How to READ a Poem?

How to Read a Poem?

I will be up front with you from the very beginning here.

OK, I recognize that it take a lot of work, and a lot of  "how to" to read a poem. I mean, to really READ the poem and begin to figure out the depth of it.

That is why many readers are so intimidated by a poem.  In just a very few short line, the entire universe can be explored. One little poem can discuss  the inner workings of a mind;  the most minute microscopic world.

A  poem is an entire world.  And, you, the reader, can enter into this world and explore.  Approach the poem you are about to read as if you have stepped off an airplane and have entered a new country.  You are now on a journey!

 One woman recently wrote me that she became  "confused" and "disoriented" when reading  my poem, “Eclipse.” I wrote the poem this month when I was contemplating the Eclipse of the sun and the New Moon - all happening in the night sky on one particular night. This was pretty exciting for me to think about.  The poem I eventually worked out is a "found poem" that means I used texts from other sources combined with my own text.   

I combined ideas of the amazing spectacle in the heavens, with imagery from my Zen Meditation Garden, mythology, and horticulture.  In particular I chose to write about the special Japanese tree standing so nobly in the Zen Meditation Garden. Like the Eclipse and the New Moon, this tree was a living, moving, changing, and shifting form of LIFE. In fact, in April she dons her new PURPLE leaves, and by fall her colors will shift and change until they are a blazing FIESTA  RED. Ah, kind of like the ECLIPSE and the Changing of the MOON? 

I know, I know.  Now, that is a lot of STUFF to have to consider. But then, the poem is a JOURNEY, of sorts, isn't it? Is not all of CREATION participating in the JOURNEY? 

The message I received in my E-mail box brought a smile to my face, I have to say. I was so amused with her terse comments, and the epilogue statement she made near the end of her comments. She said “this is only my opinion.” That is always a red flag, when someone says "it is only MY opinion." I could imagine her turning up her nose at the thought of reading my poem and turning to walk away - putting an END to the conversation about my poem. She had judged it and found it unworthy of her further exploration. 

What I really would like to know is HOW she arrived at her opinion? What was her criteria for deciding that the poem was disorienting and confusing to her? How did she make an assessment? Her voice in the message was angry and it was as though I could hear her saying she was really lost at sea when she read my poem, though she did not use that phrase. It was clear to me that this is a person who has had very little contact with difficult contemporary poetry. Her note to me has inspired me to write this article today.

I had to “sleep on it” before writing a reply to this lady. I did not want to insult her, nor did I want to be condescending. I hope what I wrote to her is helpful. But in reality, she will have to have a change in her attitude before she will ever begin to “read” contemporary poems.

In part, I replied, “My poem evoked an emotion in you and that is a start that is a good thing! You made my evening!”

This kind of pseudo-critique  that she wrote to me  is truly understandable. Undergraduate students in my English Literature courses at Geneva College (Beaver Falls, PA) often expressed  a frustration and even anger when they encountered  difficult  poetry.  It  was always so much fun working with them and observing how they grow once they begin to unpack the tools they need to have to really learn how to read a poem.

Learning how to "read" a poem takes a great deal of effort and time.

The primary necessity though,  is DESIRE.

 It takes a deep desire and a change of attitude in how to approach something new to us.   One little poem can make us feel so uncomfortable and inadequate when approaching it if we have not had experiences in learning HOW to READ the poem.

There are some fantastic books available for learning how to walk deeper into the waters of learning how to explicate a poem. 

Books I used in the classroom for many years with students at the college is

Contemporary American Poetry_

    by Donald Hall   

Writing Dangerous Poetry

 by Michael C. Smith.

There are other great books on this subject. These are only two of the ones that I used. Stop by your local book store and have a look at what is there on the shelves in the POETRY section. Find what you think will be the right book for you. You can also check with the on-line book sellers and find some GEMS there!

I saw amazing results with the students and big attitude shifts once they began to learn the methods of figuring out a poem.

Here are some keys

to help you begin the HOURNEY on  this path, if you are sincere in wanting to really begin to understand as you read. I wrote out a few things to consider, and a few question as to how you might begin to consider those things.

Some KEYS are:

 

n Material used from other times and persons.

Q. How did I describe the other sources of material I used? 

How are the sources combined with my own text - that is called "appropriation."

Can you figure this out as you read?

Can you figure out the different voices of the texts, within the poem?

n Decenters authority and embraces pluralism.

Q. Is this concept present in the poem? How so?

n Encourages a many-sided point of view.

Q. Does this throw you a curve, as you are not accustomed to looking and listening to different points of view within the poem?

Does this make you uncomfortable?

If so, why is that?

n It is NOT didactic.

Q. Do you expect the poet to give you a clear point of view?

Do you think the poem should read like  a Big Red stop sign when in you are driving your car?

 Are you looking for a very  green light at the intersection?

Do you expect the poem to be a type of billboard that gives you an instruction or promotes one particular thing, image, or notion?

If so, discard that notion!

n Method and intuition replace intention.

Q.  Discard the notion that the poet is giving you her motive or intention.  Ask instead, "What is the METHOD that was used in THIS poem?

HOW was it written? 

How can I reach into myself to get a glimpse of  the intuition that I need to have to understand something here?

What does my GUT say?

Think beyond  didactic brain. 

 HOW do I FEEL when I am reading this poem?

And, Why do I feel this way?

n Has no conclusion & doubles back on itself with overlapping and sometimes contradictory versions.

Q.  Where does the poem overlap?

What ideas are changing as I read?  What is shifting here in the poem?  How do the images here in the poem work in layers of meaning?  There are multiple layers and multiple meanings in the poem - how can I begin to see them, one at a time?

Finally, how can I see them mingling and changing?

Rhododendron Dreams

Rhododendron Dreams 

 

Spring Time  in Western Pennsylvania

What a beautiful morning  here in Western Pennsylvania. 

The world here is alive with sights, sounds,smells today.

My senses are acutely aware of it all because I have just returned from my early morning workout at the gym where I do high intensity interval training. After my workout, my body is 

in sinc 

with the world of nature when I come home.  I grabbed my camera and
shot a lot of photos of the enormous, 20 ft high, 

Rhododendron bush in full bloom

I wanted to capture the early morning light the fully open 

lavender-pink blossoms - hundreds of them. 

I am alive and so is all of 

Nature today!

I have always loved taking photographs.  My loss of  sight has not decreased
the passion I have for those unexpected  and succulent images.  My methods have chanced though.

Two years ago, I sold my 35 mm cameras and all the attachments I had treasured and used so much over the years.  Now, I just take out my GE1040 digital camera and I approach my subject, point and shoot. It is always a big surprise when I finally get to see what I captured.  It is very strange 

to some people around me that I cannot see what I am shooting, but yet, later through technology, 

I can see the shots on my large screen 

computer monitor. U use  ZoomText. 

How I love my ZoomText! It is pure magic for me. It enables me to fully participate as a photographer in the visual world, just like I always did before sight loss.

I am writing about these things, this morning, to say that it  is another
way to capture subject matter and images for poetry! There is no separation
for me bet wen fine art and poetry. My process is the same for creating both,
though the instruments and methods are different.  It is the tools and the
adaptations of tools that enable me to continue to do the things I have always loved to do - write poetry and make art.

When I begin to think about my subject and how I will create a poem from this image, I begin to remember my physical contact with it, too. It is only partly a visual image. My other senses are there as well. I use them all when I begin to create the photograph or the poem. It all begins with awareness of the moment - fully aware of it all.  It is a kind of awakening from a deep sleep - it happens slowly, in layers.

The question is: 

How to take a great photo or write a great poem from an 

image  you cannot see?

Here is my own process:

First, become aware of the  physical aspects of your subject. It has a living presence. It is a tangible thing.Pay attention to the smell of it. It breathes, moves, shifts, changes, lives, and dies.

This morning I listened to  the lone crow calling from the woods surrounding my home when I was outside with my camera.I heard the rushing waters of the creek below the meadow behind my home. Mingled in with the water's flow, I heard the softer sounds of the wild geese who are down there as they are every spring. Then, a layer of sharp staccato jabs of sharp trills, from a bird, punctuating the top layer of the morning's landscape.

I touched   the dripping wet leaves as I moved through the trees along the path.  My feet were  cold and became wet  because the dew was heavy on the grass.  My clothing  started to  cling to my torso because  water spots dropped on me.

I breathed in the  early morning cool air and noticed that the day  seems subdued and hazy. But my body was throbbing with energy and excitement as I walked, parting the branches along the way. It all felt so good, so right.My physical contact with my subjects and everything that surrounds me, and
my subject, will come into my photograph.  I will be trying to capture the livingness of this day, through this one particular photograph. If I am very aware of it all, I will have a good photo today! If I am really dedicated to my pursuit of this image and this moment in time in my own life, I will even
have a poem eventually.  

Art and life are one.

Finally, inside the house in the solitude of my office where the clock ticks
on the wall behind me, I begin the additional work   that will take the images from the morning's experiences. I will take them from the camera, blow them up through the computer photo program, and then begin to crop, select, and edit my photos.  For the poem that might come forth from this morning's work with the camera and the photo editing, I will begin to record some words about my subject.  I will write a blog about today's adventure in the early morning. I will post some photos on my Facebook Page for my friends around the world to enjoy.  I will even write a short message to my friends on the Writer's List this morning. And, I will probably begin the work of turning these images into a poem.

I will consider all aspects of it. My blossoms have center stage, they are
stars, each of them,  on a plant  I had plunged  into the soil about 43 years ago. It was a very small plant in a little plastic container at that time.  As the years have passed it has grown into the magnificent blooming waterfall-type of wall - bursting forth with magnificent  flowers that I saw
this morning.  

Life happens slowly, like the growth of this plant that reaches up into the second story of my very old house here on River Road.

Life is LIVED in the smallest details of those years, 

in this place. 

If only I can capture just a small moment 

of it all today!


Maybe you would like to take a walk today and see what you find blooming in your world!  Go ahead. You might be surprised at what is out there.

Your DISABILITY can be TURNED to an ABILITY

Be a Winner!

How do you SEE yourself?

When you think about what you do as an artist or writer, what kind of image of YOU comes to your mind?

I can say that I choose to see ME as a WINNER.

I see ME as successful in my life.

Success is in inner FEELING that we have. It does not depend on any outward circumstances. It is internal. It is a STATE OF MIND!

After I lost my eyesight in 2007 it seemed that I would never again be able to make art or write.  I decided very quickly that I wanted to take charge of my own circumstances and that would happen through my own determination and decisions. I chose to continue on with life as I had known it – making art, writing poems, and being the creative being I always was.

To do this, I had to LEARN to ADAPT. Yes, it was true my life had been greatly altered.

Despite the circumstances, I determined to again make ART and to WRITE.

I began working towards my goals a little at a time. I knew I had to learn new ways of making art and writing. Step by step, I did just that.

Last weekend, one of my bead worked pieces was honored at the Associated Artists of Butler County Spring Art Show –

I got THE FIRST PLACE AWARD in the Mixed Media Category!! The winning art work is “Party on the Allegheny River.” 

This work was created from small smooth stones I gathered on the Allegheny River near Oil City, PA as I was out in a CANOE. This was AFTER MY  SIGHT 

LOSS!

Above:  Party on the Allegheny, side view.

Below:  Girl on a Bench Sees Visions of Butterflies

This is very special to me because this was one of the first bead work pieces I was able to do after my sight loss experience. It was a struggle for me to again do this kind of delicate bead work. The beads are so small that most people can barely feel them between their fingers when they pick one up.  But, with perseverance, I learned HOW to do it and HOW to get a very miniscule needle through those tiny holes in the beads.  I do it non-visually!

Another of the bead work pieces I designed and completed was a self-portrait of me as a child. This piece is called _Girl on a Bench Sees Visions of Butterflies_ and features a vintage pocket mirror with a photo of me as a small child on it. I used this idea as the centerpiece for my art work.  It had been given to me by my mother, long ago.

Surrounding the photo mirror is  an array of Stone Carved Roses made from CORAL GEMSTONES.  This picture features many, many tiny Japanese beads.  It is a fine and intricate type of bead working – every item on this piece is made from and surrounded by BEADS.

I chose to do it in a vintage print, from the 1940’s because that is the era when the photo would have been taken of me on the bench. I wanted a nostalgic feeling in the art work and it was important to begin with a fabric from this decade.

The exciting news here, is that THIS PIECE is currently on display at an international invitation exhibition – the Small Works Salon – at the New Arts Program, Kutztown, PA.  I will attend the opening reception there on May 25^th and have a JOY of knowing that MY ART WORK is worthy of such a wonderful international art show.

I share these things with YOU so that you can get the feeling of finding success and a winning attitude in your own creative life.

You can BE whoever you DECIDE you WILL BE.

If you have a disability  it does not matter

You can FIND your OWN way

CHOOSE to overcome that challenge.

You will see! 

You can do it, too!

Lotus Blossoms, Ideas, and Time

Good Morning Poetry  Lovers and Writers,

This morning I was thinking about how we come up with the myriad of ideas that we gather for our poems and our writings.

People always ask:

"How do you gather ideas and images for use in your poetry?"

First of all, 

Ideas are everywhere!

Ideas and inspirations  surround us all day long when we are actively engaged in the mundane chores of our day. 

Ideas and images are:

Overhead in the night skies,

Sloshing down in the pouring spring rain,

Romping like a child with a sand shovel and bucket in the sunshine on the beach,

Found on the front page of this morning's small town newspaper,

Sent  in a letter from a dear friend,

Articulated over the phone when I am talking with a friend who is meeting challenges,

Hidden in  the bushy ruffled wag of my little  dog's tail as he dances to  beg for treats, 


Packed away in great grandma's old metal trunk with bands of wood and brass


 forgotten in the darkness of your dusty attic

Buried deep in the rich black earth in the woods beneath the stately Hemlock tree where we have buried all our pets through the years.

Search through your MEMORIES

Can you recall the ivory blooms of Queen Ann Lace in the early fall fields?

They are often intermingled with the periwinkle stars of the Chicory, just before the first frost. My heart skips a few beats just to think of this delightful sight, right in my back yard every year. Last year, the meadow was alive with cone shaped mushroom. They were scatterd about like a magician had come through and waved his magic wand there, and from the dust of his want came the brilliant white mushroom reaching up to the sky.

How about that dragon- fly that landed on your shoulder as you sat quietly along the edges of the brook when you were a small child? Did you hear it  rattle around in the back seat of your car yesterday?

What idea was blown by the winds across the foggy surface of asphalt in the parking lot at the strip mall?

Are you remembering some things right now that just might be the stuff of a poem?

I think I could sit here for hours on end writing about where I have been surprised and delighted  by  the quickly fleeting sliver of an idea, or softly echoing lyric of a soulful idea for a poem. I think I spotted the leg of a new poem this morning, lurking there inside my new pair of Reebok cross-trainer shoes! I saw that slender strip of yellow zig-zagging across the bottom of the shoes - calling out to me to pay attention and not be in such a big rush to get going on my journey today.

 I sat down to look over new messages on my Face Book page today, 

I found a gem of an idea there.

Delight was right there in print on that page. 

 And, there was a picture, too! The picture there was of a Lotus Flower, all in violet, lavender, deep greens, and periwinkle blue colors.

An idea for a poem  came to me as I scanned through this  new FaceBook message.

One thing you eventually find on social media are like minded individuals who share a world view that can be similar to your own.  

 These are the "friends" you always look for because they often post messages that lift you up and encourage you, and give you new insight - a little glimmer of some truth that rings true inside your body.  I had one of those moments this morning!

~ I choose  friends who ~

 love the arts 

care about the earth

work to find homes for animals 

 restore others  to good health

friends who love dusty old things

cherish small things

some who love flowers - gardens - birds

those who love to travel and enjoy the culture of other places 

friends who respect other people who live in very different circumstances

Think carefully about the kind of people you call your friends.

What kind of energy do they give off? Is it healing, helpful, encouraging, and positive? I avoid negative people because their energy will bring you down to where they are and that is a place where there are no poems and no marvel. Choose friends who love life and who are life-bringers in this world. A negative person is an empty shell of a human person. 

Just a few months ago

I joined a group of writers who talk about their work and put up their writings for the rest of the group to discuss. There, I have found three strong women poets who are absolutely amazing writers. Like me, they have experienced sight loss, yet they live a full and complete life with no boundaries and no regrets. 

The poetry folks I have met recently at the National Federation of the Blind on the NFB Writers Division list have been talking about saving some of the comments and poems they find so they can return to them and read them again. What a good idea this is! I have a couple of files started for this purpose, too. I have read some poems that are so nourishing, rich, memorable that I want to savor them again and again. I also want to see more poems from these people, and watch their path unfold as they write.

I, too, have a  folder  for saving "ideas" for some future works for myself. 

An idea will come to me and I like to record it and save it to my files. I will collect information on that idea until I have sufficient material to begin the work on a new poem. I gather ideas and put them in my files before they fly off to become someone else's poem!

Another place I find inspiration is when I read some of the FaceBook pages posted by friends I have never met.

Today's find  is the message  I will post below. The message uses the metaphor of the Lotus Flower. It is a keeper and is now in my folder. My folder is  called "Poem_Ideas"  and at some point I will return to this message and begin the work of writing a poem. The idea has been captured and saved for me to return to another day when I am able to put the work into the idea.

What do YOU need to do to enrich your ideas for working with words?

You need to SLOW DOWN, first of all.

Pay attention to your surroundings.

Listen to what sounds are there. Close your eyes and smell the air. 

Reach out your finger tips and touch something. How does it feel?

Is there a taste in the air?  Do you hear the music?

Patience, my friends, patience. That is the KEY to getting in touch with your own world. It is YOUR WORLD and YOUR LIFE that is your motif.

As you begin to feel, hear, taste, see, touch, smell your world, you will now be ready to begin your poem. 

The poem is your life!

  

"The lotus flower sits upon one of it's leaves, having risen to the surface as the sun, held in the hand of God, invites it upward to the light. This unique plant is rooted in the mud and muck at the bottom of a body of water, it's stem reaching up to the surface, where the leaves rest quietly. At night, the flower closes and sinks below the surface, only to rise with the daylight and once again, gradually unfold it's petals. 
What we learn from this amazing plant is how our own spiritual path unfolds and opens to the light, then at times gently folds in on itself for a proper rest when the daylight fades. 
Your spiritual unfoldment is occurring at all times, whether or not you are aware of it. It is inevitable as long as you put your trust in the hands of the Creator, the One who holds the Light. 
Like the Lotus, your soul is always reaching for the light to fulfill its karmic destiny, but even in that process, there are periods of darkness and times to rest. It is a natural cycle, one that cannot truly be coerced or halted. 
It has an innate rhythm of its own, one that is unique to the Being that is you!"

~Earth Magic by Steven D. Farmer

 

How do YOU do it?

Good Morning Friends,

I was asked recently:

How are you able to write a blog?

How can you create a website?

How DOES a person who is blind do these things? 

How did you learn to do it?

I cannot see details and colors since I have no central vision. I have only some peripheral vision and that is not clear at all. The sight that I have is akin to walking in a snow squall. Everything is grayed out and blurred, with an occasional glimpse of something significant. I can usually detect something that is moving, if there is contrast.

The way that I do see, is with high contrast. I see no nuances or subtle color changes in anything.

 When I am knitting, my friends and family explain to me what colors they see in my yarn. To me, it mostly looks all gray.  I am always delighted when they tell me of the wonderful colors they are seeing there!

How do I manage my website and my blog?

I had very extensive knowledge about how to do websites and blogs BEFORE sight loss. I had two blogs and have had a  website for many years. (I am a former professor of Fine Arts and Humanities, at Geneva College, Beaver Falls, PA)

Before sight loss, I wrote about one of my passions, knitting. I did it for relaxation and to share information/patterns/finished projects on the blogs.

It was a nice get-a-way from my professional life. Knitting is very relaxing to me, and I love the feel of the soft yarns as they slip through my fingers. There is nothing that can compare to the feel of a hand knitted garment, that is one-of-a-kind, original.

How do I maintain and create my  website?

 My website is where I share images of my art works.  Before sight loss, I used to share photos of of my paintings, wood cut prints, upcoming show information, and my travel/study trips to Europe every summer. The website was a recruiting tool for that program.

For twelve years, I taught a course called Drawing and Writing in Salzburg. Students at the college could take my course for credits in Humanities, English, or Studio Art.

We lived in the Alps in Austria every summer until 2008 (I lost my sight in the fall of 2007). College students and came with me to  Austia for a month every summer. While there I worked in my art studio in the village school, just outside of Salzburg. I taught classes every morning Monday - Thursday until noon. Our class met early each morning  in the school, and each day we took trips all over the area. They had writing and art assignments at a different location every day. On weekends, I took the students to a different country - Italy for the Redintore Festival every year in Venice.  We traveled to  Czech Republic, where we visited small villages and of course, Prague.  In Germany, we traveled on boats over deep Alpine lakes, ancient cities,  and castles

This is how I knew HOW to make a website - through marketing my own art and my Drawing and Writing in Salzburg courses.

When I lost my sight - overnight - I was completely LOST. For five months I really sat in a chair and listened to Public Radio as I did not know how to do anything at all. My husband brought me books on CDs from the local library - I was completely LOST and no one knew what to do with me.  It took five months of very hard work to learn that there was such a thing as rehab for blind people - and finally, after an existence that was meaningless, I got to go to a rehab center in Pittsburgh.

There, I learned that I could do things again. But the realization that I had in an instant gone from teaching and lecturing on a very high level, and had plunged to a level that was less than kindergarten became very clear to me.  The  LEARNING CURVE for a person who has entered the world of sight loss  is the steepest learning curve I have ever experienced, just to begin to live again and do the most basic things.

I was at the Blind and Vision Rehabilitation Services in Homestead, PA  for 15 weeks, and did very well. I still had no computer skills, when I left there. But, I had the “Intro to blindness” skills that completely changed my life and my future. I found out that there is almost nothing that I cannot do. I just have to learn how to ADAPT to doing everything in a new way that works for me.

After FOUR YEARS of sight loss, I am still learning how to adapt all the time as new situations come up. There are still moments when I lose it for a little while and have to get my bearings, and begin again.

Relearning the computer   took another two  years  to be able to write a blog or work on my website  again I can now process photos by myself, and upload them onto my computer.  As a VISUAL ARTIST this is important for me to do. I share my work with the world through my blog and my website. 

I am still the VISUAL ARTIST I have always been, but now I have learned to ADAPT to my new situation.

Through this blog, I am able to take you on the journey with me as I learn how to do new things and how to re-learn the things I once took for granted.

The learning curve is the steepest one I could ever have imagined.

TENACITY is the KEY to success - in everything.

Don't GIVE UP, and Do not QUIT TRYING.

This is one of the newest pieces of pottery I made. I never knew I could make pottery!

These days, I am making pottery, knitting, and creating intricate encrusted bead work.

I do it all by TOUCH, non-Visually, and in some cases with the help of TECHNOLOGY.

Life is still good...

 Life is still a creation in process!

> 

Art is God's Voice

Pay attention to poetry.

Pay attention to music.

Pay attention to paintings and sculptures and photo exhibits and ballets and plays.

Why?

Because art is God's way of saying hello. Your world is shouting out to you, revealing something intrinsically glorious about itself.

Listen carefully.

Love art, the way art loves life.

Don't let all this go unnoticed. _Neale Donald Walsh_

I have a page on Face Book. You can find me there by typing in my username:  Lynda McKinney Lambert. I use this page to keep in touch with friends mostly. It’s a place where I can chitchat with friends and family. Lots of times, I post interesting things that I like. I share them with anyone who might visit my page that day.

You can also find another page that I have on FaceBook. It is the business page where I keep my friends and clients updated on my upcoming exhibitions and show photos of that is going on in my studio. That page is:  River Road Studio


http://www.facebook.com/pages/River-Road-Studio/175785105811956

You can visit this page and when you do PLEASE click on the LIKE button there. This way I know there are friends who like my work and like to hear about what is happening in my artistic professional life. Please visit me there soon. And, be sure to leave a comment for me!

I like to check my two FaceBook pages every morning. Often I see some gems  to  enjoy. Every now and again, I find something that makes me sit up and pay attention. Some things rise above the usually mundane. Today is one of those days. I found the quote above, posted by Neale Donald Walsh. I really love this post today!

You know, it is in the ARTS that we can LEARN what is really going on in our world.  

The evening news does not have a clue as to what is really going on. It is through the ARTS that we learn about our world. The arts give us insights into the future as well as understanding of the present. The only things is, you have to be willing to STOP and take a LOOK. Stop and LISTEN. STOP.  


The ARTS make us THINK and thinking takes TIME. The ARTS stop us in our TRACKS.

I have often heard from a philosopher friend that when he wants to know what is going on, he looks to ART to give him the SCOOP. The inside information. It is hidden. Art REVEALS. Through ART we can actually SEE OUR SELF.

Neale Donald Walsh has it right.

“Pay attention to poetry. Pay attention to music. Pay attention to paintings and sculptures and photo exhibits and ballets and plays. Why? Because art is God's way of saying hello. Your world is shouting out to you, revealing something intrinsically glorious about itself. Listen carefully. Love art, the way art loves life. Don't let all this go unnoticed."  Neale Donald Walsh

Read it again.

“Art is the WORLD saying HELLO to you!  ART is God’s way of speaking to you. Say HELLO to GOD. Go look at some art. Go listen to a musical performance. Go.  Let God have a WORD with you soon.” _Lynda Lambert_