How i Gave Birth to My Mother
with Poetry, Pictures, Mementos, and Art
Can words, pictures, art, and mementos enliven memories?
Join Susan Blauner as she steps back in time to rekindle and deepen memories of her mother, Inez, who died at fifty-five, when Blauner was fourteen.
Blauner is writing How I Gave Birth to My Mother to better understand the influence of parental love and parental loss. Through narrative memoir, ekphrastic poetry, and clear, accessible instruction, Blauner
supports readers as they expand and deepen the lived experience of a loved one.
To facilitate memory retrieval for readers, Blauner presents 20 creative activities related to writing, pictures, art, and mementos.
For further understanding, Blauner includes a resource directory of books, online options, and professional organizations.
Ekphrastic poetry uses paintings, photos, sculpture, ceramics, textiles, and other artforms for inspiration. Here, Blauner turns to pictures, with and without her mother.
Fair Winds
The sole turning
point of your compass
brought red skies to mourning.
I watched my birth vessel drift
to sea a broken eye swirling in
uncharted waters, no wave to
stop her ultimate crossing.
Fair winds, mom,
fair winds.
Double You
Little girl in vee of trees,
white pants way too long,
sees through you—arrow-wise,
while light casts crown
to form a double you.
Did someone put her up to it,
or did she seize the opportunity
for still life, pushing trees apart
with strong hands like her mother's?
Life was so much simpler
at the start of double you.
Copyright © 2022 Susan Blauner. All rights reserved.