1. I like to think that I am generally good at keeping up routines, but apparently I’m not good at the routine of keeping up a blog. This is the least interesting of the three. 2. Sometimes, looking at the big picture doesn’t help. Writing was not going terribly well the last little while—and by … Continue reading Three things I’ve learned recently
Category: Uncategorized
Where poetry comes from
Recently I came across that line by William Wordsworth about poetry having its origin in “emotion recollected in tranquility.” It had been so long since I’d read Wordsworth that I couldn’t recall the context of that phrase, and suspected that there was a bit more to it. The quotation is from the Preface to the second edition … Continue reading Where poetry comes from
To the dictionary, and beyond
I began using an online dictionary a few years ago—not because I found it more convenient than a paper dictionary, but because my old Webster’s is just too distracting. I would open it up, intending to look up “phaeton,” and right next to it I’d see “phage,” which has nothing to do with “phaeton” but … Continue reading To the dictionary, and beyond
Elise Partridge
I was sorry to hear of Vancouver poet Elise Partridge’s death in late January. Not because I knew her—I didn’t—but because, even though a poet’s words will still exist after she dies, that death ensures that there won’t be any more words than what’s already out there. And by all accounts, it would have been a privilege … Continue reading Elise Partridge
Canadian Writers’ Blog Tour
I’ve just been tagged by friend and fellow writer Angeline Schellenberg to join the Canadian Writers’ Blog Tour. Angeline is a poet who just had her first book manuscript accepted, for which I am quite excited. And I love the title of her blog: 37 Mice. Some writers have compared this to a “chain letter,” … Continue reading Canadian Writers’ Blog Tour
Leaves on the family tree
Summer is reunion season. On the August long weekend my mother’s family, the Klaassens, gathered in Saskatchewan to visit and to recount family history. It occurred to me, not for the first time, that our family is very fortunate in having a wealth of documents detailing its history. We have diaries and memoirs, as well … Continue reading Leaves on the family tree
Naming flowers
I’ve just returned from a week of vacation in a nearby provincial park where, among other things, I discovered many wildflowers I’d never seen before. After my initial delight and surprise I realized this was because, in other years, we’d always gone there in August, when many of these flowers were no longer in bloom, … Continue reading Naming flowers
Winter trifles
It is a cold day in Winnipeg, a real freeze-your-face-off day, and while walking to a nearby café to meet some friends for a late breakfast I remembered this little poem: Oh, the cold of Canada nobody knows, The fire burns our shoes without warming our toes; Oh, dear, what shall we do? Our blankets … Continue reading Winter trifles