One Year of Words (Revisited)

For long there were just random jottings

A turn of phrase or a pithy insight,

A witty one liner or an alliterative expression,

Some reflections and mostly opinions.

Too unsure and lacking confidence,

Unable to believe my own written word,

Would store them away for future use

Which seemed a long distance away

There were some full blown poems

Some half written articles,

A few incomplete stories,

Tucked away in a dusty corner,

In long forgotten old diaries

Too personal to be shared with all.

And then followed a long barren period

When nary an event sparked creativity

Words would tease from afar,

Blank pages stared back unblinkingly,

The ink in the pen continued to remain dry

Then the welcoming fold of childhood friends

Encouraged me to end my riparian sojourn

To gingerly test the tepid waters

The delighted response unleashed a flood

Of thoughts and words which refused to be stemmed

So I presented a veritable feast of thoughts

To my encouraging peers

My words tumbled out in a hurry and a flurry

Taking everyone by surprise and delight

For a few months the torrent grew and grew

Before slowly ebbing to a quiet flow

The thoughts continue to clamour unabated

But I have learnt to streamline the barrage

The interest has waned a bit with time

Eliciting now an erratic lukewarm response

But the nurturing words had done their trick,

Nudging and pushing fingers to weave

Providing a cocoon of all encompassing warmth

And a fledgling voice found its tenor.

And thus flow the words, making demands on your kindness,

Finding a gentle, leisurely pace to move on.