FOTR Weekly: Final Poetry Workshop of the Season & Speaker Series to Return on 4/19
“I do not laugh; I do not cry;
I’m sweating out the will to die.
My past is sliding down the drain;
I soon will be myself again.”
– Theodore Roethke, “Meditation in Hydrotherapy”
Roethke confronts his struggles with mental health while detailing one form of treatment he received through the brief poem, “Meditation in Hydrotherapy.” As we continue our Health and Wellness segment of the 2022 Virtual Speaker Series, it is important to acknowledge the ways that we, like Roethke, have struggled in our lives. Though we might not want to spend six hours a day in a mandatory bath, we can find ways to be kind to ourselves, to accept ourselves, and to progress toward healing. We hope our Health and Wellness speakers have been able to give you some time and space for that process, and we’ve got two more lined up for you yet this month.
Also, April is National Poetry Month, so let’s celebrate together in these upcoming events!
Upcoming this Week
All of our poetry workshops are currently full. If you can’t get into a workshop: Please email chapbook@friendsofroethke.org and let us know which one you’re interested in. We’ll put you on a waiting list.
Poetry Workshop on April 12:Defining Moments: Narrative and Image in the Emotional Shift Poem
with Carol Barrett
Contrary to popular opinion, narrative is not a craft element exclusive to the novel or short fiction; poets can use it too! We have all experienced moments in our lives that mark an enduring change and have a resonant, symbolic significance to us, and those moments are valuable starting points for poetry. Through narrative and image, the emotional shift poem locates and highlights how our lived experiences have affected us, allowing us the space to process those moments with greater patience and clarity.
With her dual doctorates in Creative Writing and Clinical Psychology, poet and seasoned workshop facilitator, Carol Barrett, is sure to impress while you learn more about how to work the defining moments of your life into poetry.
Like our other poetry workshops, this is a generative workshop, meaning the focus is on creating new works rather than on revising old ones. However, you are welcome to bring all the old sentiments and experiences that inspired previous poems or poetic thoughts and ideas – you’ll explore these to write new pieces in the workshop!
Looking Ahead
Saginaw Chapbook Project Submissions Due by April 15: A Reminder for Poetry Workshop Participants
The submissions deadline for the Saginaw Chapbook Project is coming up this Friday, April 15*. If you’ve participated in any of our poetry workshops, you are eligible to submit the work you created in that workshop – so don’t forget to send us the final drafts of your poetic projects and lyrical labors.We’re looking forward to reading and publishing the work you share with us!
*If needed, you may inquire about deadline extensions by contacting us at chapbook@friendsofroethke.org. We’ll be happy to work with you!
Speaker Series on April 19:The Healing Poem: How Does it Work?
with Carol Barrett
Poetry as a means to healing has a long history. As far back as 400 BCE, the Ancient Egyptians used writing as medicine. Walt Whitman also read poems to soldiers wounded in the Civil War, whom he helped care for in the field hospitals. More recently, poetry therapist John Fox wrote that “there is something deeply personal and private about poetry-making. It is a journey into the depths” (Finding What You Didn’t Lose, 1995).
So we know that poetry has a longstanding reputation as a therapeutic tool, but how exactly does this work? We don’t have all the answers, but speaker Carol Barrett will enrich this discussion with an inquiry into the function of poetry in healing. Borrowing from psychologists, poets, and poetry therapists; frameworks from various disciplines and perspectives; and her own personal experiences, Carol Barrett will provide an interdisciplinary approach to understanding the healing poem. Join speaker Carol Barrett on Zoom Tuesday, April 19, at 7pm to explore the healing potential of poetry and learn how you might use it in your own life!
Special Thanks & Additional Info
Thank you to everyone who attended Anita Skeen’s April 5 workshop, Not Missing the Moment: The Ten-Line Poem in the Time of Crisis. We hope you enjoyed your time together and that this workshop has encouraged you to discover the silver lining in our collective and personal struggles through the compressed, ten-line poem.
Once again, let’s give our workshop facilitators an at-home round of applause! They’ve graciously volunteered their time to run these workshops and support community writers, in addition to managing the responsibilities in their regular busy lives. Thank you Carol Barrett, Jared Morningstar, and Anita Skeen for everything you’ve done and continue to do for us and the community through these workshops and more. We feel so fortunate to have you working with us on the Saginaw Chapbook Project!
While you work on the poems you’ve created, don’t forget that you are welcome to spend some time with us at Theodore Roethke’s home in Saginaw! For more information about the schedule for time at the Roethke House, see our Museum Hours page.
Check out Anita Skeen’s page at Michigan State University Press for more about her books and where to purchase them.
For more from Carol Barrett, check out this review of her book Pansies (purchase here) from Mom Egg Review, and read a sample of her poetry at The Grief Diaries.
Thanks to generous support from Michigan Arts and Culture Council, Arts Midwest, Ohio Arts Council, and National Endowment for the Arts, our events are free and open to the public through May 31, 2022.
Kellie Rankey holds a BA in Creative Writing from SVSU, where they currently remain a student. Their work has appeared inThe Normal School,Tiny Molecules, and theMichigan Sociological Review, and is forthcoming from Wrongdoing Magazine.
