Nannette Schweig Hoffman
Poetry
The Image and the Leaf1/30/2018 “This book of 36 poems and 32 pen and ink drawings, features the images of leaves grown old. Each wrinkled form becomes sublimely unique, in contrast to those new leaves, which look alike. In the fall, colors astound us with their special vibrancy. But here, without the aid of brilliance, forms become the message. Their powerful effect enables them to creep into my poems. Each fall these shapes are beauty under foot we tend to ignore. Perhaps you will join me during the season of raking up and take a look.” Nannette Hoffman Excerpt from the Preface of The Image and the Leaf: Poems and Drawings by Nannette Hoffman, (2002, Ellicott Press, Washington, D.C.). This was Nannette’s last collection of poems, written in the winter of her life, before Alzheimer’s consumed her. She dedicated it to her husband with these simple words: “To my husband, Edwin Hoffman, who has lovingly shared with me a home saturated in music, poetry and inspiration for creating art.”
0 Comments
November Rewards1/20/2018 The Oak let go
of a million leaves today thickening carpet under tired feet. Whipped by heavy downpours and the North wind, only the stubborn ones held tight upon the branch. Now sun bathes naked limbs, glaring brightness on tattered offspring. I search the piles for that special leaf, one with twists, with textures, roughly etched from elements, veins reaching out among darkening spots. These scars are trophies earned for having borne and survived nature’s careless indiscretions. * * * Take Risks!1/20/2018 In forty years of teaching art and poetry, the word talent has always been questionable. Usually, students feel that they have no talent and become discouraged early on. To that I say: Ignore all those who want you to believe that you have no talent. Take risks! Listen to your heart! Believe in yourself more than in those who criticize you. Learn from those who have achieved, but always believe in your own instinct and original style when creating important work. Failures are stepping-stones to success. Accept them and move on. That is the key: a willingness to fail and then keep going. I have found that those who feel loved and supported can do this most easily. In my own experience, when I began drawing and writing poems at age five, my older brother, who was ten, criticized me. He insisted that I was never doing anything good. But I never let his words discourage me because my mother greatly encouraged every creative attempt I ever made! Even when I preferred to write my own piano music and put lyrics to it, instead of practicing my scales, (as I was supposed to), my mother was always thrilled to see me express myself creatively. I am eternally grateful to my mother to this day, since my piano playing, poetry, and especially painting, has improved over the years, giving me so many hours of joy. We all must begin somewhere. For me, talent was the result of love. Listen to your heart, believe that you are loved and allow yourself the joy of creativity. PoetryArchivesCategories |