Volume VIII, Issue 49
December 11, 2019
Dear ,
I've had the great joy of witnessing this week's featured writer, Linda Whitesitt, craft her grandmother's lyrical, imagined "memoir," Hope As Wide As a Prairie Sky, into being, poem by poem, week by week in one of my Under Construction classes.
This meticulously researched book about Linda's Swedish immigrant ancestors and, in particular, the homesteading hardships of her grandparents, is written in the voice of her grandmother, Gedia. The value, and necessity, of community in keeping hope alive is woven throughout its pages, rich with vivid description that brings
Gedia and her husband Elof's experiences to life.
Linda, who exudes warmth and kindness, allowed me the privilege of choosing which of the beautiful poems in this collection to share with you today. I chose "Warming a Homesick Heart" for two reasons.
It's a Yuletide story, for one thing, so it's seasonally appropriate. And the word "kindle" appears in it twice.
I've loved this word since my first summer at Girl Scout camp at nine years old, when I learned the importance of "kindling" in creating a good fire. In between the "tinder," small bits of wood that catch fire quickly, and "fuel," fat logs that burn steady and long, comes "kindling," which bridges the wide gap between the two, keeping the initial spark of fire (the inspiration of
a writing idea, say) alive until its vision and purpose has been fulfilled. (I'm still a tad unhappy that Amazon appropriated this beautiful word as the name of a means to read electronically, but that's another matter altogether.)
Linda's "Warming a Homesick Heart" speaks of "kindling laughter" and "kindling warmth," but it is also, at its heart, about the way that a community of people bound together in a common cause also kindle hope in one another, a hope that can carry them through the hard times to a new future.
Linda acknowledges her Under Construction community for their support and encouragement when she talks about how she came to write Hope As Wide As a Prairie Sky If 2020 is the year you hope to bring a book into being, what community could you join, or rally together, for support and encouragement? (There are some details about Under
Construction below, if you're interested.)
Beyond writing, what hopes of yours could use kindling? What hopes of others in your community could you kindle through your steadfast support and encouragement?
There is a gap between the first spark of any dream or vision and the long-lasting warmth that results when it reaches its full potential.
In this darkest of seasons, may we kindle laughter, warmth, and hope for one another.
WordPlay Offerings
UNDER CONSTRUCTION: YOUR WRITING
(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, Charlotte, 28204. Click here for map.
WHEN: W12 Wednesday mornings from 10:00 a.m. – noon, starting in September, 2019.
COST: $435
TO REGISTER: Please email me at info@wordplaynow.com to start the registration process by filling out a short “Clarity Tool” to share your writing dreams and goals and where you are in the process. (Anywhere you are is a perfect place to begin.) Then we'll have a conversation to answer any questions and to ensure that this class is a great fit for you.
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How Do I Say Goodbye?
and
These two books are for anyone who is grieving the loss of a loved one—whether the loss is impending, recent, or in
the past. (The holiday season, for all its overt merriment, is often a time we struggle the most with grief.)
The contemplative exercises within are a guide through the “many waters” of grief (from Madeleine L'Engle's A Two-Part Invention), including "treasuring" and "keeping" as well as regret and sadness.
What is grief, after all, but a sign of the depth of our love? On the far shore is always gratefulness, for, as the French proverb says, “Gratitude is the heart’s memory.” Those who enjoy writing will likely also find poems, essays, and/or stories emerging as they make their way through these pages.
I created the process shared in these two books in June of 2002, shortly after my mother died, as a way to mindfully mourn this loss—and celebrate her life. I shared it with a beloved friend, the Reverend Rebecca Taylor, when she lost her father, and she encouraged me to make it available to others. Here it is, in two versions, both of which offer quotes, reflections, prompts, and space to write about your loved one, as well as beautiful photographs by Wendy H. Gill that enhance each part of the process. Either version makes
a thoughtful condolence gift for a friend or family member.
How Do I Say Goodbye? is for those of any faith, with quotes from many different sources to accompany the process. It can be purchased on Amazon here.
Praying You Goodbye is specifically for Christians, with accompanying quotes from Scripture chosen by Reverend Rebecca Taylor. It can be purchased on Amazon here.
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TAG, I'M IT!
Both the year-long TAG, I'M IT! 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.
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POETRY ROCKS!
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.
More WordPlay opportunities coming soon. Stay posted!
"With Maureen as a trusted guide, what started as a project to write
a few poems about my maternal, Swedish-immigrant grandparents
morphed into a book, a “memoir” I imagine my grandmother
could have written about their lives."
Featured Writer
Meet Linda Whitesitt
A few years ago, I began my latest book with the question: Where can I find hope in dark times? I knew at once whom I should ask—my grandma Gedia. She and my grandfather Elof, prairie homesteaders in
southern Saskatchewan and eastern Montana in the opening decades of the twentieth century, faced one hardship after another and never lost hope. How did they do it? Surely, she would tell me. But I had a problem. Grandma’s been gone for a long time. There was no way to ask her. Then it occurred to me. Of course there was. She helped raise me. She played with me and taught me how to read. She lived with us, and I spent all the days of my childhood with her when my parents were working. I knew I
carried her story within me.
So I started to write. I read family journals. I remembered my mother’s stories about her childhood. I scoured historical sources. I made a pilgrimage to their homesteads in Minnesota, Saskatchewan and Montana. Through all my writing, I listened for the voice of my grandma Gedia, the woman who helped raise me.
Now several years later, my book is finished. Actually, it seems more like grandma’s book, the story she could have told about blistering cold winters and crop-destroying summers, the tragic deaths of three of their children, and the withering poverty of the Depression. It’s the book I imagine her writing. Because she never did, I wrote it for her. And knowing her like I did, I wanted
to fill every page with her strength, her love for my grandfather, and the resilience that comes when hope never dies.
You can connect with Linda on her website:
https://treestories.net.
What Linda says about WordPlay
I am filled with gratitude for a series of amazing synchronicities that led me to Maureen and her “Gift of Memoir” class in 2014—a gift from the universe that helped me find exactly the teacher I needed when I was ready to find her. (Thank you, Barbara Linney, writer and “Under Construction” class member, for leading me to this wonderful mid-wife of
stories and words!)
With Maureen as a trusted guide, what started as a project to write a few poems about my maternal, Swedish-immigrant grandparents morphed into a book, a “memoir” I imagine my grandmother could have written about their lives. What a joyful, labor of love it has been! Every bit of it shaped and encouraged by this master
“spinner of words into gold." Maureen’s wisdom and insight, her writing tools and prompts inspired me to ask questions about how my grandparents lived and how much they loved, and nudged me into finding just the right words to tell their story.
Maureen is a “spinner” of one more thing, something that might be even more valuable than gold—a strong, supportive community. Week after week in her classes, she weaves together a group of writers whose spot-on suggestions led me closer to my grandmother’s voice. In the desolation of the prairie, my grandparents depended
on their family and friends to give them strength and comfort. In my “Under Construction” classes, I know that my fellow writers do the same for me.
Featured Writing
a poem from
Hope As Wide As a Prairie Sky
by
Linda Whitesitt
Warming a Homesick Heart
Mama and her family survived their first winter
by sharing memories of Sweden—
Their last Yule with meatballs and sausages,
rice pudding and lingonberry relish served on
a table covered with newly spun white linens
and a straw harvest crown in the center;
homemade candles lighting every corner;
the scent of juniper and evergreen branches
strewn on floors scrubbed clean;
a freshly cut tree decorated with handcrafted ornaments;
the joy of linking hands with friends and neighbors
as everyone walked to church on Christmas morning.
The double wedding of Mama and her sister Klara,
the brides in mother-made gowns with long white veils
held in place with golden crowns;
the men in tailor-made suits and new shoes;
Papa’s failed attempts at dancing with his new bride;
daily banquets at a week-long wedding feast.
Mama was desperate to hang on to
the laughter their words kindled.
She’d expected a brutal winter,
but not how strong the prairie wind could blow,
not how, without remorse, it whipped the cold
in and through everything in its path, lodging itself
stubbornly in her house and in her body.
She’d been ready for hard, bone-wearying work,
but not how poverty would scrape
her hands and her spirit raw.
As she reminisced with her family,
she stretched her cold arms around
their memories, pulled them into her chest, hoping
they’d kindle warmth in her homesick heart.
~ from Linda Whitesitt's book Hope As Wide As
a Prairie Sky:
A Story of Courage and Grace
Click the book's title to learn more or purchase.
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 "kindle."
PROMPT: Write about a kindled hope, of your own or anyone else's, real or imagined.
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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