Weekly Poetry & Visuals: No 1

How it started

Well, hello.

Tired of other social media platforms, and full of excitement, I decided to move my poetry here.

Recently, while I was writing in my most private journal, the memories of a much younger self started to come back. Before I started art school in Gdynia, Poland, at the age of 12, I was obsessed with writing poetry. I was an active member of a local poetry writing group organised by a cultural centre. The vague memories of the seasoned writer/poet who facilitated the group include her long red nails, the deep wrinkles on her kind and smiley face, and eccentric outfits on her rather short body. More importantly, she was a fantastic mentor who managed to encourage my regular writing practice. A few of my poems were printed in a local poetry publication. Those re-emerging memories somehow gave me the quiet permission to write again. Roughly a month ago, I decided to add “writing a short, imperfect poem” to my daily routine, which already includes Duolingo and writing one paragraph a day in my 5-year notebook.

Since I started to write, some days have felt more challenging than others. In May, I experienced heartache, stress, conflict, and the loss of a close family member. I kept showing up for my writing challenge, especially on days when I really didn’t feel like it.

I’ll be keeping some of my poems for future submissions, but most of them will be available here.

As I write this post, my subscriber count is 0. If you want to follow along, feel free to join my journey. I’ll be flattered.

I’m pairing my short poems with photographs I took using my 15-year-old, slow but charming camera. Another practice that revives my creative juices.

Weight of the night approaching
      mental overload
Flowy shapes of maroon and gold
     eyelids shut
Pencil embedding dance on paper
     slow release

Delicate baby green
leaf rolled in a tube
leans towards the light.
I can grow here too.

PMS

A tender base of the monthly hormonal cliff 
intertwined with pressure headache
at the heart of composition
top notes of anger

DEE STOPPA