Daily Nourishment for May 4, 2024: Against Dying
Daily Nourishment Read Time: 40 seconds
Pause/Prompt/Practice Time: 15 minutes
“But I think even the most secular writers, even the most skeptical, feet-on-the-ground writers still talk about time flying by, or how such and such a phrase just came to them. They’re still sort of mining the language of the supernatural to talk about what is not them in their writing.” - Kaveh Akbar
Pause.
Take six deep breaths with a six-count inhale and a six-count exhale. Then go outside and take six deep breaths with a six-count inhale and a six-count exhale.
Prompt.
Read “Against Dying” by Kaveh Akbar” aloud. Then read it one more time.
Practice.
Set a timer for five minutes and copy down as much of the poem as you can.
Then set a timer for five more minutes and take notes or write a response to it.
What do these words stir inside you? What comes to mind? Where does your life intersect with this poem?
Want More?
INTERVIEWER: I know you’ve spoken about this before, but could you talk about how [reading and writing poetry] helped you overcome addiction?
AKBAR: There were a lot of things that helped me move out of addiction. It wasn’t like I picked up a book of Komunyakaa’s poetry and suddenly I wasn’t addicted. Early in recovery, it was as if I’d wake up and ask, How do I not accidentally kill myself for the next hour? And poetry, more often than not, was the answer to that. I would pick up Neon Vernacular and then I would have a place to be for, like, four hours. If I was writing a poem, that’s two, four, eight hours that just flew by. That was a place to put myself for a big chunk of that time.
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Upcoming Workshops & Gatherings
—The May Co-Writing Schedule is live. Learn more here.
—SDW Members: Sunday Conversations are happening every Sunday through May 12th from 6:15-7 p.m. CT.
—May 5, 2024: Our next Thoughtful Readers Gathering is with Catherine Ricketts and The Mother Artist will be 5/5 from 5-6 p.m. CT.
Today’s Daily Nourishment was provided by Charlotte Donlon.
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