I celebrated National Poetry Month in April by recording and sharing “A Poem A Day” on YouTube. For the last few poems, I went out to a lake/park, just for a change of pace. I also decided to make a vlog out in nature.
In this vlog I talk about poetry and poetics. I specifically discuss the creative process behind making so many videos in such a short time and letting go of perfection. It is a hard thing to do. I want everything to be perfect, sound, image, editing. I want you the viewer to have a quality experience while watching my work. But when making grunge video, poetry in the basement, or out in the park where some elements cannot be controlled, I have to let go of the idea that it all must be perfect. It won’t be. I hope you still enjoy what I create.
I also talk about mental heath issues. The issues that led me to create a some of my poetry. Healing from mental illness has been a large part of my story. Coming through to the other side has made me a stronger person, a more compassionate human, someone who is “woke.” Writing and performing have long been my release for the built up frustrations and anger that I experience. Working in kitchens helped me focus. Now that I’m back to performing, I have found that it is not coming from anger, but from compassion and love.
An interesting transition for me.
Enjoy this offering of a vlog that discusses these ideas.