Hold, hold, hold

Hi Gee. Thank you, heh, funny, felt like I gave it a break for a day or so so I could catch up on commenting on others. Wasn't enough obviously. Well, I have visitors coming to stay tonight so I doubt I will be able to have any Neo time for nearly 3 day (Oh dear, I shall have withdrawals!). I write most days, & often I write between 3 & 5 poems or songs, in a sitting, most of them never see the light of day, but I am driven to write them anyway, always have been. Yes, I think you summed this one up really well, & thanks fo the lovely message. Take care Anni ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "...We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? ... Your playing small doesn't serve the world..."

In Australia, when I was a kid & something pleased us, we always used to simply say... "Oh goody!", it sounds so daggy now, kind of old fashioned & simple, yet when I read what you wrote here it was exactly what I thought, you have completely got the intention of the poem & I am so glad. & look at you, little dew dop nestled in there, precious. I was so hoping you would get the concept of what the dew drop might be... Anything that is lovely & precious & delicate in you, anything that needs to be nurtured. You have it! I have a workbook called "The Artists Way", it requires some active undertakings & committment (eg writting 3 pages of "stream of consciousness" writing every day & doing, or taking yourself to something that feeds your inner Artist, the writer or whatever else in you, once a week), I did it first when Geordi was small, though cheated on some things, eg took him with me on some of the "Artists dates", wrote when I could squeeze it in, not just in the morning. Point is, it had always been hard to care for myself the way I cared for others, that book helped me do that, it made me my own best friend... I still do it & set up little cluster groups to support others doing it, it's such a lovely thing to share. Last year I set up a Facebook page of resources for some friends in different states & countries, though they got slack, the groups work when you meet weekly to keep the momentum up, but the online thing, though a good resource never got off the ground properly... Point is, it is the best way I know to nurture our creative inner being, you might be able to get it from your library, it changed my life that book. Have a look anyway. Oh, the connection here is there is an exercise where you have to write "Treating myself like a precious object will make me strong" & embellish it & make it beautiful, & then put it somewhere you can see it every day. These things would be great for you (or anyone, I think). xxx Anni ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "...We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? ... Your playing small doesn't serve the world..."

Thanks lovely Ann, always so generous & your messages full of warmth & encouragement. Adore you, have been so distracted, lots of work & other hings, but must catch up with all your recent works, so love your writes Ann Anni ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "...We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? ... Your playing small doesn't serve the world..."

Thanks Arduinna, (I do love that name!) Glad you liked it, not so common for me to stay on the shorter side of long! I think it would have been wrong to make this longer. Must go look to see what you've been doing. Cheers Anni ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "...We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? ... Your playing small doesn't serve the world..."

Wow Arrow, I am greatly inspired by this encouragement, I understand your preference, I do find it harder to stay brief (I'm sure you know), but it is such a joy to get the thumbs up from you that I am sure I will make extra effort in the future (chuckle... who says I don't desire positive feedback? hmmm!) Thank you, very glad you enjoyed it, means a lot. Cheers Anni ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "...We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? ... Your playing small doesn't serve the world..."

Orgami, you never cease to blow me away with your responses, so often moving me to write to a completely different place. I love it so much, thank you you are an immense inspiration & I feel blessed to have you & all these other wounderous inspiring writers read my work & leave such encouraging feedback. Thank you so much. What you wrote is so beautiful & I can't believe how you see these things, you are so dead right, these are the things that keep us resilliant, that are untouchable when one's heart is broken, these things to fall back on, & you (of course) have described this so very eloquently, as you always do... you are extraordinary Steven. Anni ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "...We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? ... Your playing small doesn't serve the world..."

Ah beautiful Anna (I fall more in love with these things you write with everything I read of you!). I can't get away with anything with you guys around... sigh... I felt this very same sentiments (though not in such lovely poetic phrasing, beautifully put!)... I almost changed it before posting to ..."hold the tiny dew drop & then let it go" or some such thing, mainly because of that sense of desperation "hold, hold, hold" evokes, but I wanted... but in the end I wanted to give the thing a sense of strength & resilliance, that what you have in the end is what you love & dream of & nothing can take that away... I know in reality these things sit with you without having to be held (anything you have does, or it isn't really "yours", it's like love & btterflies in the open hand)... I will have another think on it though since it also struck me before I walked away from this one as I posted it, might change it if others pick this up too. Thank Anna great to have your wonderful discerning eyes on my work, you always comment so wisely. Anni ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "...We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? ... Your playing small doesn't serve the world..."

Hey thanks Janice, you're such a sweety... I agree regarding the repetition, it gives it more drama I think, strengthens the concept of holding onto the gems that have you retain your own courage (often the tiny dew drops of lifes dawning), but I also feel in concord with the comment above from Anna, I was torn between these, kept the repetition of hold exactly because of what you have picked up, but had some hesitation about it, because it's true, trying to "Hold onto" things can result in a whole lot of heart ache & to allow life the freedom to be as it is leads to far more harmony (yes, I struggle with this as much as anyone, but I do believe it's true... as I say above, these things we are prepared to set free that stay with us, are the true elements we can call our own). Oooh so much philosophising over so few words!!! Sorry, eating into my brevity! Cheers And thank you Anni ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "...We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? ... Your playing small doesn't serve the world..."