How has exploring helped you poetically?

Hi Ken

I can so relate to@Elizabeth Wall-O’Brien

I've just written a poem about summers end in my little countryside Yorkshire village. It started in my head but as it went on I realised I needed to be out in the countryside, to be in the moment. So as I limped on with my dog Peggy I took note of what was happening in nature around me. I felt it definitely gave so much to the finished poem that my memories couldn't distil!

I love this question. After being confined to the house due to COVID 19, just venturing into the yard last spring was a big deal. Once we were vaccinated, suddenly we had our world back. Flowers, trees, sky, sounds, and smells, were always treasures, but after all that time indoors, everything was more vibrant and alive. Yesterday, I sat next to a hydrangea bush and just studied the flowers (Do you know that the petals have little flecks of sparkle on them and that the shades of color on the petals blend in subtle sequences?) I studied the veins on the leaves and noticed the multi-shades of green. Each leaf was red along the edges. These leaves and flowers were worlds unto themselves. I didn't have to travel any farther than my own front yard to find these delightful discoveries. I am just so grateful to be able to notice these things.

The places I have explore hasn't been physical.

Its been mainly personal development/spiritual world.

(Yoga,relationship with my creator)

And career,so I have only scratch the surface.

Recently,I've took it upon myself to start working out,so I can get my body to place of transformation.

Alot of my works have been done in house,sometimes in Uber rides,so I really don't travel at all,it seems,even before Covid.

I would love to travel every where and be a Travelling Poet.And have a REAL physical adventure!!!!!!!

Places don't necessarily have to be physical.Will say,environment plays huge role in creativity.

Places can come from emotions,mentality and media we consume.

This might not be the answer your looking for,but figure I give my perspective on this topic.

Wonderful!

I think routine can be a killer of creativity! Great for productivity mind you, but when the routine becomes stale, so does my work! Exploring new places keeps my mind keen and alert and I notice things more. I’m starting to find it difficult to write in the shed now as it has become a routine, so have been working from a cafe of late!

Hmmm….I think the physical spaces we occupy can influence our poetry, for sure. The aesthetic of a dusty attic may put me in one frame of mind, and influence my writing in a different way than the edge of a lake may.

Additionally, new experiences and new meetings/encounters with others teach us about ourselves and the world around us. That has to inform our perspective when we write these things out

as an an example, I once wrote two or three poems simply because of my experiences visiting Chicago. One poem was written about the anxiety of a new city, one was about bridges and the efforts of human engineering, and a third was about what a conversation with a stranger in a bar taught me about life and love