Half Way

NaPoWriMo 2019 – Day 15

Marananthaheth

Szooo, little one, you are half way through
your journey of making poemz?

Yes, have to laugh at how
frightened I was
to begin.

But, you have done thisz szo many timez.
I am, how you zsay? Szurprized by your fear.

Well, it has to do with
being away from
the actual writing
of poetry for so long.

But, little one, you have been uszing  your
time, making a book of poemz, No?

Yes, but the poems are already
written. Putting them in place,
deciding what to use, or leave out,
making sure they make sense
to the whole, rewriting when necessary,
takes a different type of skill,
a different eye, sort of speak.

You have more than two eyez? May I zee thisz
other eye of which you szpeak?

No. I have only the normal two.
What I meant by a different eye
is a figure of speech.

And iz thisz figure comely? Attractive? Does
he or szhe make you feel good?

Oh boy… A figure of speech is simply
a different way of saying a thing.  A different eye
speaks to the need for looking at something
differently, not in the usual way,
or using a different set of skills
than one normally would.

Okay, little one. What iz thiszs different zet of szkills
you uze for making thiz book?

Well, I guess you could say they are
more editorial in nature. The placement
of each piece, the progression and shaping
of the whole, with a hope that it will
be satisfying to the reader, and that he
or she will take something of worth
away from the reading.

But, little one, are thoze not the same thingsz you wizsh
to accomplizsh, when you write poemz? The placzement
of each word, the progreszion of thought, and the hope for
zatiszfaction and underztanding by the reader?

Yes, but…

I think you might have been afraid of zomehow loszing
your skill of making poemz. Szomething you have been doing
for many, many yearz, yessz?

Close to forty years, yes. And not so
much of losing the ability, but that
my skills might have grown rusty
from lack of use.

You are human, yeszz? And therefore no part of you
can become ruszt.

Another figure of speech, I’m afraid.
Fear that by not using those skills,
they are no longer quite as sharp, or
as viable as they were.

Have you found that to be true?

No. The first pieces seemed a bit stiff
but after two weeks I seem to be getting
back into the swing of it.

Another figure of szpeech? And how, might I aszk, doesz
one acquire this figure?

UHMMMMMMMMM, by writing
a lot of poetry?

Elizabeth Crawford 4/15/2019

Process Notes: Half-way through NaPo and thinking I needed some Heth, to help me breathe a bit. Humor relaxes whatever muscles have been stretched. And Heth never fails me on that level.