Joy is not a trick

The line is from Instructions for Traveling West by Joy Sullivan.  Joy is not a trick. It might not last but nothing lasts. Not truly.  Joy is not a trick. It’s a signal, telling you something is right. Life is good if you are still enjoying something.  Joy is not a trick. Or maybe itContinue reading “Joy is not a trick”

I’m worse than I thought and also better

The starting sentence is from Knee Sounds by Courtney Martin.  I’m worse than I thought and also better. I thought I could bite the bullet on anything but I couldn’t. Yet, learning that I couldn’t and wouldn’t was important. Learning about choice was important.  I’m worse than I thought and also better. There was alwaysContinue reading “I’m worse than I thought and also better”

When I try to explain where I’m from people imagine…

The jump-off line is from In Your Next Letter by Carrie Shipers.  When I try to explain where I’m from people imagine shopping and food. I interrupt with tall buildings, noise and the stink of markets. Here, most of the food are frozen so they don’t stink as bad. But in a market where youContinue reading “When I try to explain where I’m from people imagine…”

When the moon came up…

Different than usual, the jump-off line is actually from the novel Lord of Emperors by Guy Gavriel Kay. For a while, I was doing Wild Writing daily so I had to supplement the Laurie Wagner videos with a source of my own. And that’s when I turned to fiction. I think the piece below isContinue reading “When the moon came up…”

Forgive yourself

The jump-off line comes from A Course In Miracles by Megan Freitag.  Forgive yourself the words of retort that you were too slow to say. Forgive yourself the fear and helplessness behind the dignity maintained in front of the public which everyone else saw as silence and passiveness. Forgive yourself the sleepless nights in whichContinue reading “Forgive yourself”

I want to put it behind me…

This is just a line invented by Laurie Wagner who runs Wild Writing. I took it instead of any of the lines from the poem. That happens. I found out when I’m not inspired by a line, I just am not. This piece is not just about me. Laurie’s Wild Writing is more about truthContinue reading “I want to put it behind me…”

We are learning…

The jump-off line is from New Day’s Lyric by Amanda Gorman.  We are learning the way of it, the way to move, the way to navigate through time.  We are learning to unravel, to delve into the inner workings, to know what was once unknowable.  We are learning to dissemble, to bide our time withContinue reading We are learning…

We know this though we forget…

The jump-off line is from the poem Nothing Wants to Suffer by Danusha Lameris.  We know this though we forget. We know that abduction of children occur even in advanced developed countries. We know that there might not be a tomorrow but we feel confident that there will be one for us.  We know thisContinue reading “We know this though we forget…”

Why I’m here…

The jump-off line is just the title of the poem Why I’m Here by Jacqueline Berger. And the whole piece is just a response to the line.  Because of the year 1997, when Hong Kong passed back into the hands of China. A mother decided to take her daughter away before that happened.  Because myContinue reading “Why I’m here…”

I was barefoot…

The line came from Forest Fires by Sarah Kay. Mostly I was talking about a fictional self but perhaps because of that, I quite like this piece.  I was barefoot, standing on rough ground. The ground is always rough when you stand barefoot.  I was barefoot, a wild child, running across rough ground, heedless ofContinue reading “I was barefoot…”