An Ode to My Notebooks, Both New & Old
Yeah, I know
I don’t take very good care of you.
Old ones from
elementary and middle school
(filled with songs,
I was convinced
that I was destined
to be a rock star)
to college
(also know as
my stoner-poet period)
to now
(when I think I’m
starting to find
my voice)
are shoved
unceremoniously
into a closet.
You here with
me know, beat-up
and used also
as a coffee cup coaster.
Sometimes underused.
This month we’ve
grown even closer,
spending every day
together.
You all contain
my feelings, secrets,
wants, needs,
both my happiest
and darkest moments,
my words, my insides, me.
I won’t be
whole without you.
You let me vent, cry,
explain, share
and just take it all in.
You protect my words,
because you helped
shape them.
Quiet,
a good listener,
always ready,
always willing.
You hide
what I’m too embarrassed
to share with the world.
But sit calmly when
I share my words
crafted so carefully
on your pages
with the world.
I trust you.
-----
nice...i trust mine as well..and have a shelf on the book case just for the old notebooks...i like to go back and read them from years prior at times...ha...some cool stuff in there...some the covers are so worn they might fall apart...
ReplyDeleteI wish I was more careful with my older stuff. I guess now I just stick to online. ups to your poem -Gabe
ReplyDeleteBeautiful ode Katie ~ Too bad I don't have a notebook of all my writings ~ Nowadays I rant and post in my draft blog ~ Congrats on your writing journey this month ~
ReplyDeleteI really loved the honesty in this poem! Those old notebooks are more valuable than gold. Don't ever let them go. Those feelings are SO worthy of preserving. A wonderful ode.
ReplyDeleteLoved your ode to a notebook. With all my gizmos and gadgets and techy skills, I still need a notebook and pen to get into that writing state of mind.
ReplyDeletenice... i used to write diaries for years before the computer age...then had one at my computer...a diary app...ha...but just not the same... recently started a sketchbook where i write and paint a glue memories into..smiles
ReplyDeleteYou got right into the spirit of Tony's request, Katie. A fast read, yet thorough, complete!
ReplyDeleteI actually felt what it must be like to be one of your (well, the latest--with the coffee spills!)
notebook poetic archives.
VERY nice. Thanks!
I can so relate to this,,love it from beginning to end...like Claudia I also used diaries, but notebooks can be categorized as to theme or time or are just very handy...;)
ReplyDeleteI feel so strange .. Never been good at notebooks. They are like bad intentions .. Very well written
ReplyDeleteI'm with Bjorn here - I've never been great with notebooks, although I really do mean to learn one day. Yours sound precious, even though some of them have had a hard life. I love the notion of them always being patient and willing to listen to whatever you have to say ... smiles
ReplyDeleteYou thread memories on the string of old paper. A veritable ode to your youth and linguistic development.
ReplyDeleteThis is one we all can relate to. It becomes clear than an ode is a letter written to an old intimate friend. Gosh, the closet space taken up by old notebooks! Some day I'm sure a poet will be able to climb up the pile of their old notebooks to the moon. (And whoever is unlucky enough to inherit them will eventually burn them out back of the house.) - Brendan
ReplyDeleteOne has to offer one's trust and they should open up. Great to fall back on a Notebook. Permanency is assured! Wonderful write Katie!
ReplyDeleteHank
I use journal (I'm a sucker for pretty journals) for my "finished" poems but never thought to save my notebooks cause they are so scribbled and messy. I like this ode to your notebooks.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed your ode Katie! I used to have notebooks, now I often use my phone to write on but it is not quite the same. "You hide / what I’m too embarrassed / to share with the world." - I love these lines!
ReplyDelete