There are times in life when, instead of complaining, you do something about your complaints.
Rita DoveRead
I make a discovery in a poem as I write it.
Interpretation
The process of creating poetry is often a journey of personal discovery for the poet.
Rita Dove's quote highlights the inherent relationship between writing poetry and self-discovery. As a poet engages with their craft, they often uncover new insights, emotions, and understandings about themselves and the world around them, suggesting that the act of writing is not only about creation but also about exploration and revelation.
In practice
In a poetry workshop, I shared Dove's quote to inspire participants to embrace the unknown journey of creation.
There are times in life when, instead of complaining, you do something about your complaints.
Without imagination we can go nowhere. And imagination is not restricted to the arts. Every scientist I have met who has been a success has had to imagine.
As an African-American, as a woman, I think that I've been sensitized to the way in which history privileges the white male and the way in which certain aspects of history, the things that we are taught in school, the things that are handed down, never, never entered the picture though they might have been very important.
If our children are unable to voice what they mean, no one will know how they feel. If they can’t imagine a different world, they are stumbling through a darkness made all the more sinister by its lack of reference points. For a young person growing up in America’s alienated neighborhoods, there can be no greater empowerment than to dare to speak from the heart — and then to discover that one is not alone in ones feelings.
All of us have moments in our childhood where we come alive for the first time. And we go back to those moments and think, This is when I became myself.
Being Poet Laureate made me realize I was capable of a larger voice. There is a more public utterance I can make as a poet.
I'm a storyteller - that's the chief function of a director. And they're moving pictures, let's make 'em move!
Censorship is the thing that stops you doing what you want to do, and what writers want to talk about is what they do, not what stops them doing it.
Do I feel that white directors have to tell only white stories? No. Do I feel that black filmmakers should only tell stories about black people? No. If we say that, then that means Asian people cannot write about anybody but Asians. I don't think a woman should only write about women.
I like to act in films, I like to shoot 'em, I like to direct 'em, I like to be around 'em. I like the feel of it and it's something I respect. It doesn't make any difference whether it's a crappy film or a good film. Anyone who can make a film, I already love. But I feel sorry if they don't put any thought in it because then they missed the boat.
And the marvellous rose became crimson, like the rose of the eastern sky. Crimson was the girdle of petals, and crimson as a ruby was the heart
I want people to come to me open and vulnerable. When they come to the gallery, they have to leave their watches, their computers, their Blackberrys, iPads, iPhones, because we are so incredibly used to technology, and I wanted to remove that.
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