In May, we are blending poetry and meditation to create, make and activate a more mindful, art-rich life. Welcome to that experience.
Many of you have said, “Meditation and poetry – I am not good at either. And you use writing as meditation? Forget it. I can’t”
Stick around for a couple days so we may wash out those thoughts.
Here’s how this process goes for me – I invite you to try it this way and feel welcome to make modifications so it may work for you.
Whenever I read Plath, (link to the poem we meditated on today, Morning Song) I hear and feel a hush which may be why this line of her poem attracted me. This poem, “Morning Song” is about mothering a baby. Have you parented a baby?
I remember thinking when I had my son that I couldn’t have a boy. I didn’t know how to mother boys. It took me six weeks to actually agree this relationship as mom-to-boy would work and while it may still be rocky – he is an adolescent now – I know I wouldn’t trade the process for anything.
I invite you to think from your “beginner’s mind” place like I did as a new mom – with an open heart and without leaping inot judgment (like I find myself leaping more times than I would care to admit.)
Many of you have said, “Meditation and poetry – I am not good at either. And you use writing as meditation? Forget it. I can’t”
Stick around for a couple days so we may wash out those thoughts.
Here’s how this process goes for me – I invite you to try it this way and feel welcome to make modifications so it may work for you.
1. First I read the poem to myself several times and choose one line or phrase as a centering line. On my live-streams I ask viewers to choose a line also and direct them to the Poetry Foundation website for the poems I read. All are published there and are easily accessible – which for some people makes it easier to choose a meaningful meditation line.
2. Deep breathe and sit quietly with the poem, sometimes briefly and sometimes – like this time, I meditated before sleep and as I fell off to sleep.
3. The next step has differed when I do it, but write for at least 5 minutes, free flow style, stream of consciousness. Sometimes before the live-streams though more often after. Sometimes I write the centering phrase over and over again. What I find it when I trust the process and breathe deeply as I write, other words begin to pop in – you may scoff at this and I invite you to try it.
4. Livestream first on Periscope, often a rougher version – but I enjoy picking up the twitter audience.I will share the livestream from Twitter so you may see it here as well. I pin the poetry/meditation streams daily with a link to the poem and the graphic (whenever I create it), often afterwards. Livestream second on Instagram live. Usually a smaller audience but often more engaged in the poem itself.
? Poetry & Meditation Live: “Morning Song” by Sylvia Plath#NationalMeditationMonth #100DaysofEngagingVideo #Poetry https://t.co/oCJhFGDvrP
— Julie JordanScott – Fueling Creativity & Hope (@JulieJordanScot) May 12, 2020
5. Sometimes I post here, in my Creative Life Midwife blog – once I even created a second series based on what I wrote during my meditative writing and it blasted more helpful content. Whether or not I post elsewhere, I follow up with discovering the next poem.
In this case I’ve planned ahead and will next read Kim Adonizzio.
If you have a favorite poem or poet you would like to suggest please do so in the comments. .
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