Spell Jars
This week’s Rebel Cartographer writing invitation is brought to you by The Slowdown poetry podcast. This episode brings us Protection Spell Jar by Cynthia Marie Hoffman and host Maggie Smith writes… “Today’s poem is from a collection of prose poems that chronicles a woman’s journey through obsessive-compulsive disorder, from childhood into adulthood. I admire the way we’re invited into the speaker’s consciousness, to see her mind at work.”
I listened to this episode (as I often to) while taking my daily walk and I kept thinking about the idea of the spell jar and a poem as a sort of spell jar. Then later I looked more into the idea of spell jars (source of artwork above) and I love the idea of writing a poem as a sort of spell of protection. What spell would you like to weave? What ingredients do you think would achieve this spell? More spell jar inspiration.
I’m so intrigued by this idea I think I may add this to my students’ What If artifact choices.
Update: When adding this to my What If choice board I realized this is a form(?) or inspiration that has long interested me. See The Motherhood Ritual (a petition to the gods) and The Oath of the Writing Teacher but I also think that Commission and Calculus might fall into this loose category. What oath, ritual, prayer, or spell will you craft?
