From: Becky Sain
Can you tell us about yourself?
~~ I am a single mother to
three incredibly kind and wonderfully hip kids. I very much enjoy writing and
sharing my writing with others -- I think putting yourself and your writing out
there is what is necessary to improve and develop an even better creative process.
Which country do you live in now? What’s your
profession? be general, no need to specify your location...
~~ I live the United States, in the
south. I am an Autism Consultant with the local school district and have been
working with children with Autism for 20 years.
We’re happy that you have been part of Poets
Rally as a participant, what has driven you to where you are in this particular
community?
~~ I feel so very lucky to have
become a part of the Poets Rally community. The writers I have discovered and
become friends with have encouraged me when I needed encouragement and pushed
me to dig deeper when I need to. I am so appreciative of this community.
How long have you been blogging? Do you think
being part of a poetry community contributes to your creative writing?
~~ I have been blogging for almost
three years now. I started the blog to work through some very profound grief I
was experiencing.
~~ I think being here, in this
community, has made me a better writer, a writer willing to write from my heart
and feel safe in doing so.
Why poetry? Do you write fiction too?
~~ I started writing poetry at a
very early age. Being able to put my thoughts into metaphorical and sometimes
literal phrases has helped me develop as a person.
~~ I write fiction as well and have
shared a few short fiction pieces on my blog. I hope to continue to explore my
fiction writing.
Please share 3 to 5 blog links you enjoy
reading most, give 1 or 2 sentences to tell why you love their creative
process.
http://www.paintedpath.org/
~~ This blog is my current favorite distraction. The author, Julia
Fehrenbacher, is kind and generous and fills me up with the joy that is
her.
http://dychedesigns.blogspot.com/ ~~ This blog
opens me up in a way that is peaceful and like breathing straight oxygen. The
author, Kathryn Dyche Dichairo, always amazes me with her words and pictures.
http://laurazigman.wordpress.com/ ~~ Okay, this
my seem a little different, but this blog keeps me laughing. The author, Laura
Zigman, is a best selling author and was the encouragement behind me starting
my blog. She is a friend, go visit!
How do you know when a poem is done? your own
experiences need to be shared here...
~~ Sometimes, I can start a poem and
then stop and not think about it again for a couple of months. Then all of a
sudden, I figure put what I wanted to say.
~~ Without sounding too woohoo, the
poems usually let me know when they are done. Sometimes I just have to walk
away and trust that I've put my heart into the words.
How do you decide when a poem is
"good"? Do you redo your own poems after they’re posted? it could be
poem someone else written...
~~ I don't think I ever decide a
poem is good. I know there are some poems that I feel very content with when I
push publish. Sometimes, I read a poem after I've published it and change a
word here and there.
Do you think music and poetry are related?
Why?
~~ I think music is poetry. There
are some songwriters who are incredible poets, the way they combine their
thoughts and turn their words into a melody... it amazes me.
What issues are closed to your heart? Women’s
rights, child abuses, etc.…name one…
~~ I write mostly about grief, about
loss, and about the complexity of relationships (friendships).
What’s your other hobbies besides writing? Do
you have pets?
~~ I love to make cards. I usually
make at least one card a week for a friend. I love knowing someone will smile
when they open their mailbox that day.
~~ I have two very misbehaved dogs,
although they would disagree.
Please list your blog links below, share 1 or
2 poems that represents best of your poetry talent…
I don’t want to write
any words
… you’ll just read them and then you’ll talk about them and then a joke will be
made and a smirk will be seen and an eyebrow will raise and high fives will be
collected and I’ll find myself on the outside of the circle looking through
you. But behind the look will be the thought. You’ll think about all the things
that could be done from now on because we know we can’t ever go back and undo
that tangled feeling that lodged itself in your gut every time I tried and —
how — I — tried. No matter how many times I tell you about the better days all
you’ll see is how clearly I look when I’m weak. So, I don’t want to write any
words that you might read.
I don’t want to write
any words
… but waiting is pointless. This feeling is hit and miss, maybe now maybe
later. I’ll sit down and I’ll type the words and I’ll not want to but I will
because in spite of all the shouldn’ts I’ve racked up, in spite of all the
stupid button pressing, in spite of all the reasons I have to hide my face and
tuck my tail and bury my body in the deepest cave… I’ll write these words
because I can. I can. I can make you think and make you see and make you
question every decision you made. I can. So, I don’t want to write any words when
I should wait.
I don’t want to write
any words
… but if I don’t they’ll just explode in the space of grayness that surrounds
and knock me off my wobbly perch. Those words will keep pouring out of me in a
steady flow of memories, moving so fast I can’t slow them down… no control. The
mystery I keep trying to solve is me and these words are the only clues I have
and each time I try to peek inside your world to see if any parts of me are
there, you slap the curiosity so hard… so hard. So hard you slap but the
curiosity just grows, it doesn’t stop. It doesn’t slow down. So, I don’t want
to write any words that might explode in my face
— but they need me to…
So, I will.
this is for
the savior of the broken,
the writer of the story,
the singer of the song.
this is for the conjurers of the calamity,
the poets and the poem,
the artist and the collage.
this is for the books,
the words,
the stories we weave,
the mothers,
the fathers,
the way they make us believe.
this is for the gamblers who lose,
but still play the game.
the dreamers who dream,
not afraid of the flame.
this is for the beaten,
the bruised,
the scared,
the nervous,
the hurt,
the shattered,
the stuck.
this is for the ones who get back up,
for every one who dares to move,
for those who keep letting in the light,
for those who stand facing the storm.
this is for the honest,
the conscious,
the diggers,
the searchers,
the seekers.
this is for the quest we don’t walk away from,
the puzzle we want to put together,
the lesson we keep learning.
this is for the blurry eyed star gazers,
the unabashedly flawed teachers,
the unapologetic hand-holders.
this is for you,
and me.
~~ Thank you so much for this
opportunity!
Thanks in advance.