Up

I've always been a sucker for Disney movies. Long after the kids grew out of them, I insisted on keeping videos of "Beauty and the Beast" and "Lion King." Actually, the Disney version of "Alice in Wonderland" remains one of my all-time favourite movies of any kind. Love those big flower blossoms that look like lion heads! But the other night I went to see Pixar's latest movie, "Up," and I have to say it is one of the most amazing films I've ever seen.

You would expect the graphics to amaze, and they do. But this film about an aging widower who goes off on an adventure with an unsuspecting kid is much more than an example of the latest whizzy technology. The story is beautiful. The characters are complex and captivating. But the reason why I'm writing about it here is because it has made me think about the power of the wordless image. As a writer I, of course, approach all my work through words. Whether it's prose, poetry or plays, it's through words that I express whatever character or theme I am looking to portray. This sounds obvious, but I have found this to be a bit tricky as I write plays, and believe it or not, it wasn't until I saw "Up" that I realized how much pathos and motivation can be expressed just by visual images when you're working in a narrative context.

Within "Up" there is a 10-minute completely wordless montage which takes you through the marriage of the main character and his wife. By the time it was over, I was in floods of tears, completely understanding the characters, their loves, their losses and dreams. Amazing. Now, you would have thought that I might have learned this lesson before this late date. But for some reason, the power of the visual over the verbal really hit home as I sat there crying over these animated figures. It's funny how these light bulb moments appear when they're least expected. And it will be interesting to see how all this translates into any of my own work.

So, do go see it if you can.

Morning Meditation

I'm sitting in my bed in my house on the Island. I'm still a bit jet-lagged and so I'm waking earlier than usual. Every summer when I first arrive I become reacquainted with the experience of early morning calm, those moments that you often see poets write about when the house is quiet, the sun is newly risen and the day is undemanding. Once I'm time adjusted I guess I'll go back to dragging my sorry ass out of bed groggy and already feeling behind schedule. I've never been a "morning person." But these first summer jet-lagged mornings remind me how much I wish I was. And sitting here in bed gazing at the tree limbs playing with the breeze and the sky turning blue just beyond the walls of my house instills in me a sense of quiet contentment I usually only get after a session of meditation (when I remember to do it).

So that's what I'll write about, I guess. You see I started writing today's blog aware that I hadn't written since I left London and that I wanted to write something, but having no idea what that something might be. But meditation is a good topic. It is something I believe is very important and could be a great help to everyone. It is something I started doing a few years ago and that I did religiously, so to speak, every day no matter where I was in the world, for a couple of years.

I have my little "meditation pack" that I travel with -- a bag with a necklace of beads, a small finger chime, a shawl and a cutout cardboard drawing of my favourite deity, Saraswati -- the goddess of art and creativity (kind of a funny thing for a nice little Jewish girl from New York to carry around with her, but hey -- life is change). But for all this, I have somehow fallen out of the habit. It wasn't a decision to stop. I don't think I even noticed that I stopped. It just recently dawned on me that I was no longer taking the time to do it. More and more things started to take priority, and then time would get away from me and then another day would pass and then....the habit, and the good that came with it, had slipped away.

That's the way it is with good habits, I guess. Daily habits like meditating, writing, telling your family you love them, can so easily be taken for granted and then, before you know it, they and the joy they've brought to your life are gone. At it's best, that is what this Island does for me, gets me thinking these kinds of thoughts, gets me looking at what the year past has provided and what the next year might offer, and gets me up in the early morning. It's really good to be here and believe me, I do know how lucky I am to have this place in my life.

So, as they say over here in America, "have a nice day." My blogging over the next month or so may be sporadic, but don't forget about me. I'll keep checking in when I can.

Summer Here and Back Again

Tomorrow I leave the big city and head off to a summer in the country, but I'll be back for a very exciting weekend in July that I want to tell you about. A new poetry festival called "Polyverse Poetry" will be held on the grounds of Loughborough University during the weekend of 24-26 July. You can read about it here. There will be readings,workshops,performances, book signings -- everything one could hope for from a summer literary festival. I've been looking forward to this all year. Not only will there be many poets there I already know such as Susan Richardson, Carol Thistlethwaite, Gerry Potter, Gail Ashton, Carole Baldock, Nick Carbo; but there will be many others I can't wait to learn more about. But if that isn't good enough...my own poetry play, "Dreams of May," will be performed on the Saturday night by the wonderful actress, Rosalind Cressy, who featured in its London premiere back in 2006. But if you need even more tempting than that...wait for it.....

Carol Ann Duffy, our new Poet Laureate, has also agreed to appear and will be reading and answering questions as the second half of the Saturday evening event!!! Undoubtedly, I'll be telling you more about the festival over the next few weeks, but I thought I'd give you the heads up. Tickets are on sale now. I hope to see some of my friends there.

But for now as I prepare to wave goodbye to England for a few weeks, here are a few photos I've been snapping with my trusty phone/camera, in case I get homesick:



Swans on Dorney Lake, near Eton





View of Regents Park



Tower Bridge from
the Thames Clipper







Shulbrede Priory, Surrey





And now one more thing. I just saw that Lauri, who writes a terrific blog here, has awarded me a "Let's Be Friends" Award. It says:
Blogs that receive the Let’s Be Friends Award are exceedingly charming. These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. Please give more attention to these writers. Deliver this award to eight bloggers.

How wonderful is that? So now I pass it on to:
The Expat Writer
Lane's Write
Glyn Pope
Carrie Etter
Debi Alper
Daydreams in the Shed
Chez Aspie
Fiction is Stranger than Fact

These are all interesting and generous blogs. Do give them a look if you don't already know them.

See you on the other side of the pond!