Thursday, January 5, 2012

TWO SMALL STONES...

... to add to the river. Have you been writing yours? I really recommend it. All you need is to stop for a moment during the day and pay attention. Then use a few words to capture the essence of the moment. Your consciousness will add to the river of consciousness that's flowing, this month, throughout the world, thanks to the effort and inspiration of Fiona and Kaspa at Writing Our Way Home. They don't have to be great literature, just "small stones." I wrote two yesterday:

One small, plastic
Buddha--relic
from an abandoned
key-ring--squats
imperturbably
beside the microwave.
One more
cup of coffee,
steaming. Equanimity?

And:

Dead birds
of paradise
in the flower vase,
their heads brown,
skeletal. In offended
dignity, they await
removal to the trash--
the green bin.

There. Simple. Done in no time at all. A tribute to a moment valued, not ignored like too many of our moments. If you're not writing a small stone a day, maybe you should be. Give it a try. The world will thank you.

3 comments:

eva said...

Peter, I so admire your creative input into so many things. Like the output of small stones. I tried it, but shied away sending it worriing about its incorrect English. I already pre-ordered your new book and waiting excitedly for its arrival.
Happy New Year to you all, including Luka's first one.

Peter Clothier said...

Thanks, Eva! You're probably the first to order the book. Delighted it was you! Don't worry about the English: it's not a grammar contest! Happy New Year to you

S.E.Ingraham said...

very nice stones; I particularly like the one about the Birds of Paradise - great play on words ...