I was going to just post these poems, but my love suggested that I should offer some commentary. I shall start with this first by providing some insight on my own creative process.
In the past, I was never very good at "speed poetry" and many of my early attempts were frivolous in the extreme. (If you are unlucky, I will post some samples from time to time.) However, since I met this amazing woman, I have not only been able to tap into creative resources that have been long dormant, but to develop them in ways that I never thought were possible.
I suppose I should define what I mean by "speed poetry." I coined the term myself to differentiate it from my normal mode of writing. Most of what I consider my best poetry from the past took hours to write. I would read and re-read, edit and re-edit repeatedly; changing words, layout, or punctuation. Sometimes I would remove or add stanzas, always looking to perfectly and completely express what I was feeling.
With speed poetry, it is almost stream of consciousness. What you see is very close to an original without change and rarely takes longer than a few minutes to write. Some might say that shows in structure. While they may be right, I believe that is more than overcome by the rawness and depth of expression.
This one in particular came to me when I was deeply tired and I nearly fell asleep while composing it. When I first wrote it, I don't think I fully grapsed the deeper meaning. At the time I was musing over experences that my love and I hope to share someday and, in my sleepy haze, I wrote this about one of them. Upon later reading, I saw that it is not merely about a picnic, but about the present course of our lives. They are hectic and wintery and leave us little time to express ourselves as a couple. But when we do get the chance, those moments are life affirming and help us to recharge our batteries and return to the world to face it anew.
Our Picnic
The week was hectic
The days were cold.
Life pulled at us
And made us weary.
But now let us sit
And relish the sun
As we lay under this tree
Upon a blanket made for two.
Unpack the feast;
Brush away the ants;
Smell the food;
Taste the wine.
Lie by my side
In my arms.
Tell me your dreams
And I'll tell you mine.
Soon we must return
To the bustle of life.
But for now let us savor
This moment together.
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