Kelli Russell Agodon's Blog, page 41

The Endings I Love: New Year's & Becoming the Person You Want to Be.

Ghosts of people who once had time...





When it comes to December, I love the end of the year because I know it's a time I can start fresh again.



I like the feeling that I can wake up with a fresh calendar and clean slate.  Actually, every morning we have that, but with the year change, it feels bigger.



It feels like a new opportunity to be the person I want to be.



The older I get, the more I realize we can be whomever we want to be.  We choose our thoughts, our dress, our priorities, our actions.



If we are not the person we want to be, if we are not living the life we want to live, there is only one way to look-- in the mirror.  Our lives do not just appear in front of us, we create them.



Yes, there are many things we don't plan for, many things that catch us off guard, but mostly, the every day stuff, the things we choose to do with our time-- that's us.



When I was younger, this freaked me out a bit.  It was much easier to see my life as a series of bad things that happened to me or because this was just how things were than to take any sort of accountability or action for my unhappiness or dissatisfaction with the way things were.



What I don't think I realized is that we are each given our time and we choose how we want to use it.



Do I want to write or watch reruns of Glee?

Do I want to make my way as a writer in the world or do I want to do laundry?  (Note: sometimes you have to do laundry.)



We are in the places we are because of decisions we made in the past.



If you are not happy with your life, ask yourself, "What can I do differently?  Better?"

If you are happy with your life, ask yourself, "How can I continue to keep this happiness or maybe, even create more?"



What do you like about your life right now and what do you want to change?



~



What have I learned most in 2012?



That I need to stretch from my comfort zone and do things that make me uncomfortable, I need to do things that stretch myself.



I have learned that big changes happen with little steps forward.



I am nowhere near perfect, but the older I get the more I realize how this is my life and I may not always be steering it (or steering it perfectly), I can definitely lean in the direction I hope to go.





Cheers to all of you in the New Year and sending much good energy to the person you are and person you hope to become in 2013...





~ Kells



 

~ Click here to subscribe to Book of Kells by email or in your favorite readerKelli Russell Agodon
www.facebook.com/agodon

"There is no denying the wild horse in us." Virginia Woolf

[image error]




~ Kells



 
~ Click here to subscribe to Book of Kells by email or in your favorite readerKelli Russell Agodon
www.facebook.com/agodon

After the Holidays, And It's Time to Return to Writing...

[image error]




Sometimes I think there are three levels of Christmas.



1)  Level 1: The Watcher:  You don't partake in the holiday.  Either you are an atheist, Jewish, don't have kids, don't care, have better things to do, enjoy the simple life without the need to buy lots of stuff for your family, are truly spiritual &/or celebrate Kwanzaa, the Solstice, Festivus, or something else entirely.  If you celebrate Christmas at all, it is a small gift exchange that is similar to a birthday.



2)  Level 2: The Average Family:  You are religious or not, but put more emphasis on "Christ" than the "mass."  You have a smaller family with kids, you have no divorces in your family, you have traditions, but don't feel tired.  You have a list, but no more than 5-7 people tops.  Christmas is just another holiday you like, but it comes and goes without too much issue. You have a tree, but you may get it the week before Christmas or whenever and that's okay.



3)  Level 3: Too Excess:  You are or are not religious and/or Catholic and Christmas is an event that takes months of planning and coordination.  You arrive not just at one house dressed in red, but at least 2, sometimes three. You know where Candy Cane Lane is and you view it yearly along with a mass of other traditions.  People do not hear from you the week before Christmas because you are running around like a nut.  You know ever Christmas carol and may think that Christmas is the happiest time of the year though sometimes you are sad and aren't sure why.





Dear Readers,



I am a Level 3 Christmas partaker.  In my best world, I am Level 2, but honestly, I have never been a 2 and never even close to a 1.  Christmas is HUGE in my family.  People do not see me (except at holiday festivities dressed in red) the week before Christmas.



During this winter break, when I should have time to write, I'm wrapping.  With a W.  I'm not rapping.



Now, there are bags of gifts under our tree, so much stuff to put away, and all I want to do is write.



I want to write and write and do anything creative.



I know for me, the last week of December is putting everything away, making huge donations to Goodwill, simplifying and trying it all again.  Starting anew.



Every year.



Every year I clean up and start over, by December of next year, I am a mess of stuff and time has slipped away.



But for now, I am on winter break, not taking phone calls, rarely checking email and returning to what is what I once knew as the writing life.



Christmas always pulls the rug out from under me, but January reminds my goal-oriented self to pull it together.  I'm a work in progress.  Trying to be creative, trying to write even with the clutter of Christmas breathing down my neck..... I will move forward.



Cheers to a new year!!









~ Kells

 

~ Click here to subscribe to Book of Kells by email or in your favorite readerKelli Russell Agodon
www.facebook.com/agodon

Generating New Work Class & Sending (Polished) Work into the World for Poets in Seattle, Feb 2.

[image error]

Susan Rich and I are hosting a 4-hour class in Seattle on Saturday, February 2, 2013 

and as of 12/27/12 at 5 pm we have 5 spaces left.




We'll spending first three hours writing new poems and starts for poems, then finish the last hour up with submitting our work and a Q&A period.




What you will leave this class with--




New poems or starts to new poems

At least one submission out in the world 




It should be a fun way to start out 2013--writing poems and getting older poems we have finished into the world!







More information below if you're interested!  And please feel free to share with others~



Generating New Poems and Sending (Polished) Poems into the World
February 2nd, 11:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Lake Union Area Seattle

For those poets who want to begin several new poems and then submit (more polished) work to literary journals.

Join Susan Rich & Kelli Russell Agodon in a 4 hour class, February 2, 2013,  which includes writing exercises, how to submit your work and a discussion of which journals suit you best.

Not only will we discuss submitting your work, but before this class, Kelli & I will have you send in 3-4 finished poems and we will prepare a submission for you-- including a cover letter, SASE, and choose the literary journal best for you.

Let's start the new year right with new poems and new publications.


Limited to 16 participants
To Register and Have Have Us Hold Your Space:

Email me at at kelli (at) agodon.com  to let us know you're coming 


Then mail your check for $96 (made out to Kelli Agodon) to:
Kelli Agodon
PO Box 1524
Kingston, WA 98346

 More information: http://agodon.com/classes.html


Thanks so much!



~ Kells



 

~ Click here to subscribe to Book of Kells by email or in your favorite readerKelli Russell Agodon
www.facebook.com/agodon

Merry Christmas from Book of Kells to You!

Hope it's happy!



~ Kells



 
~ Click here to subscribe to Book of Kells by email or in your favorite readerKelli Russell Agodon
www.facebook.com/agodon

Generating New Work Class Offered to NW Poets: Feb 2 in #Seattle @susanrichpoet @kelliagodon #amwriting

Susan Rich & I are offering a class on Groundhog Day 2013 to help poets get some new work as well as send some older, more finished work out into the world.



I think we have about 7 more spots available, so if you're interested drop me an email at kelli (at) agodon.com and I'll hold your spot while you mail your check.



Here are some details on it--





Generating New Poems and Sending (Other) Poems into the World
For poets who want to write new poems as well as submit their work to literary journals, this is the class for you.  
Join Susan Rich & Kelli Russell Agodon in a 4 hour class of February 2, 2013 to do writing exercises and spend the last hour discussing  submitting your work and answering your questions.

Not only will you discuss submitting your work, but before this class, Kelli & Susan will have you send them 3-4 finished poems and they will prepare a submission for you-- including a cover letter, SASE, and choosing the literary journal for you.  

If you want to start the year out right with new poems and some older poems out in the world, please join us for this class.
Limit to: 16 participants


To Register & Hold Your Space:

Mail your check for $96 (made out to Kelli Agodon) to:
Kelli Agodon
PO Box 1524
Kingston, WA  98346

(And drop us an email at kelli (at) agodon.com so we can save you a spot.)



Here it is on my website if you want to pay by PayPal.



~ Kells



 

~ Click here to subscribe to Book of Kells by email or in your favorite readerKelli Russell Agodon
www.facebook.com/agodon

My Next Best Thing Q&A on my Third Collection

I was tagged by Midge Raymond for this Q&A on my next book.  

Here are my answers and you can go to her blog to see what she's up to... (I will be tagging  Martha Silano, & January O'Neill - I was planning on tagging Jeannine Hall Gailey, but Ivy Alvarez beat me too it!  )




What is the working title of your book?

Hourglass Museum




Where did the idea come from for the book?

I guess the goofy answer would be--my imagination.  

Mostly I started looking at the poems I was writing and imagined putting them in a book as one does exhibitions in the museum.  How would that look?  What would be included?  

The more I thought about it, the more poems I wrote.




What genre does your book fall under?

Poetry




Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

The "I" in the poem, which is the speaker and includes much of myself, feelings, and experiences would be played by Maggie Gyllenhaal because the woman at my local post office thinks I look like her.  

The "He" in the poem, who many times takes the place my husband in real life, would be Antonio Banderas.  And if Antonio Banderas was playing my husband in the movie, I would play myself.

There are many cameos in here by famous artists-- I would want their ghosts to play them.   




What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

Art reflected in life reflected back in art again --or-- everything is beautiful if you stop tearing it apart.




How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?

At least a year, but probably longer.  




Who or what inspired you to write this book?

God, the ghosts of dead artists, or just that inner desire we have as writers.  




What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?

The second section is called "Sketchbook of Nudes."













~ Kells

 

~ Click here to subscribe to Book of Kells by email or in your favorite readerKelli Russell Agodon
www.facebook.com/agodon

Confession Tuesday: The Gratitude Edition

[image error]




Dear Reader,



It's been a tough week for many so today's confessions are a gratitude list of what I love & are thankful for.



To the confessional--



I confess the simple things--turning on the heater, hot showers, food in the refrigerator, unpolluted drinking water from the tap, shelter--are things I am thankful for daily.  I have little idea how any of them really truly work, but am thankful for all of them.



I confess I'm constantly amazed how I can send email to people around the world and they get it in seconds.



I confess I am thankful for both science and spirituality and do not feel you have to choose one or the other.



I confess I love Total cereal and seeing it in the morning makes me happy.  As does coffee. And bubble water.



I confess when I heard of the school shooting I looked this video and it made me feel better:









"Take away my trouble, take away my grief

   Take away my heartache..."

I confess I am thankful for geography.  My life is good because of where I was born.  And my parents. And who is around me.  There's a lot things I had no control of and I am thankful they all worked out for me.



I confess all the things that make me nutty about my family--their messes, the chaos, the emotional highs & lows, the details, the scheduling--I am thankful for because without them, I would be sad and lonely.  These are the people who keep my heart alive and warm and give me reason to live.



I confess I can't imagine living a life without pets.



I confess sometimes I look at my golden retriever and think he is the most beautiful dog in the world.



I confess tragedies remind me of the heartbeats around me and people & pets trump everything in the end.



They give me love, love, love, love, crazy love...







Thank you. Again and again.



Amen.









~ Kells



 
~ Click here to subscribe to Book of Kells by email or in your favorite readerKelli Russell Agodon
www.facebook.com/agodon

Healing through Poetry: Excerpt from a Denise Levertov Poem

I suck when dealing with tragedy. Really, there's no better way to say this.



When something terrible happens, I become unfocused, don't stop checking the news, and basically feel a knot begin in my stomach.



This happened to me Friday after the Newtown Elementary School shootings.  My husband was at the store and he called me and I knew about them, but I didn't tell him because I wanted him to live a little longer without the knowledge of knowing 20 children had been murdered at school.



Can you believe I am typing that?  Murdered at school?  First graders?



It sickens me and angers me and depresses me and makes me so sad.



But we have to move forward and I realize there's a time when reading or watching the news is only hurting us more.  It is in these times that I turn to books and poetry.



I can't make sense of what happened.



But I can use another's words to help me heal.  On Friday, it was Denise Levertov's poem (first published in 1981) called "Mass of the Day of St. Thomas Didymus."  This is from the second section "Gloria."



The typewriter is my own, my old Corona (think 1929 or 1937, I forget as I type this).  The evergreens are from my tree and the poem, that's all of ours to have now.



Here's the full section, the above was what I needed to get me through, to help me begin healing.






ii  Gloria



Praise the wet snow

        falling early.

Praise the shadow

        my neighor's chimney casts on the tile roof

even this gray October day that should, they say,

have been golden.

                Praise

the invisible sun burning beyond

     the white cold sky, giving us

light and the chimney's shadow.

Praise

god or the gods, the unknown,

that which imagined us, which stays

our hand,

our murderous hand,

                   and gives us

still,

in the shadow of death,

            our daily life,

            and the dream still

of goodwill, of peace on earth.

Praise

flow and change, night and

the pulse of day.






 



I signed this petition on the White House webpage to begin talking and making changes in America on gun control when it was at 15,000 names. It's currently at 168,000. 



It helped me feel as if I was making a difference.  If you want to sign it, feel free. 



Anyway, I hope you are all healing and finding good in your world.



Be well.



~ Kells

 

~ Click here to subscribe to Book of Kells by email or in your favorite readerKelli Russell Agodon
www.facebook.com/agodon

Another Tragic Day in America: Words about GunControl from The West Wing

What he said--








~ Kells



 

~ Click here to subscribe to Book of Kells by email or in your favorite readerKelli Russell Agodon
www.facebook.com/agodon