d. ellis phelps's Blog, page 17

every day is earth day…a poem

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The earth is in our hands…every thought we have and every action we take matters

because the rivers skies and seas

are not toys but living          see?

In this darkly playful poem, written after “Animal Fair,”a beloved song  that my mother used to sing to me when I was a child, I explore topics like global warming; deforestation; plastic & chemical pollution, and the dire need for humans to re-connect with the outdoors and with our Mother.

It is a call to a multitude of actions, actions that must be taken if our planet and our species are to survive.

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vote for sun and wind            not oil

please        don’t let our planet spoil

write to congress      sound the alarms

help!      save the bees and bears and farms

Don’t let the rhyming fool you.  Saving the earth and ourselves is serious business.

Together, we can…  Read every day is earth day in its entirety here.

 

images:  used with permission of the artist via creative commons with some rights reserved unless otherwise noted.  1)  “seed of earth”  by Sanjhowkokaji Chihiro   2)  “bee on a cosmos flower” by ksblack99 (public domain)
d. ellis phelps is the author of this poem, this blog and of the novel, Making Room for George (Moon Shadow Sanctuary Press, 2016)

 

 

 

 

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Guest Artist: Kerfe Roig

Please help me welcome guest artist, Kerfe Roig to formidableWoman!

In her poem, Gonna Take a Miracle, Ms. Roig pays tribute to the late Laura Nyro, an artist said to be “one of the most important female singer/songwriters of the 60s and 70s (Rolling Stone Magazine).” It’s Gonna Take a Miracle is also the title of a tribute to the sixties album and its title song released by Nyro in the seventies.  Nyro was the author of such hits as “Wedding Bell Blues” by the Fifth Dimension; “When I Die” (a personal favorite) by Blood, Sweat & Tears;” and “Stoney End” by by Barbara Striesand.  In 2012, Ms. Nyro was inducted into the Rock and Roll hall of fame.

In her poem, Ms. Roig speaks directly to Nyro and to us, women today, telling us to

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Go naturally.  Sing the madwoman, the sorceress, the witch of becoming, ….

In the style of Nyro, the poet laments griefs against women, against nature, against social justice wailing…

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Time is near. Still living in a paradise of fools. Still living in a valley full of the shadows of fallen angels.

The Devil is still hungry. The Devil is still sweet.

She admonishes us to

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Wash the sky, the water, the land, the air. Stand on the brown earth with dreams and a

white dove.

It is as though the poet channels the late song-writer, singing to us through her voice beyond the grave.  It is as though we are marching together, each carrying the torch of fury, claiming the “glory road!”

Read Gonna Take a Miracle (for Laura Nyro)  in its entirety here.

A resident of New York City, Kerfe Roig enjoys transforming words and images into something new. Follow her explorations on the blog she does with her friend Nina here and see more of her work on her website here.

 

images:  all are used via permission of the artist via creative commons with some rights reserved unless otherwise noted.  1) “witch” by Jose Angel Sanchez  2) “Goethe Girl on Day 12 Occupy Wall Street…” by David Shankbone   3) “the mother earth photo” by Tanveer Iqbal

 

d. ellis phelps is the author of this blog and of the novel, Making Room for George.

IAN Book of the Year Contest

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The 2018 Independent Author Network Book of the Year Awards Contest is now accepting entries.

This international contest is open to the public with 35 fiction and non-fiction categories.

This is their fourth annual contest and they are pleased to offer the same low entrance fees while awarding cash prizes to this year’s winning books. Winners are eligible to receive a share of cash prizes exceeding $6,000 US.

As an IAN member you qualify for discounted entry. Pay only $39 for entering your book in one category, and $30 for each additional category.

There is no limit on the number of books you can enter. Please visit the contest page at http://www.independentauthornetwork.com/book-of-the-year.html

 

image credit:  WordPress free photo stock

Guest Poet: Sandy Rochelle

Please welcome Sandy Rochelle to formidableWoman!

Ms. Rochelle’s poems speak of other worlds, worlds she enters as

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…fluid and love attach to [her] skin…

worlds she sees as

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…A remedy in the face of grief…

worlds of silence and silent invitation into

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…the Universe that lives in the palm of your hand.

This poignant work gives voice to a mother’s grief and to a great love revealing itself as palpable, familiar, eternal.

Read Space, David’s Gift and Love Again here:  Sandy Rochelle: three poems

Sandy is an award winning poet and filmmaker.  Her work has appeared in Connecticut River Review, West Wind Review, Black Buzzard Review, Spirit in the Words and Tuck Magazine & she is the author of the chapbook Soul Poems (Finishing Line Press).  Sandy is a featured artist in the film Bohemia The Life of a NYC Poet, where she reads poems about her son, David, who is both autistic and deaf.  Sandy has the honor of being named New York State Mother of the Year.

To learn more about Sandy’s work in the world, visit her website here.

 

image credits:  All images this page are used with permission of the artist via Creative Commons.  Some rights are reserved unless otherwise noted.  #1 “Hispasat 30W-6 Mission” Public Domain  #2 “Grief is the price we pay for Love” by JingKay2008. #3 “Willaim holding hands” by Jen De Vere Warner.

Open Call for Poetry Submissions

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poems f or peace:  an anthology to uplift encourage & inspire

This anthology,  poets for peace (forthcoming, fall 2018, is the love-child of  a group of poets and listeners who have been gathering quarterly in San Antonio, Texas since Nov. 11, 2017 in association with the San Antonio peaceCENTER.  This anthology will be published as a peaceCENTERbook, with all proceeds go to support the CENTER.

While we are aware that many horrors occur in our world and that, as a people, we seem to be in turmoil and conflict on many fronts, our aim is to provide respite from the apparent problems and to purposefully turn our attention to the good, the Whole, the Holy, that which is full of peace and comfort.

For this inaugural issue of poems for peace, we seek work that is metaphysical, celebratory, fun, funny, lighthearted, playful, thoughtful, warm, tender, beautiful, compassionate, heart-opening, or spiritual without proselytizing, nostalgic without being overly sentimental, empowered without being politically charged and rich with imagery and story but not with graphic insensibility or dealing with overtly, hot topics that may trigger anxiety or anger in the listener (like abuse issues, natural disasters, or tragedy in general).

Rather, we seek work that uplifts, encourages and inspires.  We are especially interested in the metaphysically broad; we look for the profound, real, fearless, gender-inclusive, curious voice.

Guidelines:

Please send 3-5 previously unpublished poems of up to ten pages in length and in any form in a single Word document, making sure that no identifying information appears within the document.  Include a brief, bio (100 words or less) in your cover letter.  Submissions are being hosted by Moon Shadow Sanctuary Press via Submittable only.

Poets included in the anthology will each receive one complimentary copy of the anthology and be entitled to discounted pricing on book purchases.  Further, included poets may be invited to participate in future poets for peace events. For more information or to ask questions about poets for peace or submissions, look for us on Face Book or send us a message here:  fb.me/poetsforpeaceSA

We accept international submissions.

Deadline: August 1, 2018

image credit:  used with permission of the artist, Olga Lednichinco via creative commons.  some rights reserved.

Guest Poet: Stephanie L. Harper

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Please help me welcome Stephanie L. Harper to formidableWoman!  Though her work is experimental in format and form, its voice is ancient and familiar.  In the enigmatic lines of Risen:

…a body/amassed/of untold merges & drifts/ yes/a birth-less-ness/a molten torpor/yet dispossessed/of breath…

Ms. Harper’s lines define femininity, aligning burial, birth, & becoming, creating in us at once a sense of relief and of grief at finding ourselves here.  Read Ms. Harper’s poem in its entirety here:  Risen

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In her poem, Instead, the poet invites us into her living room, into her kitchen, into her writing studio where

…meaning always slips drily away from the words/& escapes like sly prey into the woods      because/the words bravely give chase/but they were never cut out for this hunt/& they get lost     & hungry…

We meet the family dog:  harbinger of unrest, clicking out the hunger everyone feels, especially the poet herself..

…it was too late to start cooking dinner/& the cattle dog     who lives for order/requires order      & feels its lack/like her hackles feel static…

Read Ms. Harper’s poem in its entirety here:  Instead

Stephanie L. Harper is a Pushcart Prize Nominee, and the author of the chapbook, *This Being Done* (Finishing Line Press, forthcoming, June 2018). Her poems appear in Slippery Elm, Rattle’s Ekphrastic Challenge, Figroot, Harbinger Asylum, The Ibis Head Review, Panoply, and elsewhere. She lives in Hillsboro, Oregon with her husband, two teen children, and a cattle dog named Sydney.   Pre-order a copy of This Being Done here beginning February 26, 2018.

To enjoy more of Ms. Harper’s work, visit her online here.

 

image credit #1:  moon used with permission of the artist, John Flannery via CC.  Some rights reserved. 
image credit #2:  up close with boy used with permission of the artist, Corrie Barklimore via. CC.  Some rights reserved.

 

Character Sketch Poem/Story Prompt

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Definition:  In a character sketch, you are letting the reader know many things about the character in a few lines of poetry or, as in a story, in a paragraph or two.  It is like drawing a quick pencil sketch rather than doing a full portrait.  The reader should get a general idea about the nature of this person, and know something about how they look and how they live in the world.

Example Poem: 

one      long dirty nail

on the index finger of his right hand

extends      perpendicular to the cheese-on-club-cracker

hors d’ oeuvre he holds

i shop the isles of the grocery store

try to decide between generic or name brand soda

whether or not to buy ice cream

~

he is dressed in army surplus

–a wrinkled    gray-green canvas hat

holds down his wiry      salt and pepper hair

he moves in small      quick jerks

wary of the watching people

he stuffs his jacket and khaki shorts

with tooth-picked cubes of holiday ham

~

he rocks       back and forth

on the birkenstock sandals

that moor him–crew socks and all–

to the sample-station buffet

~

he might keep money under his mattress

if he had one

i wonder where he lives

–how he came to this

where he will sleep

when winter comes

 

(c) d. ellis phelps, 2017

 

Try It!  Use detail to describe someone you know, someone you have seen, or imagine.

Where did you see this person?  Walking down my street; in the airport; sitting on a park bench; on the news…
What was he/she doing? Trying to fix his car; yelling out the window…
What color was her hair?  How long was it?  How was it styled?
What kind of hands does this person have?  Are they expressive or do they hang limply at his/her sides?  Are his/her fingers long and thin, crooked or like fat stubs?
Think of a word to describe the person’s expression or characteristics of his/her face.  Was it hateful, comical, stupid, curious, blank, round, wrinkled, smooth, flat or pinched?
How was the person dressed?
Describe his/her body.  Was he/she tall, short, lean, fat, muscular, or flabby?
How do you imagine this person behaves?  Ex:  He looked like a person who would take his grandmother out to dinner every Sunday.
In what kind of place do you imagine he/she lives?  Do you think he/she might live in an a mansion, a shack, a boat, in the country, or in the suburbs?
How did he walk or move?  Did he saunter, slide, limp, ramble, hobble, or stroll?
 Did he remind you of an animal, a machine, something in nature, or an object?  Ex:  He looked like an old, rubber boot, hunched over and worn.
What kind of things do you imagine this person thinks about, needs, or wishes?
What do you wonder about this person?

 

Challenge:  Create a poem or story using the character you have described.  Arrange and rearrange the words and phrases until you like the way they sound when you read them aloud to yourself or someone else.

Illustrate your piece.

Hint: You can add other details to create your poem or story.  You can also use poetic license to add events or details that did not actually happen to create interest or drama.

P.S.  If the character you have just described was a real person, now try creating a fictional character.  You can use this list of questions to describe your character, or think of your own ways to let us see him or her.

image “homeless man on broad street” used with permission of the artist, Rhys, A., via Creative Commons.  Some rights reserved.
d. ellis phelps is the author of Making Room for George, (Moon Shadow Sanctuary Press, 2016) and of this blog.  All rights reserved; however, educators may copy and distribute this material with this attribution, Young Writer’s Idea Box, (c) d. ellis phelps, 2017.

 

How to make 90 second grain-free bread

If you’re like me:  willing to make lifestyle changes that give the body’s immune system the best chance to self-heal, searching for ways to satisfy your cravings for “good” food, comfort-food while avoiding gluten, lectin, dairy, grains, soy, alcohol, sugar and on and on and on: watch this short video.

Below, I’ve given you a link to the original recipe and my tweaks on it.  Enjoy!

First, here is the link to the original recipe:  Keto Chicken Sandwich with Italian Grain-free Bread.

I have a long health recovery story.  This is one of many posts about it.  I strongly suggest you seek professional health care regarding your own health.  The following stories are my own experiences and not meant to diagnose or treat any illness.

Even though this bread recipe originally came from Paleo Magazine, I do not recommend a straight Paleo or Keto diet, though there are many who do, including my own San Antonio, Texas based nutritionist, Beverly Meyer.   There’s a BIG reason I don’t follow a straight any-kind of diet.   I’ll post more about my experience with dietary lifestyle changes later, but for now, let it suffice to say that I have been alcohol free for thirty-seven years and gluten-free for seventeen years in pursuit of recovery and wellness.

Here’s a link to my reason for not eating straight Paleo or Keto (at the moment).

Do read both of these blogs.  Education is the key to finding what works for you individually.  However, I am not a proponent of the adage, “all things in moderation,” because, as you will understand as you read these blogs (and books and watch podcasts, etc.), there are some foods that simply should not be a part of one’s diet for recovery, especially from chronic or acute disease!

Now back to the bread!  Yum!  It’s soft and moist and tasty, especially with some olive oil and salt, an egg, or a bit of fruit-only jelly.  My favorite brand is Simply Fruit by Smuckers.  I love the apricot!

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Now the original recipe is for a seasoned bread, as you will see.  While that is also delicious, I prefer the plain version for breakfast.  I rarely toast it, as is also recommended in the original version, as I think it’s too dry that way, but if you’re longing for crunch, you might give it a try.

I adore this bread with coffee or tea in the morning.  Just a couple of thin slices is filling enough for me & includes good protein so my blood sugar doesn’t spike.

Leave a comment to let me know how you like it and share with other health seekers.  We can’t do enough to help each other heal.

Peace,

d.

Keto Bread Recipe (contains nuts & egg!)

Ingredients:  1/3 C Almond flour; 1/2 tsp. aluminum-free baking powder; 1/8 tsp. salt; 1 egg whisked; 2 1/2 tablespoons extra virgin, organic olive oil

Blend dry ingredients together in a microwaveable cup.  I use a Pyrex 2C measuring cup as it has a nice muffin-sized cylinder.  Add egg and oil.  Whisk together well.  Microwave 90 seconds on high.  Let cool a minute.  Slice and eat or toast under the broiler until browned.

Enjoy!

 

 

new work & buy button for my paintings!

Woohoo!  This has taken all day today and will take all day tomorrow to (maybe) finish, but I now have a pay pal buy button on each painting for your shopping convenience!

Sooo, just in time for your holiday shopping, I present my extreme color and very affordable prices.  I offer a 30 day return of undamaged paintings, so it’s safe to buy as a gift (but they’ll love it!). & if you tell me during checkout that this is a gift for the holidays, I’ll honor the 30 day return policy for 30 days from Dec. 25th, 2017, so there’s no need to wait to buy!

Here’s a preview of new work:

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breathwork

5.5X9.5" mixed media on watercolor paper, 2017

Includes shipping via USPS within USA. Returns accepted of undamaged paintings within 30 days of purchase.

$45.00

 

Check out my new pages here.

d. ellis phelps is the author of Making Room for George (Moon Shadow Sanctuary Press, 2016) and of this blog.

earth goddess: birth of the moon

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earth goddess:  birth of the moon 48X24″ mm on gallery wrapped canvas, 2017  $900

This new painting emerged on the day of the first of many, devastating earthquakes in Mexico City during September.   I took “refuge” in my studio, as is my practice, bowing to the process as healer, centering and sending prayers of comfort, safety, healing, and peace to the suffering.

I knew I wanted to paint with my hands.  I thought I wanted to paint the sky.  I started with the canvas oriented in the landscape position and began to work, using cool colors, but after only a few minutes, the figure you now see began to emerge.

I reoriented the canvas and continued until the figure emerged as you see her now, kneeling.

As I always do when I am working, I maintained a dialogue with the emerging image, asking, “What do you have to say?  What do you have to show me?  What is your name?”

Hours later, as the painting came close to being finished, this thought emerged: Coahuiltecan.

It was not the whole, perfectly spelled word as you see it, but snippets of it, sounds within it that, as I did an internet search, lead me to it and I exclaimed, “There it is!”  The word coahuiltecan refers to the Native Americans who inhabited South Texas, including San Antonio and who were the builders of the San Antonio Missions.

They roamed in Mexico as well.

Reading further in Wikipedia, I found this:

Coatlicue (/kwɑːtˈliːkweɪ/; Classical Nahuatl: cōātl īcue, Nahuatl pronunciation: [koːaːˈtɬíːkʷe] ( listen), “skirt of snakes”), also known as Teteoh innan (Classical Nahuatl: tēteoh īnnān, pronounced [teːˌtéoʔ ˈíːnːaːn̥], “mother of the gods”), is the Aztec goddess who gave birth to the moon, stars,…

Here is the connection:  Nahuatl (also known as Aztec) is the name of the language the Coahuiltecan people spoke.

WOW!  I was being  spoken to in a foreign (to me) language through my painting, a voice, perhaps, from the ancestors of those for whom I most fervently prayed during its painting.

The part I love best about all this discovery is the phrase mother of the gods.

To me, it means that on this day, the mother(s) of gods, all of them, from every religion united in one voice to mourn, to pray, to heal.