Picture of my local pub
Spring sun breathes a sigh
Jasmine blossom paints pub walls
soon reopening.
In my last 6 poetry blogs I've been exploring the theme of inspiration, particularly in regards to finding inspiration for creative writing. There are many practices that can improve your short stories or poetry through observation, practices that can exercise your writing muscles and inspire the muse.
One such practice is mindful walking. To keep the explanation simple, all this means is to actively observe and make mental notes of the environment around you during your daily tasks. This is better done while doing jobs outside, walking to the shop etc, rather than say at work. The outside world is an everchanging environment where you can pick up on different and unique ways to color the narrative of your writing.
Mayan legends says that the temple of Uxmal in Mexico was built by a race of dwarves, which apparently only had to whistle and 'heavy rocks would move into place'. It is said that if a person stands at the base of the pyramid-like Temple of the magician and claps their hands the stone structure at the top produces a 'chirping sound'.
Source: www.ancient-wisdom.com
Check out the Haiku above to see an example of how I applied this technique in describing the spring blossom blooming. In the case of poetry, and in particular a short form like Haiku, you have to pick one of the many things you've observed to focus on. But the technique remains the same for either fiction or poetry. The key thing to remember is to be aware of the small things that usually wash over you and hold them in your mind. In the case of writing descriptive passages for short fiction, this technique can mean the difference between a flat description and one that draws the reader in.
For example:
I walked down the street. The sun warmed my face, blossom burst on the branches and the wind was cold. Spring was well on its way.
The sun kissed blossom on the branches as I walked. The Jasmine tree trailed whiskers of salmon hue down the side of the pub wall, too long closed down in the wake of the pandemic. Lockdown was ending soon though, and I smiled as I remembered hazy summer days spent drinking outside that pub. The wind blew cold off the river, a hint of winter's fading in its biting breath. Spring was well underway.
Which is better? I would argue number 2 shows much more about setting through the description while giving some information about the narrator. The second descriptive passage benefits from my mindful walking technique, whereas I wrote the first without drawing on any observances from my walk today, only commenting on the basic environmental factors.
To read more about the aesthetics of true haiku, and the difference between haiku and senryu, please check out my post: Haiku Vs Senryu - The Aesthetics of Form
All images in this post are either CC license, linked beneath the pic or taken or designed by me. If you have enjoyed this Haiku, please check out my homepage 
