Tag: creativewriting

Evening Poems: My Sister’s Shoes

~ Brooke F. ~ Leave a comment

I remember when she was 11 and I was 7

I always got my sister’s old hand me downs. My mom would put the big shoes on my feet. She’d squish the ends to see if they would fit. She would tell me, before I knew it, I’d be in my sister’s shoes.

We made sticky mud pies and told stories. Got grass stained knees and carpet burns. It was nights of lightning bugs and cart wheels that made the world turn.

I remember when she was 15 and I was 11

She didn’t like looking in the mirror but she would still look. She hid behind her hair and cut herself bangs. Friends were scarce because children are cruel. This I came to know too well.

I remember when I was 15 and she was 19.

Social circles became webs to navigate. She said, they said, who said, who cares? They care, I don’t, What happened? Unfair!

I don’t know how, but we made it out in one piece.  First my sister, and then me.

Now she’s having a kid, and I’m 19.

I know I’m next.

The next sister in line.

If I’ll blink, I’ll miss it.

My mother was right.

Before I knew it, I’d be in my sister’s shoes.

Thoughts on being (almost) halfway through college

~ Brooke F. ~ 1 Comment

I doubt any of the following thoughts will be unique but I still find it important that I type them out anyway. (Wow, that start sounded a lot more sardonic than I intended). What I mean is, I think most people are feeling what I’m feeling when I say that it’s all going by very quickly. Not in a bad way mind you. It just sort of surprises me.

I know I would depressed if I were standing still. If I weren’t making progress. But it’s only normal that I feel at least a little sad as I find myself already halfway through my time at college. Everything is so fast paced. I make friends in classes but before I know it, we’ve moved on to the next semester which brings on new classes and even more new friends.

Time drags but goes so fast at the same time. I think that midterms will never be over but once they are, I realize that there are only 6 weeks left in the semester. It’s very odd.

I think these thoughts occur mostly because there is a part of me that is pretty scared of what the world has in store for me beyond graduation. I feel like a “fake” adult right now. I don’t have a professional job and I’m mostly working on school. And school, though hard, is something I’m familiar with.

Growing up is so weird.

I want it to happen but when it does, I can’t help but think “I didn’t mean for it to all happen this fast.”

For me, growing up has been characterized not by being sad so much as being disoriented and confused. I don’t feel ready, but at the same time, everything I’ve been doing since grade school has been done to prepare me for this challenge of getting older. And I fully intend to meet it.

And it helps that I know, somewhere deeper than my feelings and bones that everything always ends up working out in the end.

So ready not, here life comes.

Advice on Writing Poetry

~ Brooke F. ~ Leave a comment

★When you’re writing poetry, you don’t have to write the perfect poem. You just have to write today’s poem.

★Read the work of poets your love, but also vary your tastes. There’s something to learn from everyone.

★Give yourself permission to write whatever you feel like writing. If that’s trash, then write trash. We’ll worry about making the trash “pretty” and “clever” later.

★Play with rhyme. Play with with free verse. Play with alliteration. Play with everything.

★Poetry is like literally every other hobby. Practice and get better.

★Keep a journal

★If you have an idea, write it down right then before it flies away. Inspiration is fleeting. It’s easier to catch that butterfly right in front of you than to chase down one that is miles away.

★Be Vulnerable.

★You don’t have to be angsty. You don’t have to have a “muse” or whatever that means. You just need to be a living, breathing person to write poetry and that is enough.

★Understand that not every poem is meant to be shared.

How to spend your college break

~ Brooke F. ~ Leave a comment

I’ve been meaning to write this for awhile. Far too often I find myself at loose ends as to what to do on my college breaks so with it currently being fall break for me, like, right this very second as a I type this, I figured now was a good of a time as any to give people advice on how to spend their college breaks. Sometimes it can be hard to balance the resting and the still wanting to get stuff done. Breaks should be relaxing and you should give yourself a break, but if you also want to use that time to do some minorly productive things to get ahead, I respect that too.

So, here’s a few suggestions on what you can do on your college break!

Do some well-needed cleaning and organization

I don’t know about you, but my backpack is sort of a mess by the middle of the semester. Old papers I don’t need, random straw wrappers, and bits of trash I don’t need can be found in near every pocket. My pencils need to be sharpened badly and overall my backpack could use a washing. And let’s not get me started on my desk space.

So a break is the perfect opportunity to remedy such problems.

Catch up on any show that you’ve been meaning to watch

You’ve earned some rest! This is a perfect way to unwind, especially with a snack.

Schedule some social time

College can make it difficult for people to get together with classes and homework quickly overtaking everyone’s schedule. But we all need to see people sometimes so scheduling a well-earned coffee date with a gal friend is one of the best ways you can spend your break.

Dabble in something

Take this time during your break so try something new that you would otherwise not be able to. Or stick to your old neglected hobbies and maybe start painting or drawing again? Overall, I highly encourage people to do at least one creative thing on their break.

Relax but also PAY ATTENTION TO ANY ASSIGNED HOMEWORK OR READINGS

In an ideal world, professors would not assign homework over a break. But I don’t think I have to tell you that we don’t live in an ideal world. It surprised me too how much homework teachers would sometimes assign over your break, as if they didn’t fully understand the meaning of the very word “break”. But sometimes we just gotta deal, and your life will be a little stressful if you put off any homework last minute. The goal is to emerge from your break refreshed, not panicked. So slowly work on and pay attention to any assigned reading or homework that you have been expected to complete over the course of the break.

Make a game plan for returning back to school

Sometimes your break is a good time to revaluate and readjust some of your approaches to your classes and homework. Whether this means reexamining your study strategies or completely reorganizing your meal plan, your break is a good time to do any of these things.

And finally write a blog post on what to do with your break

And that’s where I’ll leave it. Rest up, lovely students!

Evening Poems: The Ninth

~ Brooke F. ~ 1 Comment

How do you think a cat would spend its final life?

If it were old and on the ninth

I think a cat would spend its last days

Snoozing in the sun’s streaming rays.

Batting around that ball of lint

Dart around the hall, in a sprint.

And did I mention the

Sleeping. Sleeping. Sleeping.

And around the corners always peeping.

In short I would have to say,

That a cat would spend even its final day

Much how spent every year

Happy and without a single fear.

A cat on even its final minute.

Wouldn’t hesitate to then spend it

Dozing peacefully next to you, as your pet.

Because unlike you, he has no regret.

Evening Poem: I

~ Brooke F. ~ Leave a comment

I dont know why

I try and try

But theres no strength left in I

I turn left, and then turn right

I feel I am lost without a light

There is no strength left in I

I rely on that “I” so much.

So much that I start most sentences with an I.

I

I

I

Identity starts with I.

That’s on who I rely.

Me, myself, and I.

But not matter what I do

There is no strength left in I

At end of I

There is nothing.

Ironic.

Writing Prompt: Murder Museum

~ Brooke F. ~ Leave a comment

A museum displays the many artifacts and backgrounds of famous serial killers. It is popular for bone chilling as well as informative exhibits and draws a crowd world wide.

This is the Murder Museum.

Due its popularity, an exclusive tour is offered to those who sign up for the drawing to be allowed to roam this museum free of crowds. All night.

And of course things go wrong.

During the tour, someone notices the doors locking. And then the tour guide shows up dead.

Someone begins their murder spree using the many left over serial killer weapons and tools in the museum from the exhibits, everyone who turns up dead, dying in their own unique way to commemorate the serial killer exhibit it is based off of. It is now up to a few attendees to figure out who the killer is.

Sounds like an exciting night ahead at the Murder Museum.

Writing Prompt: The Ghostly Cafe

~ Brooke F. ~ Leave a comment

There’s a cafe in town in which residents frequent and go to decompress from their hard days. Lilting jazz music fills the air and produces an ambiance of peace that falls over the place and washes over its customers. It is such a serene scene, one would never think it was haunted. But, surprisingly, the ghosts are the heart and soul of this restaurant. Every hour, the ghost of a musician will serenade the customers as they listen with expectant ears and faces. Drinks are served by animated bone corpses. And that weird knocking on the wall keeps time with the music, not at all creepy.

Tell me the story of the ghostly cafe.

Evening Poems: Velvet Hearts

~ Brooke F. ~ Leave a comment

I’m sorry, they lied to you
Your heart isnt made of gold
I’m afraid, It is a lie most commonly told.

Your heart is made of velvet, vulnerable and soft.
Those who boast invincible
Are liars who should be scoffed

It is unavoidable,
The tearing of the heart,
So when you’re left in pieces, it is often hard to know where to start.

But there is a tailor,
Whose trade it is to mend.
I’m sure If you’ll ask him, a hand he will lend.

And then you will be
Stitched together by mercy and grace.
And better off you’ll be, in this world you must face.