Fifty-Two Cups of Poetry: The First Chapter

During the time I first composed this poem my sister Carol was doing research and beginning the writng of a historical novel. As I shared in my last post, life gets in the way of writing sometimes.  Life got in the way for Carol also. I am hoping in sharing this revised version of the poem, she will get back to those characters from so long ago. Enjoy.

The First Chap­­ter

to my sister Carol

Reflecting on the beginnings of

 her historical novel,

her hands fluttered in excitement as

she shared her revisions.

She had completed the first chapter.

She was surrounded by

The women writers at “The Swallow’s Nest”

As her mind journeyed back through the eyes of

Mother Earth,

embracing The Cataldo Mission.

Through her prose she introduced

A Coeur d’Alene Indian, an

Italian immigrant, and a

girl named Elizabeth.

Gentle suggestions, questions for clarification,

historical observations, and praise

spilled out over coffee and warm cake.

“Who is telling this story?”

“What about the point of view?”

“Can you explain the setting?”

Her thoughts drifted far away to a place long ago.

 “Oh… the view… atop the hill by the Mission is breathtaking,” she replied

as she closed her journal and smiled.

The first chapter had been shared.

By Christy Woolum 2006   Revised 2018

The Shed Notebook: The Eleventh Anniversary

Eleven years ago yesterday I began writing this blog. In that time I have written 2030 posts. When I started my blog it was for the purpose of keeping a chonological order of events in my life and have a place to share sibling writing assignments . Later I began using my blog as a place to share photos. As a lover of poetry I also have shared many favorite poems.
As a teacher of writing I stopped following my own advice. I told students to just put the pencil to paper and write what comes to mind. At first it may be not be good, but just get it down. Don't lose those thoughts and ideas.  I stopped doing that. Life got in the way.
I know as a writer I need to keep up with it. Having a routine helps. I admire my two siblings that have each kept a routine of posting their own reflections each and every day. I hope to get to that point again. I remember saying the other day, "I just didn't have anything to write about" when explaining why I hadn't posted on my blog.

Thank you this quote Jodi. How true. As I continue to build a routine again and get those words down I will realize I do have something to write about each and every day. So here is post #2031 with hopes of more to come.