txt talk

I’m going to talk about words this week. I’ve been thinking, for a single discernible reason, a lot about words as of late.

I’m using a flip phone right now. Yes, it’s on purpose. In short, I thought it might be nice to disconnect from social media and all that. Anyways, I’ve been sending all of my texts with one of those keyboards where you have to press three times to get the letter “c” and so on. I’m sure you remember them, it’s been quite a nostalgic experience for me to go back to that.

So yeah, imagine me typing out full paragraphs like that. It goes without saying that this experience has made me more cognizant of and more grateful for words and the weight they can carry, down to each individual letter.

I don’t know if this is affecting my poetry or not just yet, although I’d imagine it is, or at least will. Regardless, though, it felt fitting that I wrote Bri’s letter for workshop this week; she had such an awareness for individual letters, and that’s sort of the world I’ve been living in for the last couple of weeks.

For my sake, I’d like for this blog post to serve as a reminder to me to look back at my work and see whether or not my new hyperawareness will manifest in my poetry at all. Honestly, I feel like my poetry has been changing quite a lot lately anyways, so I wouldn’t be surprised.

For your sake, I’d like for this blog post to serve as a reminder to pay attention to words. Not only in your poems, but also in your daily life. We’re surrounded by them and we take them for granted.

2 Replies to “txt talk”

  1. Natalie,

    I love your flip phone. This summer I had a very similar revelation… after getting in a dumb texting fight with one of my friends I was literally ready to throw my phone out the window. I HATE TEXTING because it is SO easy to misconstrue things and start an argument. I was so ready to discontinue the idea of texting and I got in the car to go to Verizon, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it just because of the convenience that a smart phone supplies. I’m too much of a millennial at this point I think — better luck to my future self, and kudos to you.

    Best,
    Julia xoxo

  2. Hi Natalie,

    Just the other day I was having a conversation with my sister and she used a word (I’ve already forgotten it) that just caught my attention. So, I repeated the word out-loud, which she took as me mocking her word choice, but really I just wanted to say the word too. Sometimes I’ll hear a word or a phrase that I just feel like I need to say. Kind of odd, I know, but I agree with you. We take language for granted, when really it’s in everything.

    -Connor

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