Write a poem based on a “walking archive.” When you go on a walk and gather up interesting things — a flower, a strange piece of bark, a rock. This then becomes your “walking archive” — the physical instantiation of your walk. If you’re unable to get out of the house (as many of us now are), you can create a “walking archive” by wandering around your own home and gathering knick-knacks, family photos, maybe a strange spice or kitchen gadget you never use. Once you’ve finished your gathering, lay all your materials out on a tray table, like museum specimens. Now, let your group of materials inspire your poem! You can write about just one of the things you’ve gathered, or how all of them are all linked, or even what they say about you, who chose them and brought them together.
there are three jigsaw puzzles
stacked on top of each other
under our coffee table
because at first
you wanted a star wars puzzle
to cure your boredom
so we found one at
barnes & noble to play
or assemble
or frustrate over
you thought we were missing a piece
and i kept trying to fit two pieces together
