what is it good for? (#9)
the
long and
short of war
is recorded
in absence—spattered
between the holes in the
skin of ordinary lives–
those empty spaces echoing
with unknowing, with what could have been
Day 30 of NaPoWriMo linked us to oddness for inspiration–I clicked on “Pieces of History” first and was immediately confronted with war, long and short. There’s no escaping it, it seems.
When Nina and I first started our blog, I was doing mostly art, trying to make it a regular practice again. One of the series I did then was called “what is it good for?”. #8 was posted in 2014…and so it goes, the same question continues. With #9, a nonet.
I want to thank the NaPoWriMo hosting site for connecting me to so many wonderful poets and pieces of writing, and for helping me actually do 30 poems for the first time.
And to Joan Mitchell, for inspiring every piece of art I made for NaPoWriMo. The works that I used as references are below.
method two madness 
These lines: “those empty spaces echoing
with unknowing, with what could have been”
It is interesting that Jane and you, and me a bit–all wrote about war. And yes, the long and short of history, recorded (and not).
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And those lines are so true to “absolutely nothing”
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Yes.
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Those two words say it all.
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Thanks Merril. Our thoughts do seem to synchronize at times.
War is much with us these days…as always I guess. But it seems quite intensely there right now.
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Breath-taking. So simple and poignant.
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Thank you.
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In sync again. It’s maybe a sign of getting older, but when someone says think of something strange, I just don’t think cutesie Mermicorns any more. Your words are so stark and simple yet they sum up so much of what war is about.
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Thanks Jane. No, you don’t need to try that hard. Life is strange enough as it is.
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I don’t see the need for Mermicorns either.
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I’ve enjoyed both your art and your poetry so much this month? The lusciousness of the colours and playful looseness of the forms has often been a balm to the state of my brain.
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Thanks Angela! I enjoy your inventiveness and sense of humor. As always, poetic dialogues will be continued…
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Well done for completing your art and poetry challenge this month…. I love your sources of art inspiration… !
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Thanks–yes Joan Mitchell is endlessly inspiring.
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Tremendous poem. The artwork is lovely.
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Thank you.
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A powerful conclusion to your April series.
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Thank you Janice. I’m feeling the weight of the world’s wars these days.
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A hard reality.
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Inspired! In fact, I just uploaded a ‘Nonet’ of my own onto my blog. It’s linked below. I’d love it if you would have a look over it and leave me some tips on how to improve. I’m sure I could learn a lot from you. I hope you like it!
https://poeticaparadisum.wordpress.com/2018/05/10/illusory-happiness-nonet/
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Can I give you some advice? don’t send these generic comments. Read the poem and comment on it specifically if you want to form a relationship with other bloggers. That is much more likely to get a response.
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I’ll try that! I just wanted to get the word out about my poems, because I really want the advice of all of the amazing poets on WordPress just like you!
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Could you suggest other ways to get the word out there about my poems?
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It’s all about establishing relationships. You read others’ work and comment, and often they will come and do the same for you. You might try doing some prompts on dVerse…everyone posts their responses and reads and comments on everyone else’s and it’s a good way to get connected. It’s not just you posting your poems, it’s you reading other people’s poems as well. You will find some bloggers you connect with and that will be helpful in many ways. But it’s always a two-way street, not just you getting your work read. And it takes time, sometimes lots of time. Good luck!
here’s the link to dVerse
https://dversepoets.com/
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Thank you so much for the advice!
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I have an idea… Do you think it would be a good idea to post a paragraph specifically about the poem, and then post the link to my own blog? I’d love to hear your thoughts.
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As I said in my other reply, you have to reach out to others about their work first, and then some will reply and look at and comment on yours.
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Great I get it now thanks!
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