Writing from life
A practice for connecting with the wise and wilder world
This is a companion practice to this poem, and is drawn from my Medicinal Poetry Writing curriculum. A primary step in crystallizing experience into medicine is expansive observation. This practice invites you to let the portal of witnessing remind you how connected to life you truly are.
It is intended to be done outside in a place with more plant people than human people, but doing it inside with houseplants is okay.
Observation practice
Have a pen and paper handy.
Let your feet and eyes wander until you find a plant that fascinates you. Listen for the nature of the attraction, the core of the attraction.
What draws you to this growing creature of stalk and leaf?
What do you find interesting - color, texture, shape, smell, and/or an emotional evocation?
Can you breathe with the plant for a moment?
Staying connected with this sensory awareness, describe the plant without using their common or Latin name.
What do you observe about this living being in real time?
How would you describe them to a human who has never seen one?
Then write what sensations and feelings arise in you as you observe this being.
What might they teach you about also being a creature who grows, evolves, dies, and feeds life?
Bonus step
To move in the direction of poetry, go back over what you wrote and pull out the phrases you find most interesting. Rewrite these smaller pieces of mystery on a new page, in any order, letting them condense and tumble around until you have something that conveys the essence of your experience with as few words as possible.