Poetry and Other Things

I did not post yesterday, as I took a small rest from the studio to spend some much needed time with my family. Of course, coming from a family full of artists, we can never get together and not talk at least a little about art!

Today however, is a different story. I woke up to the realization that today is daylight savings, and had one less hour to prepare myself to head to the dance studio before teaching my Sunday yoga class. At the studio, I worked up a wonderful sweat, as I let my music sink into my being and move my limbs. I incorporated some new spinal exercises that I have been working on, as well as delving into an expanded repertoire of micro movement exercises for the pelvis, spine and ribcage. I worked with the notion of relaxation in contrast to holding certain sets of muscles to create the desired effect in my joints. I love how these minuscule movements can cultivate such a change in my body. I feel properly stacked, strong and more efficient in my larger movements after practicing the exercises I have created for myself.

I have also been working on my poetry, moving along to finish and polish my "Treatise on Love Making." I worked with the poem a bit more with movement during my studio time today. In addition to writing, I have begun reading some poetry for my school work, which I realize I have not yet addressed since I've been home from Goddard. This semester, one of the topics I am studying is poetry; its structure, style and various notable poets of the last century. My hope is that my own work as an emerging poet will grow as a result, that it will gain a new maturity and clarity that I feel I only achieve some of the time. Since the book I ordered full of the work of Maya Angelou has not yet arrived in the mail, I decided to begin with Gwendolyn Brooks. Her poems are full of truths about society and the human condition, and more specifically, the African American condition of her time, which still rings true in many regards today. Her work is the kind of work that "gets to the bottom of things," and encourages the readers of her work to be keen observers of the people and circumstances that surround them. I notice her use of not only rhythm in her work, but how she meticulously scatters the words on the page to get the desired feel and nuance across in her poems. Some of the poems are straight from right to left. Some of the poems seem to jump all over the page. I have often thought about how poetry, as a literary art, throws away so many of the conventional rules of writing, but still requires the most intimate understanding of the language in which one writes, and how that language is used, understood and generally written. And I recognize that poetry is as much a visual art form, as it is an oral form and a literary form.

The coming week will be a full one. Thus, I plan to use the rest of this beautiful Sunday to read, write and enjoy the company of my fiancee and my cat!

~Cara