs of Poetry; Strengthening Your Writing Skills; Adding a New Layer of Literacy Beauty to Your Life)
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 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.
It would be a joy and an honor to share what rocks about poetry with you!
HERE’S WHAT YOU GET:
- 23 poetry creation tools, delivered one per day (Monday through Friday) to your inbox — in honor of National Poetry month. Use them as you get them, use them when you can, use them over and over to create poems. Each tool zeroes in on one aspect of poetry and provides an innovative method to approach writing a poem. Many of them are great for creating prose,
too. The tools include:
* a purpose, so you’re clear what you will learn
* background information when helpful
* “how-to” directions to create a poem
* an example that illustrates the poetry tool in action
* a short reflection to solidify the concepts covered
* “Hone Your Craft” suggestions for further exploration
* a short reflection to solidify the concepts covered
- A PDF document of each tool that you can print or save on your computer
- An audio recording of each tool, so you can learn by listening and/or reading
- Instruction on the role of audience, reading like a writer, and the process of revision, including a handy Revision Checkpoint Chart — this information can be applied to strengthen your prose as well as poetry
- Additional poetry resources
- An e-book that contains the information and resources covered, as well as your 23 poetry creation tools for ongoing use
WHERE: From the comfort of your own home, via the web.
WHEN: Any time you want! And once you receive all 23 tools, they’re yours to keep, which means that you can keep using them for years to come.
COST: $45
TO REGISTER: To pay with a check via mail, email info@wordplaynow.com for instructions. To register for Poetry Rocks online, click here.
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CLASSES AT CHAUTAUQUA INSTITUTION
WRITING OUR WAY TO HAPPINESS
(Week 2)
Come explore research-tested ways writing can increase your happiness level. You’ll learn how to use writing as a tool to increase your sense of well-being, as well as jumpstart your pen and provide inspiration and knowledge about the process of creative writing, whether you want to write memoir, fiction, nonfiction, or poetry. For writers of all levels, including beginners, who are interested in expanding their
writing practice—for personal fulfillment or for publication.
WHERE: Chautauqua Institution. 1 Ames Ave, Chautauqua, NY 14722. Alumni Hall Poetry Room
WHEN: Monday, July 1st – Friday, July 5th, 2019. 3:30 to 5:30 p.m.
COST: TBA
TO REGISTER: Register directly through the Chautauqua Institution website
here
TELLING YOUR LIFE STORIES WITH GRACE
(Week 7)
Our life stories are a precious legacy, imbued with grace we can often see only in hindsight. Capturing these stories “gracefully” in words is a gift, not only to ourselves, but to those who love us – they’ll be treasured for generations to come. Come learn engaging tools and techniques to retrieve and record your adventures, loves, losses, successes, mistakes, and more with ease and, yes, grace, no matter where you
are in the process.
WHERE: Chautauqua Institution. 1 Ames Ave, Chautauqua, NY 14722. Hultquist 201B
WHEN: Monday, August 5th – Thursday, August 8th, 2019. 3:30 to 5:30 p.m.
COST: TBA
TO REGISTER: Register directly through the Chautauqua Institution website
here
DELICIOUS MEMORIES
(Week 9)
Food not only nurtures and sustains us, it’s also a rich source for writing. We’ll explore our culinary connections as we write of when, where, what, with whom, how — and even why — we ate. We’ll also learn from the work of accomplished writers. You can use the tools you’ll learn to create a family cookbook, individual essays, stories, or poems, scenes in fiction or memoir, a food blog—or just for your own
pleasure.
WHERE: Chautauqua Institution. 1 Ames Ave, Chautauqua, NY 14722. Hultquist 201A
WHEN: Monday, August 19th – Thursday, August 22nd, 2019. 3:30 to 5:30 p.m.
COST: TBA
TO REGISTER: Register directly through the Chautauqua Institution website here
More WordPlay opportunities here.
Worthy Evans is a communications consultant for a Medicare contractor in Columbia, SC. He freelances as a high school and college sports story writer, writes poems (or something
approaching poetry) every day, and spends a lot of time creating collages. Through it all, he is raising his son (his daughter lives with her mother in Wisconsin and he misses her and wishes he could be more in her life), and shares the tending of his parents with his sister.
Learn more about Worthy and his process of writing poems here.
Read a review of Worthy's other book, Green Revolver, from The Pedestal here.
You see that? My father points to the M-14
the soldier has at inspection arms
before the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
My father goes on and on about the parts of the rifle.
I learn a new word, Component.
My father the trooper. My father the Chaplain’s assistant.
My father the specialist, the company man,
the teller of secrets behind the Cuban Missile Crisis.
You see him? My father points at a fading Ted Williams
in short left, before the Green Monster.
My father goes on about a left-handed Wofford Terrier,
a Fleet Terrier, coming out to take over
from the Splendid Splinter, 521 home runs, Marine
in World War II, Korea.
My father’s tale about breaking his collarbone
against the Monster and the Red Sox manager
giving the nod to young Karl Yastrzemski.
My father the story teller, my father knew ministers
but not as many as he did models of cars.
My father picked apart the plots of TV shows
to find the cherries of the car models on display in the backlot towns.
Look at that! My father points to a dusty and rusty sedan
That Goober takes apart and puts back together in the Court House.
My father tells me the car was a Nash, or a Rambler, and he tells me
Nash and Rambler converged to form American Motors.
My father the car historian, my father the executive center general manager
who walked me around buildings under construction
to look for slugs cut from electrical boxes that made me feel rich
because they felt like quarters that I could use to get a bottle of Orange Crush
from the machine in the breakroom.
Look! he points to me. My father the double bypass recipient
goes on to tell me how he won’t be around by the time I turn 50,
and then my father the tactician tells me that maybe
I won’t be around either, because of that governor who died on the treadmill,
because these are my danger years.
My father the former smoker, my father the alcohol-dependent restless retiree
with no hobbies other than wise comments, a father of me, a soldier,
a car driver, father, smart aleck, component to my son, my daughter,
convergent in them.
~ From Cold War, available for purchase on Amazon.com 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 "convergent."
PROMPT: This week, pay close attention and notice convergences in your life. Where do you experience a "coming closer together, especially in characteristics or ideas"? Where have you experienced convergences in the past? Write about a convergent moment, in any genre that you
like. You may want to explore your relationship with your own father, or the relationship one of your characters has with his or her father.
It's fun to play with prompts in community with fellow writers, and to be able to share the results when you're done. You can find out about WordPlay classes, workshops, and retreats here.
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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