Words That Cry Out

§         Make a list of strong and vibrant words, words that leave the roots and dirt on.  Choose words that interest you, that have an impact, that reveal something about you and your state of mind, problem or hurt right now.  Choose words that are related to the body, to nature and your emotions.  Pay attention to how the sound of a word communicates the feeling of the word.  You can even make up words that fit for you, like “terrorwide”.

§         Here are some examples of vibrant words:  restless, jagged, wreckage, ruthless, abandon, frighten, turbulent, bruised, caress, fertile, pungent, empty, moist, ache, rotting, stormy, scream, rage, shatter, odor, exhausted, thorny, cavernous, molten

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Exercises drawn from Poetic Medicine: The Healing Art of Poem-Making and Finding What You Didn’t Lose: Expressing Your Truth and Creativity Through Poem-Making by John Fox

To Know the Dark

To go in the dark with a light is to know the light.

To know the dark, go dark.  Go without sight,

and find that the dark, too, blooms and sings,

and is traveled by dark feet and dark wings.

Wendell Berry

Catherine Haynes, M.S., LMFT, 206-854-7333 catherine@catherinehaynes.com ~ www.catherinehaynes.com