The coffin.
An introspective poem I wrote yesterday afternoon in tears after having gone through one of the most troubling social experiences ever. As I was struggling, I periodically encouraged myself (written in italic) to keep going. I was mostly freewriting, limiting censorship. And I’m proud to have finished the exercise. Released, relieved, even if still incredibly sore and fragile.
The artwork for this post includes “Helios 456“ (2014) on the second slide. Namely one of Michael Taylor’s photographs from his series “Helios”. I first came across Taylor’s work back in my Tumblr days and this particular image is one of my favorites for many (obvious) reasons given the lore I’ve built over the last six years around death and rebirth. You can check out more of Taylor’s work here https://michaeltaylor.photography/helios
On the last slide: digitally drawn self-portrait by me (circa 2023)
For the past three years or so, I’ve written a bunch of poems, short stories and think pieces that I either never finished or insecurely, didn’t believe in.
For some strange reason, I’ve come to think that after taking such a long “public” break from writing, I had to have a great comeback with a super sophisticated body of work and a supporting roll-out on social media (as if it was a music album, lol); which is ridiculous and in fact, paralyzing.
I can just post the work and that’s it. I do this for myself mostly; and I must must MUST get the ink flowing to improve my writing and better channel my inspiration. It’s like weight training, the more consistent you are (don’t forget nutrition and rest), the more muscle you grow.
Anyways, in the last few days I’ve read my unfinished work and realized I’d been censoring too many of my ideas…So in the coming weeks I’ll publish them under an umbrella project called DRAFTS. To get out of my shell. I must be more shameless to get out of this rut.
The fact that I’m even posting today…Tyler The Creator and his unapologetic spirit made me do this.
Last slide: collage made by me at a workshop I participated in at the beginning of the year.
the road to stillness and peace happens to be a tough one at at times.
Cover by MFA. I captured a waxing Moon from my garden (Feb 4, 2022)
#poetry #concisewriting
