A Flash of Fiction

The days have grown shorter and night falls somewhere around 4:30. I've never liked this time of year. The short daylight hours are depressing and like some folks I have experienced that SAD that slows us down in winter. However, as a writer, there is a plus side to all this darkness.

 It's early morning and I fill a glass with warm water, lemon juice and honey and head to my writing room. I light a vanilla scented candle, cradle my rose quartz in my palms and close my eyes. The silence and stillness of morning calms me and sends me into a writing mood. After a few minutes of meditation it's time to get to work.

 At present I am working on a self-made course under the tutelage of poet and teacher Lorraine (Bird) Mejia. I have the new collection by Mary Oliver titled "Devotions" and I am using that as a guide. Each morning I open the precious book to a random page and read the poem. I copy down a line or two that strikes my heart and then write my own poems from those ideas. It's a challenge since I generally write poems that just pop into my head. I usually don't like writing poetry from prompts but I love a challenge and I'm enjoying this. I'm also trying to write longer poems that have more meaning. Sort of following the pattern of Mary Oliver's poems that hone in on details of nature and then attach a universal human element or life lesson.

 I can't compete with the beauty and depth of her poems but I can do my best and hopefully come out at the end with a new collection of my own.

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