Faithful Nest

Bamboo grows in what can only be described as fits and spurts. That is the visible portion waving at you. Below ground, it is furiously storing energy for its future appearance. What appears to be a stagnant plant is actually moving along quite nicely.

You might know where I’m going, but let’s take the trip.

I started a writing workshop back in the chill of winter. I lied, I morphed a previous group to a new location and a change of focus. But we started in that new locus in February.

For several months it was a small group of as few as two (including me) and no more than four. It seems a bit lonely and not very profitable for the shop owner to entertain such a group. We persevered.

Little did I know that this group was building up energy for a rapid growth. All of a sudden new members popped in. We are gaining momentum as we continue.

Maybe I did know. I put my energy into promoting the workshop at open mics. It has become part of my bio at the beginning of my readings. Announcements go out on my Instagram (yes, I have one – ktownteach15). Energy and tending lead to growth.

This happens with my writing, too. I feel I do some of my best writing by putting in forethought. Occasionally, I sit down and write out a full blown piece. Those are often a poem with a fleeting emotional basis. Get it down and get all the angles before the moment passes and the possibilities diminish.

If I am writing to a prompt or a topic that is not fully developed, there are a number of ways I can put in energy before writing a single word. This resembles planting a garden.

Deciding what to plant aka research: this is not going to the internet or the library or any oficial respository of learning. It is letting my psyche explore an interesting topic. Word association is a great place to start. Write down all the words that come to mind about this topic. Image association is next. What do I see in my mind when I think of this topic?

Obtaining seeds or plants which resembles information gathering: now we can seek out depth to some of those words or images on which I have incomplete knowledge. Remember that this is a step on the way. Otherwise, the act of gathering can feel like an accomplishment. I am comfortable walking away and forget to return. A box is checked in my mind. It is simply more energy going into that bamboo plant.

Timing of work is like planning a garden to culminate in a common harvest. Imagine a pizza garden. You don’t grow pizzas, you grow tomatoes, garlic, basil, onions. You know, pizza ingredients. They need to be ripe at the same time – unless you decide to can them.

Plant and tend your garden. By now I have put in enough energy to give that idea room to grow. Now I find a quiet spot – or if the idea is exciting enough – get all the words down that that flesh out this idea. Each aspect and detail is explored as thoroughly as possible. That’s when I discover whether I’ve put enough energy into it to produce a grand growth. Sometimes it is back to the research.

It is an analogy that is not perfect. We can reach and try to get all this to make some kind of crazy sense. The truth is, you will have to do a lot of editing and rewriting along the way. You might set it aside for a time (or maybe that is just my habit).

However you work, I hope your bamboo shoots into a spray of greenery!

Photo: David Edwards