Emotions, Paint, Nature
Vagabond Voices writing and living prompt.
Who painted this scene?
Did the wind whip up
the cold and self
doubt on cresting waves?
Did the sun break out
and light the depths stirring
them turquoise,
golden when you had the idea?
Or did the light, the breath, the entire
scene surface from deep, deeper than body,
Emotion, the organizing
principle, the chaos,
the resolution.
Does your mood affect the flavor and color of the world around you?
As humans, when we walk out of the house with love bursting in our chests, does it clear the sky and send the clouds away in lifting oranges and purples?
Or does the first chirping bird of spring, the melting snow have the power to thaw our hearts?
Do the stars tell our story? Or do we live out their spirals and orbits — preordained.
And what about your poetry, your characters, your stories?
Does the physical, natural world mirror what lies within?
This is my invitation to you!
Paint nature with emotions.
Or emotion with nature.
Slip it into a poem or a story, a collage, a journal entry, a doodle.
Bring it here if you like! Or let this be a writing practice you do ‘just’ for yourself.
The book behind this prompt?
There is always a book around here.
This time, I took inspiration from The Shipping News by Annie Proulx. Thanks to for recommending it to our book club!
There is much inspiration a writer can take from this novel, but in this case, I decided to draw from the way Proulx seems to allow the natural surroundings to meld with the emotions of the characters…reflecting their inner worlds or else soothing characters, molding them in some way.
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