Friday, April 8, 2011

A Recipe for Surprise and Delight

Ingredients:

One blank page
One or two pens
A cup of steaming hot tea
An open window (so you can see)
A breath or two, slow and deep (but not too slow, or you’ll fall asleep).

Put your pen down on the page. Wait there for a moment – don’t write a word, let your true voice be finally heard. Breathe in and breathe out, in and out. Raise your gaze to look up and out, out of the window to see the day, see the clouds drizzle, or the robin’s play. See beauty in the darkest days, sadness in the summer haze. Let it linger, take it all in, then exhale and begin.

Let your pen wander and dilly dally, with no need to go anywhere. Let it fill the page with words that make no sense, with sentences that dangle and end where ever they want. Write convoluted paragraphs, meandering and dancing down the page as you go. Write what you see, what you feel, what you hear, write whatever it is that you hold dear. A story, a poem, it need not be, what form it is – just wait and see. 

As you let the voice take hold, your writing becomes brave and bold. But do hold the critic, hold him at bay, save cutting for another day. Right now, just be with the voice and the page, connecting with your inner sage. Writing into the unknown can open your eyes, what you write may be quite a surprise. You may dive into the depths of your heart, or maybe another body part. You might discover that your big toe has all the knowledge that you’ll need to know. Or maybe that your right elbow has a whippin’ wild tale that it needs to sow. 

A pen and the page is all you ever need, for writing takes you on quite a ride, like a whirling, twirling water slide! Up, down, and around, where will you go? Only the words ever really know. Trust that you will eventually get there, taking the elevator or the stairs, that the journey down along the page will connect you with your inner sage. 

When it’s done, just let it sit, let the words simmer for a bit. When they’ve cool down, it’s time to cut and paste – chop, chop, chop, no time to waste! Now, the critic can come into play, cutting and chopping, having his way. Delight in every slice and sliver, for the critic can give you quite a shiver, strengthening the piece by slimming it down, helping it lose unhealthy pounds. And then put it away for another day, for the critic always wants to play. Allow the piece to take its natural shape, pruning away the excess words, so your true voice can be completely heard. When you feel its finally done – now, it’s time to show someone! For stories are meant to be shared, somewhere in there, a truth is bared. 



© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED, Angela Dawn MacKay 





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