anthony north over at beyond the blog has asked that we write a post about writing… what it means to us… i wrote this one back in june… but i just could not say it any better,, so i decided to reprint it here for you today…..
to me,, it is all about the words… i write about me.. as i am all that i know… i write about how i feel and how i see things,, and how the way i see things influences the way i do things… i write for me.. but i am ever so pleased when you join me…
while it is true, in every respect, that i prefer being alone to any other social situation,, i have so enjoyed the company and the feeling of belonging that i have when i am here… on this page… i feel at home.. here, with you….
you will never know, and quite frankly i would be embarrassed to tell you,, how much time i spend each day thinking about,, composing, writing, re-writing, editing, correcting, and finding the exact artistic accoutrement that i want to become my finished work… my offering of the day… my gift not only to you… but to myself….
i have written all my life… yet,, i have shared few pieces of my written self with anyone… ever… till now…
in recent years, for whatever reason, i could not really put pen to paper… or finger to key.. the disintegration of my writings over the course of the past few years, saw them becoming more of a to do list,,, and less a window to my soul… i became disillusioned. i became afraid .. it was as if my words had fallen asleep,, and no amount of desire on my part could lure them back….
i am, and have always been,, fascinated with the words, their power, their authority, the feeling of control i have when they string themselves together in such a way as to replicate,, feeling,, emotion,, life… their ability to carry me along,, drag me,, toss and turn me,, as sometimes they fly from the tips of my fingers with such force,, that i cannot move fast enough to accommodate their urgency….
they come from a place inside of me i cannot touch in any other way.. i cannot coax them out,, i cannot cause them to flow.. but when they do,, it is as if i become their humble servant,, transcribing the rabid dictation that is being given me by this hidden entity inside my head,, and it is with obedience and submissive desire that i allow it to make its presence known,, to flow thru me,, until it climaxes at some point,, of its own discretion… and ebbs away… till the next time it desires to be heard..
but as it if it has breath, and life, and a soul of its own…when it recedes from me… it is gone.. leaving behind only this.. its mark,, its legacy,, the branding of its heart…
when i leave off, i am often exhausted.. but by the same token empowered… if i can read it out loud, and it flows from my lips like i am speaking it for the first time… i am the happiest woman alive….
no matter what the basis for the sentiment is,, no matter how acerbic the text,, prickly the prose,, painful the emotion, or frustrated the feeling…..
it is the words.. the magical words.. they are the gift… they are the offering… as without them.. the rest is nothing….
so when i write, when i offer this up to the paper, to the page, to the reader,, to myself… my gift is more often the poignancy and the magic of the words.. and how they are spoken,, how they flow off the tongue,, how they lead us to places in the heart, we have never been,, and may not want to go… ah yes… that is the true embodiment of the piece.. and not the sentiment at all….
photo:
http://inner.deviantart.com/art/the-Words-25879068
March 8th, 2008 at 5:23 am
Those are words from the soul, direct from the muse. I’m not so sure that words hold power. Rather, they are a source of influence, which can be greater than power, changing the reader, changing society, and changing the writer his, or her, self.
Power tends to be short term and something forced on the person. Influence is accepted and eternal.
March 8th, 2008 at 5:46 am
Paisley it amazes me how much time i spend on the internet.. and off it, thinking about what I write and read…but have to admit that reading people like you, has changed me so much.. and so is spending my time writing.. i think I have finally found a way to cool my anger
March 8th, 2008 at 6:16 am
Paisley,
the manner in which you arrange words that you have been given/chosen excites and peaks attention. they go to the soul and pull long idle feelings to the surface. I’d have to say that besides satisfying yourself your writings activate the dormant poet in all of us.
This is a piece my dad wrote, probably near or just before you were born; let me know what you think of it.
http://travail-littraire.blogspot.com/2006/08/not-with-whimper-world-will-end-when.html
rel
March 8th, 2008 at 12:36 pm
Paisley,
As I was reading this, I felt I in many ways that I could have been reading about myself. Yet, but what is a writer but the composite parts of yourself, your experiences and the filtering eye of how you view the world? And, it is in that, that we are all unique because we bring our “own” words to the table. No one else can write for us and by the same token we cannot write about things to which we have no connection. I think your writing is indeed powerful, thought-provoking, raw, beautiful, dynamic….I could go on. I find you to be one of the finest writers in this blogging community and I always look forward to your next penned thought. This, this personal view into yourself, was beautiful and beautifully written. Thank you for sharing.
Blessings,
Rebecca
March 8th, 2008 at 2:56 pm
I enjoyed reading this post and perusing your blog. I really like your style…..I’ll be back! And thanks for stopping by mine.
March 8th, 2008 at 3:30 pm
I like the new layout….
I know how you feel, I used to never show my writing to anyone. Nobody knew I was a poet until a couple of months ago.
March 8th, 2008 at 5:15 pm
I resonated with you in this peace. Beautiful and true. I felt like I was stepping into a sacred place.
Thank you for visiting.
March 8th, 2008 at 6:24 pm
‘you will never know, how much time i spend each day thinking about, composing, writing, re-writing, editing, correcting, and finding the exact artistic accoutrement that i want to become my finished work’
Me, too! Though for me a lot of this is visual imagery from my story that I play over and over in my head before I set it down as words.
March 8th, 2008 at 6:56 pm
When I’m not physically engaged in the act of writing I am always playing about with images in my head. It is a constant process. You have summed up so well what it means to be a writer - that a writer in fact, cannot NOT write. BTW, I like the new look too.
March 8th, 2008 at 9:40 pm
Direct, authentic, uncompromising and with artistic integrity!
March 9th, 2008 at 8:57 am
wonderful pice that hits close to home paisley..I have had to fade away and comeback in a different format because of some personal issues..but I am happy to be back and reading your words
March 9th, 2008 at 12:31 pm
I could NOT have said this any better…In fact I wish I had written it. Perfect post.
March 9th, 2008 at 4:47 pm
You definitely write from the heart. No matter how heart-breaking the words were, you brought them out just right in your own style. You know how to use them and they always leave the reader thinking.
March 9th, 2008 at 6:00 pm
“when they string themselves together in such a way…” Don’t they ever. And I agree that I often wonder about how much time I can spend thinking about, planning, drafting, and revising what I write — when it’s something I feel deeply. Lately, that has not been the case, because I am what I refer to as a laborious writer. The process is quite lengthy. This piece gave me pause, making me question why I’ve not been taking the time. So this, today, has made me wonder.
March 10th, 2008 at 2:59 am
Thank you my friend…lets say although fictional…I had a vision…thank you!!!
March 10th, 2008 at 2:56 pm
Those fourteen that wrote before me said it all…
March 14th, 2008 at 1:47 pm
Hi Paisley, I’m so glad that I stopped in to visit your blog. Got here via The Clarity of Night.
This post hits home with me on so many levels; as do many of the others I’ve read so far. What a beautiful, evocative experience it is to be here. Thanks for sharing your innermost thoughts with all of us.
March 15th, 2008 at 8:00 pm
I love how this piece seems to evolve as a 3 way dialogue - YOU as the speaker to you as the listener and to “us”. We become a part of the dialogue because so much resonates with so many.
A lovely write!