Teasels
Photo by Amy LV
Corn Stalks and Queen Anne's Lace
Photo by Amy LV
Students - The idea for this poem has been in my mind for a long time, for many years ago, my husband did tell me that he loved the color brown. From that day on, I saw brown differently. Whereas before I never would have considered brown beautiful, now I too, love its many shades. Often I think about brown, notice brown, am grateful for brown. Friends (and husbands) who help you grow are gifts indeed.
Today's poem was inspired by a color and by a conversation. On my drive to Syracuse, NY yesterday, looking at all of the roadside browns, pausing to take pictures,I was reminded of this old conversation about brown. Finally, I've captured something that has been rolling around in my mind for years.
Did you notice that "I saw" is a very short line, two words on a line all alone? That was a revision. When I first wrote this verse, it did not have a title. Rereading to find a title, I considered "Brown" and considered "Once" but I wanted the title to convey more meaning than that. I wanted the title to show that I was changed, that at last, "I Saw." Once I changed the title, the line needed to be changed as well, to reflect the importance of seeing and understanding. Those two words deserved their own line, so I changed the line break from:
I saw one hundred wondrous browns
to
I saw
one hundred wondrous browns
When you begin to write today, you might think about questions and colors too.
What conversation has been rolling around in your mind?
What color is striking your eye these days?
Please share a comment below if you wish.
Van Morrison sang about my favorite brown...
ReplyDeleteStanding in the sunlight laughing
Hide behind a rainbow's wall,
Slipping and a-sliding
All along the waterfall
With you, my brown-eyed girl,
You, my brown-eyed girl.
What a great post! I love how you share that a poem might knock around for years in one's mind before finding its form in words on paper. And I love that the absence of strong or stark colors gives us time to pause and appreciate so many shades of brown.
ReplyDelete(Oh, and thanks to your hubby, "Sha-la-la-.... Is now knocking around in MY head,) ;0)
Great tribute to brown, Amy. Love your line breaks.
ReplyDeleteMy mother once told me that she didn't like the color brown. But as an artist, when I think of brown I think of the many different beautiful things that I love that ARE brown. Like trees, solid wood furniture, dry leaves skittering along the sidewalk, hair, skin, my favorite boots!
ReplyDeleteI should share your poem with my mother. Love it!
Amy,
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing the backstory and your revision notes. You give us so much more than the finished product.
A story of my husband's positive influence on me: My husband once asked me if I'd read a certain comic strip from our daily paper. I replied that I didn't have time to read the comics. His response: I make time to read the comics. Yes, humor is important and thanks to him, I now take time to read the comics too. In fact, I blogged about one comic strip yesterday. Husbands can lead us to see things we need to see.