Confession Tuesday

Happy Tuesday, folks. This is the hearts and flowers edition. Hope you had a nice Valentine’s Day. A perfect time to confess something about yourself—we promise to do the same.

(Alex, Ella, and me roller skating on Sunday)

I am still blown away that my kids decorated our dining room for a family party. They woke up really, really early (too early for a 7- and 5-year old) to bring out cakes they had baked the day before, presents, candles, etc. They are so special. I am lucky, lucky, lucky that they are the last faces I see at night and the first ones to brighten my day.

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Birthdays make me contemplative.

This year, I am trying to center my life in a place that makes sense for my family and me. I’m such a planner—I like knowing where I’m going and seeing the steps in front of me. But I have to believe that the changes of the past few years are bringing us on a journey to a better place. I have to believe that I have a higher purpose.

So I go back to my New Year’s goal:

I’m seeking independence.... I want to put support systems in place so I have more time and less stress (not an easy task). Financial security is also at the top of the list. And maybe, just maybe, it’s time to add love back into this huge equation.

I’m looking around to see what’s working and what’s not. Can’t waste my time on people or activities that add more stress than joy. This 42nd year will be a year of transitions—and I’m preparing myself for whatever comes my way.

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Part of my “truth,” or what’s at my core, of course, is poetry. My writing has gotten short shrift recently. I’m unable to focus on a my new project until the summer, unfortunately. So I write when I can, even though I’m not happy with the quality of the work.

What I think will help is getting back to 15-minute free writes, and buying a new journal.

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Mass Poetry Festival planning is picking up steam. Friday, May 13, is our day for high school students, and teachers, with almost 400 students signed up to participate. As for Saturday, we’ll have 35-40 concurrent sessions of poetry readings, workshops, performances, and surprises. And there's no shortage of talent for this event!

Working with the festival has been a source of joy for me. I’m happy to be on the planning committee.

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Tonight, Mass Poetry Festival co-founder and poet Michael Ansara will be on Poet to Poet, Writer to Writer, a community cable access show in Somerville today at 5 p.m. (Yikes!) The program will be hosted by Doug Holder. Hope you can tune in.

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On Wednesday, February 16, Bob Hicok comes to Babson College as part of the Thompson Poetry Series. Reading starts at 7:30. It’s free and open to the public. (Woo hoo!)