Friday Field Trips: Power Surge
a 55 Word Story
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As part of my Listener Poet Certification Course with The Good Listening Project, I learned some new poetic techniques. One my cohort members shared about 55 Word Stories in his final presentation. These stories originated in the medical field, as a way for clinicians, care providers, and patients to give voice to their emotions and experiences connected to the COVID pandemic.
Mostly out of curiosity, I started penning 55 Words Stories of my own. I’m finding it both fun and challenging. If you’re here, you know I’m a bit wordy.
Since clearing out the basement room last summer and putting a fresh coat of paint on old dingy wood walls to make a studio, I’ve spent a lot of time in this creative cocoon. These last few months especially, I’ve put in long hours here. Zooming twice a week for the cohort gatherings. Facilitating my listening poet sessions for the practicum. Reading, journaling, doodling, and putting together my newest Lego set (Jaws).
This is also the space where I put in countless hours, long days and late nights editing, revising, formatting, and polishing my next manuscript to submit to the publisher.
The hardest part about getting settled into this studio was figuring out the lighting. How much is too much? How little is too little? What lighting do I need for calls and making videos? What lighting do I need to read or rest?
I started to write a whole essay about finding the right lighting. It got longer than I wanted and took several unexpected turns. Then I remembered a quote—attributed to Ernest Hemingway—shared in my cohort, “when in doubt, share the shortest, truest thing.”
So here’s something short and true, inspired by my Good Listening cohort, my creative process, and the light that guides me. May you be inspired too.
Read and Listen to Power Surge below.
