NaPoWriMo 2019 – Day 20
Before Re-entry
The world and all of its discordant
cacophony has slipped its way into
my safest of places.
Like a worm it squirms against skin
of thoughts, pokes its nose, perhaps seeking nurture
thinking only to feed on distracted feelings.
Shudder away from antenna-like fingers,
forever reaching, always seeking to curve itself
into rich moist soil of muddled mind.
Resist. Call on militant words to assist
in this daily battle to fight whatever fleeting,
distorted attractions it might offer.
Seeking out just one more moment of peace
to breathe in deeply, granting but a brief release
before necessary re-entry.
Elizabeth Crawford 4/20/2019
Process Notes: Am finding that this daily making of poems might be my only safe place in a world that no longer makes much sense, and lacks coherent meaning. Image is a pen and ink inverted doodle, done a few years ago.
Take a deep breath, Elizabeth, we’re going in! Yes… writing is a great escape. And currently a welcome one at that…
Oh Tom, writing has always been far more than an escape for me. Writing is my way of seeing what the hell I am saying. Let’s me know if my thoughts are real and true, or nothing more than doo-doo. Many times it allows me to see my own footprints and just where it is I might be going. Best of all, it helps me to make choices, perhaps better ones than those in the past. Which means it waters the ground in whichever field I am planted at the moment. It allows me to throw out the garbage from yesterday and start fresh again. Many years ago, someone told me that writing was my life. I strongly objected to that statement at length, only to find it true, and yes, I apologized. Writing is far more than a tool, it is breathing, in and out.
And it’s good to see you here. Been far too long. Went to your site to respond but didn’t find a place to make comments. Can you help me out with that?
Elizabeth
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Yes, no one is safe…the “world” does creep in to the safest places. Someone said, “We live in interesting times.” Thanks for coming by ……..
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I was very complacent in my “safe” place. But, I have suddenly discovered that nothing is what I thought it was. The blatant lying, cheating and racism going on in Washington are horrifying. Every day I am shocked, disappointed or disgusted. Most days, all three. For me, writing is a way to hold onto the world that was. I have to believe that it really did exist, at least I think it did. Your work is always so intriguing and thought-provoking, Elizabeth. Excellent writing!
Thank you very much, Marianne. And that is the problem with safe places. They have a tendency to lean toward complacency. And although writing has always been a sort of safe place for me, because it must be shared on some level, it often brings the world with it. My problem is more than what is happening in Washington, we have a leader who tends to attract like personalities. I think what bothers me even more than the politicos, are the common folk imitating their behavior, seeming to feel they now have permission to act out their once hidden hatreds. That prideful chosen ignorance disturbs me, more than I can say. One of my areas of interest has long been World War II and the Holocaust that took place. The similarities terrify me.
Elizabeth
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Elizabeth,
Excellent insight with this poem. When I write I go to places that I don’t normally go.
Today’s world is disheartening to say the least.
Love,
Pamela
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