I've been taking my poems for a walk recently. I got this idea from Susan Rich at a workshop she did with Kelli Russell Agodon. She suggested putting a poem on a clipboard and walk around your neighborhood, reading as you go. She was making a case for hearing your words in a new context. It's certainly been helping me revise poems, but even more importantly for me, it's helping me prioritize poetry.

Three days a week, I walk David to school, walk home, and then I either work for money (tutoring, editing, critiquing) or I write poetry. Except most poetry days, I spend the first hour or so arranging play dates, setting up dentist appointments, doing the dishes, and checking Facebook. But with this whole "take my poems for a walk" business, on my walk home, I pull out my clipboard. I read the poems aloud, find glaring holes, freewrite, add in a couple yellow tulips and an abandoned baby blanket. I work on poetry. But, I've already worked on poetry to pick the poems that make the clipboard for the day, and I'm set up to work on poetry more because typing in edits doesn't sound nearly as scary as staring at a blank page. I've already put in a half hour of writing time before I'm even supposed to start, and I'm jumpstarted for more. This is so heartening and satisfying.