February 12, 2019. Now and then a poem emerges in response to something I’ve read. This is one of those – from puzzling over what Robert Okaji might’ve been thinking when he wrote Window Open, Closed. Realities include Robert’s poem, listening to Alan Watts, and the imagery. Our bay tree suffered heavily in 2018’s freeze, and though now only a fraction of its former size, the image reflects its determination to keep flavoring our suppers. The photo collage includes a prior moon and prior clouds.
Read Robert’s poem here: https://robertokaji.com – click HOME and scroll down to Window Open, Closed.
Listen to Alan Watts “Let Go Of Attachment” on http://www.youtube.com.
I bit of synchronicity – that bay tree with Alan Watts and Robert Okaji.
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Thanks! Wonder what Watts might perceive in Okaji’s bay tree and moon?
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Jazz, what a wonderful post. The poem is captivating; the ending was a surprise. I love poetry that asks questions with no definitive answers. And the graphic – just lovely juxtapositioning. You are inspiring me to learn some of the features on my new photo editing app.
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Luanne, thank you. I encourage anyone who isn’t proficient drawing or painting “what’s in your head” to indulge in collage – either with magazine clippings or digital images. I got started via SoulCollage(R), a Jungian-based process for introspection using found images – still actively doing that, but also engage collage for creative expression. It’s FUN!
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Reblogged this on O at the Edges and commented:
An intriguing and wonderful response. Having and letting go…
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Nice! Now your response is going to need a response!
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Yes, coming in empty-handed indeed triggers a response!
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Alan Watts does has an ‘irresistible’ voice. I like that you chose to write this in third person, questioning – was so lost in the description, the mind looking for an answer that the act of forgetting at the end was a surprise. Wonderfully written.
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VJ, thanks … I’d been listening to Watts a day or so before I wrote this … the bit about clinging still pestering me upstairs … I’ve been going back and forth between YouTube audio and his books; now when I’m reading, my brain pumps in the force of the audios.
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I think so much of what we do is unconscious. I rattle this stuff around in my head too – can drive us crazy – but makes great fodder for poetry.
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Well you write so effortlessly, with such inspiration. Your blog is a beautiful calming place, and if it did not require plastering my eyes to an electronic screen I definitely would be here more often (yes my job is looking at a monitor all day….)
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Diana, thank you – “effortlessly” might be exaggerated, but I am pleased that the poem pleased.
I used to stare at screens all day at work – I’d come home, turn off lights, sit listening to music. Thank you for coming to my blog in spite of tired eyes.
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Oh you have given me a lovely idea for Friday night …. but I’ll add a candle and a a little chocolate 🙂
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