Spool – Short Poem and 1999 Retro Video Practicing for Poetry Reading

Once upon a time I attended a poetry group at the Frugal Frigate children’s bookstore in Redlands, California. At one point, we were invited to participate in a poetry reading.

Like most people, I had a fear of public speaking, but I decided to step out of my comfort zone and join in since it would be a small crowd.

First, I practiced reading my chosen poems so I’d feel comfortable reading them in public. Recording ourselves is always helpful to see how we will appear to others.

In this retro video, I’m practicing two poems. The first one, Spool, is below. I’ll share the second one, Disposal Edge, in another blog post.

If you watch the video, please pay no mind to my 18-year-old daughter April joking around at the beginning of the video. Haha! My kids always kept me laughing. (And yelling and crying.)

Spool

A spool of dark green thread
Green, I say
yet lacking life, lacking breath
The thread winds its way
around and around endlessly
not searching
layer upon layer
choking with tension
focusing on only the prick of the needle
rather than the mending and patching
it can accomplishment
with the needle’s guidance

The edges of the spool are rough
with teeth that grind and gnash
over unfairness,
unlike the flowers beside it,
alive, delicate, beautiful, relaxed
as they breathe and live and grow

~Lynn Kelley

Other blog posts with poems:

Ragged Old Slippers

Defeat and Hope

What are your thoughts? Do you like poetry? Short or long? Rhyming or philosophical? Or, would you rather read comic books or the newspaper? We all have different preferences and that’s what makes the world so interesting. I’d love to hear from you.