Friday, April 11, 2008

Poetry Friday - Cutting a Swath, Sonnet #3

By now you've heard that the crown sonnet proposed by Liz Garton Scanlon way back in November is finally finished. The project is fully described and shared in its entirety there, so do stop by and read about it. It's been an amazing ride, and one I'm so glad to have taken.

Here's my contribution to the crown.
Flying through life's grand chaos, bright and vast,
the tide of days leads down a path unknown.
I know not who I'll be when I am grown,
but want to live a life that's unsurpassed.
I wish to speak in words both true and fast
(when sideways glances make me feel alone
or handsome smiles imply I've won the throne),
while keeping every secret to the last.
But I commit my heart with pen to page,
my feet to races not yet known or run,
my life to every opportunity.
These dreams I hold are bound to come of age,
cannot be stopped and will not be undone,
because they live and breathe to be set free.
The crown made it's way to me on December 12th. When a message with the subject Crown Sonnet #2 arrived in my mailbox, I felt my stomach drop to the floor. All I could think was, "Oh no. It's my turn and I can't back out now." Why was I so nervous? Well, at 42, I'd never written a sonnet before. That thought alone was terrifying. Sure, I'd read plenty of sonnets, but never attempted on myself before Liz's invitation. I immediately planned a poetry stretch on sonnets (Italian form) and got to work. The results were nothing to write home about.

I took by far the longest to complete my sonnet. Between final exams, the Christmas holiday, Cybils work, and preparation for my department's accreditation review, I stole precious time each day to escape my office and wander the campus. I often passed students who, I'm sure, wondered what this crazy woman was doing walking in a fog, counting on her fingers, and stopping sporadically to scribble words in a notebook. I'm sure from behind I could be seen bouncing as I walked, "ta-DUM, ta-DUM, ta-DUM, ta-Dum, ta-DUM." (Hey, I bounce anyway. Why not walk in iambic pentameter?!)

What I learned while writing my sonnet was that a great deal of what I write is just junk, but when an idea starts to come together, it just "feels" right. I've never been one to trust that intuition, but now I know that this is exactly what I must do. I was relatively satisfied with my sonnet by the time I let it go and shared it with the group. I was glad to be rid of it for a while and let someone else begin the process. When all 7 poets were done, we spent some time on a group revision. This was the most amazing part of the experience for me. In a supportive and collaborative environment, folks asked questions, offered feedback, and helped me revise in ways that made my contribution to the crown much stronger than it originally was. Though we never met, we were connected by our love for writing and poetry. Perhaps this motley crew with more than 250 years among us (258 to be exact!), and many, many miles separating us (from the midwest, to the south, to the east coast, and a short hop across the pond), can one day meet and write together. Wouldn't THAT be amazing? I certainly think so.

I hope you'll take some time to read the contributions of each poet, as well as the final crown in its entirety at Liz in Ink. Here is where you'll find the posts by each participant in the crown, in the order they wrote.
The round up this week is being hosted by cloudscome at a Wrung Sponge. Andi participated in the crown as well, so you can read a bit more about it, as well as find even more great poetry this week. Before you go, be sure to check out this week's poetry stretch results. Happy poetry Friday, all!

14 comments:

  1. That image of you, ta-DUM--ing around campus, makes me grin---you really were "committing your heart with pen to page."

    I love how your sonnet evolved, becoming more and more true to what you wanted to say. That, my poetry sister, is dedication and an inextinguishable poetry spirit.

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  2. Thanks for sharing this!

    I still feel this way: "I know not who I'll be when I am grown,
    but want to live a life that's unsurpassed." Wonder how old one has to be before feeling "grown."

    This part especially reminds me of Eliot's "Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock": "I wish to speak in words both true and fast
    (when sideways glances make me feel alone
    or handsome smiles imply I've won the throne),
    while keeping every secret to the last."

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  3. Tricia, I want this:

    But I commit my heart with pen to page,
    my feet to races not yet known or run,
    my life to every opportunity.

    emblazoned on my desk, my body, my heart. It's gorgeous.

    Thanks for sharing your process with us!

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  4. Tricia,
    This is lovely and feels so free. I love the sonnet!

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  5. Oh, Tricia. Hallelujah... for your intuition and iambic strolls and all the rest. Because the end result is so moving, aesthetically and emotionally. (and thank you especially for gifting me a really, really righteous line to bounce off of for mine...)

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  6. Beautiful, Tricia. As writer2b said, I still feel this way, too.

    "I wish to speak in words both true and fast . . . while keeping every secret to the last." YES!!

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  7. Had you not told on yourself, the world would never know you'd never written a sonnet before. The finished project is just luminous, and there's no hint of it being the work of someone new to sonnets.

    It was a pleasure and privilege to work with you. And thanks so much for the process post. I love reading about how other folks write.

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  8. Trisha if it had not been for your Monday Poetry Stretches I don't know if I would have had the courage to try this. Really - I admire your process so much! And I love the image of you bouncing along campus paths muttering in iamb...

    Those last six lines are really filled with glory. Your every word wrested into shining truth!

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  9. Beautiful! I, too, am smiling about you bouncing around in iambic pentameter. And I love that you nailed the longing of all youth in this line:

    "but want to live a life that's unsurpassed"

    Am loving reading all this back-story ....

    Congrats on your first sonnet and on this inspiring group effort!

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  10. Wow, you are all making me feel 15 again with that unmatched mix of fear and hope that you will become what you wish to be..."I commit my heart with pen to page" and then later, "these dreams I hold are bound to come of age."

    Very nice job, ladies. I'll be enjoying these for time to come.

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  11. A good resources for those interested in poetry for children is http://www.poetry4kids.net/

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  12. I love these four lines:
    "But I commit my heart with pen to page,
    my feet to races not yet known or run,
    my life to every opportunity.
    These dreams I hold are bound to come of age"

    Fantastic!

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  13. So far, this is the most "simple" sonnet. It doesn't wrap itself in pretence or complicated imagry, and, in doing so, it seems to speak straight from the heart.

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  14. Thanks for being a risk-taker -- for accepting this challenge AND for sharing your process with us.

    Superb!

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