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How to find the feelings
and the words that express them.

"Exercises for Poets:   Double Bloom"
   by Edward Dougherty
    on WSKG Radio's
    OFF THE PAGE
    Tues., Sept. 19 at 1 & 7pm

          Everyone has written poetry at some time. Maybe you were enthused by a moment of unique beauty or torn by the need to express a great sadness. Sometimes it was a bit of doggerel written for a special occasion, or it could be free verse in a private moment not meant to be shared. Poetry is personal; a part of everyday life. It is also a unique means of communication and preservation.

Water steps down
staggered slate.
When winds diminish
and birds settle,
enough music.
          --From In the Courtyard by Edward Dougherty

          Poems may spring from an instant of inspiration, but most poets have to work at their poetry. For those who are serious writers there is a new workbook, "Double Bloom: Exercises for Poets". It was written by Edward A. Dougherty, who teaches at Corning Community College, and Scott Minar, formerly on the English faculty of Elmira College and now at Ohio University - Lancaster. While intended for classroom use, the exercises could be of value to anyone wanting to strengthen their poetic skills and get started on a poem.
          The first chapter begins with the simple advice, "Find a blank notebook, preferably one with a sewn binding - not spiral bound - so you can't tear anything out." It continues with exercises to tune up the senses, play with words, rewrite existing poems and try out new forms and styles. For example:

Take your Writer's Notebook to a public place - dining hall or restaurant, gym or health center, post office, etc. - and listen to people's conversations. Jot down expressions or exchanges that are interesting. Listen to the music of everyday speech, the tone of speakers, and the vividness of their language. Next try to assemble these into a poem, either with a single speaker or many...

          The final chapter is a selection of poems from Mr. Dougherty's classes.
          The universality and durability of poems is obvious from the anthologies that ordinarily include works from many eras. The Poetry Archives website lists the "classical" poems most requested, and they cover many years. The "100 greatest poems ever written" are found at Poetry.com. And of course every weekday morning at 8:30 WSKG listeners pause to hear Garrison Keillor read a poem on The Wtiters Almanac. Poets who have visited OFF THE PAGE include Ruth Stone, Liz Rosenberg, Carol and Richard Frost, Bruce Bennett and Michelle Courtney Berry.
          This OFF THE PAGE program will include poems by listeners. If you have a poem that you'd like to have considered, send it in the body of an e-mail (not as an attachment) to WSKG.Radio@Gmail.com. Poems should not be much more than a minute in length. For questions and comments about poetry, the usual phone number is 1-888/359-9754.

"Martial arts" doesn't necessarily imply hand-to-hand combat or breaking concrete blocks with your head. There is an ancient and practical philosophy behind it that provides good guidance for life. Joseph Cardillo of Norwich is a black belt instructor in several martial arts and author of "Be Like Water: Practical Wisdom from the Martial Arts" and "Bow to Life", with 365 exercises for day-to-day living. He will visit OFF THE PAGE on Tuesday, October 3rd.