Tag: huitan

Posted on

Walkin In a Spider Web

Chelsea Bradway <p> Chandelier pieces, wire, and fishing line </p><p> $1,500 Inquiries: artonthetrails@gmail.com </p><p> Repurposed chandelier crystals and an upcycled film reel form a sculptural spider web glimmering with stories of connection, resilience, and growth. The crystal fragments—once suspended in private spaces—now radiate outward as points of shared light, reflecting how individual experiences touch others. The film reel anchors the web, reminding us that memory, history, and community are inseparable threads. An invitation to consider how we build, mend, and sustain one another—how our shared stories, hopes, and vulnerabilities form the luminous webs that hold us all.</p>

Throughout the month of September, I’m taking the time to appreciate various forms of art and to be inspired by the creativity and thought that goes into each work – whether it’s a painting, a sketch, a collage postcard, or a structure created in nature along a trail. This week, I’m sharing poems that were inspired by Art on the Trails. Today’s ekphrastic poem is in response to Chelsea Bradway’s Walkin in a Spiderweb that you can read more about here. I chose a Huitian as my form, thinking of the eight legs of a spider and how poetic form can become a part of the overall impression when paired with visual art. A Huitan has eight lines of eight syllables, and this one has a rhyme scheme of abbaacca.


Crystal Chandelier Delight

one spider spins a web of light

to reach into our darkest fears

shares stories told throughout the years

then turns to others to invite

their own connections and insight

together, then, they all reach out

climb far beyond the waterspout

weave crystal chandelier delight

If you’d like to know more about the project, visit this page and watch the videos that were created to show how the shared vision became a reality. This makes me want to create a similar event in my own community. I have a trail in mind – a trail created in memory of a former student whose parents are my former colleagues. I just wonder……could we do the same thing here, inviting artists to create works of art, and poets to write poems inspired by that art, and then walk along a trail in celebration of it all?

I think that would be a beautiful thing to do!

Posted on

Huitain Graham Cracker Purity – Slice of Life Challenge Day 11, The Stafford Challenge Day 55

Special thanks to Two Writing Teachers for inspiring writers.

Our three schnoodles aren’t spoiled, but they do expect a hand-fed breakfast every morning, so my husband gives them bites of graham crackers or Teddy Grahams. As they were sitting by the fire on Sunday morning having their royal feast, I wondered about the origins of graham crackers. I was thinking that perhaps since the Huitain is a French form of poetry and poodles are a German breed but are the national dog of France, then maybe if the crackers were of French origin, I could work all of that into a poem and serve it up like a fresh-baked croissant, all buttery and warm.

It was not to be.

I learned more about graham crackers than I should know.

Boo Radley and Ollie eating graham crackers

The crackers do not have French origins, and they were not invented to feed little dogs a healthy breakfast snack. They were invented by a preacher, Reverend Graham, who baked them to dissuade physical affection. I got quite an eye-opening education about these seemingly innocent little wafers. Who knew? 

Huitain Graham Cracker Purity

three schnoodles when hungry like graham squares
breakfast with Dad inspired Mom to inquire
to see where they started, these squares and bears
***
oh my! a sermon: brimstone and hellfire! 
to repress our deepest carnal desire
crackers were baked to dissuade our urges
to keep us out of the funeral pyre
***
stay dressed! eat crackers! say NO to merges!