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MIDDLETOWN, Calif. – The Middletown Art Center invites community members to participate in “Expidoxos: Writing for Expression, Healing and Growth,” a creative writing workshop this Saturday, Nov. 21, from 1 to 4:30 p.m. on Zoom.
Writer, musician and photographer Cliff Lloyd will guide participants in a writing and reflection process that experiments with technique, helpful writing habits and various ways to express oneself through the written word.
It’s open to all who are interested in the craft of writing.
“This workshop is an opportunity to hone skills, nurture our relationship with writing, and explore the transformative power of sharing work in a safe and constructive environment,” said Lloyd. “Through this process we can enjoy and understand ourselves, each other and our world with greater compassion and clarity.”
Lloyd’s work is informed by the natural world and humankind’s evolving relationship with it. His involvement with a broad range of varied media projects and collaborations has spurned his passion for understanding the uniqueness of individuals and how varied perspectives, when channeled through artistic expression, can broaden and enrich our collective culture.
Lloyd says his “influences are from a wide range of writers and writer's groups. Most of my writing comes from literary events and spoken-word performances over the past couple of decades. This workshop focuses on the process and on sharing the experience of writing."
Participants are encouraged to share what they write during the workshop or read a piece they have already written. Paper and pen or digital word processing tools and access to Zoom are required.
Participation is by donation of $5 to 25. Pre-registration is required at www.middletownartcenter.org/classes. A Zoom link will be provided upon registration. No one is turned away for lack of funds. Email
Find out more about Middletown Art Center and various ways to support their efforts to weave the arts and culture into the fabric of life in Lake County at www.middletownartcenter.org.
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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
The ocarina call of a mourning dove, a woman mourning the death of a pet, and yet it all comes to looking forward to more and more life, whatever is there, wherever the mourning dove will lead her.
Linda Parsons lives in Knoxville, and her most recent book is Candescent, from Iris Press.
Valediction
I hear before seeing, no need to see
to know morning’s ocarina, plaintive
call, soft strut on leafmeal. It was the first
creature I saw when the needle was done
and my sheepdog limped into last night.
That dove, I thought, will house his sable
spirit, coat feathered like joy in the wind.
Dove comes when my scattered mind
needs herding—bitter anniversaries,
leavings dire as tornadic rumble. Comes
when sky rivers blue, cooing all’s well
after all. Comes not to forbid mourning,
but trills core deep, beyond the senses,
glances back to make sure I follow
its white-tipped tail. Plaintive ocarina,
call me to bear all the light coming.
American Life in Poetry does not accept unsolicited manuscripts. It is made possible by The Poetry Foundation, publisher of Poetry magazine. It is also supported by the Department of English at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln. Poem copyright ©2020 by Linda Parsons, "Valediction," (2020). Poem reprinted by permission of Linda Parsons. Introduction copyright @2020 by The Poetry Foundation. The introduction’s author, Ted Kooser, served as United States Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 2004-2006.
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- Written by: Ted Kooser
