Friday, October 14, 2005

THE GIFT YEARS

So Melly has challenged me to the following meme: Go into your archives and find the fifth sentence of your twenty-third post. I've been seeing this around in various places, and found it rather intriguing. The idea of a paltry little sentence pulled from the lair of its paragraph and left to stand on its own. Not generally the best of ideas, but as I say, kind of an interesting one. So here's mine:

It's the gift years.

Doesn't make all that much sense left alone to waver in the breeze like that. It would much rather be nestled back in the piece I wrote about the work Matisse back in June. It describes the work and the days and the years that Matisse never expected to get after an illness that he thought would kill him. And how he used every one of them. To the hilt!

So if there's any point in reprinting it, it's to remind myself and anyone else who needs to hear it, that every year is a gift year. Every moment a gift moment.

The bus just missed you, a group of cells conspired against you last year, but they lost the vote. Your heart could have taken the A Train yesterday, and left you lying on the tracks, but it didn't. And look you're still here!

What are you going to do to celebrate?

P.S. If anyone would like to pick up the meme and go hunting through your archives, the sign up sheet is below.

15 comments:

Loud Static said...

I'm new to blogspot, but that is a rather interesting concept.

A good friend and I used to grab a book, any book, shout numbers at each other (page, paragraph, sentence) and then recite the sentence we came up with.

It's usually a really good tool for finding something to write about, anyway. :) An out of context sentence can open a huge can of worms.

Patry Francis said...

Chris: Thanks for stopping by. I only wish I could read German so I could profit from your blog.

Loud Static: Welcome to blogspot! I think that you will find interesting cans of worms everywhere!

Anonymous said...

Well, I said you'd have a meaningful sentence!

Anonymous said...

If my count is right....it's As though the world were due for a good accounting. Glad to see I can comment here now. This past summer I couldn't.

Patry Francis said...

Melly: I think I had to dig a little to find the meaning, but thanks for the tag!

Colleen: I didn't know I had the blog set to exclude unregistered comments until recently. Glad I changed it in time to hear your great fifth sentence: As though the world were due for a good accounting. Wow!

Anonymous said...

Patry, here's a bit of synchronicity: last night I was looking at a video about Matisse's wonderful, mind-blowing "livre d'artiste" JAZZ which he made in the 1940's from his paper cut-outs. The image you posted is one of them (without the label).I've always loved this book, especially as my own specialisation has been making artists books (see those pages on my site).
But the odd thing is that I only found out that this video existed because of a comment made by Moose on Dale's blog after a comment I made quoting from JAZZ then a comment by Moose on my blog which inspired me to go searching via Google where I found a small French documentary film distributor where I ordered the video which arrived yesterday and now I visit your blog and ...bingo! here's Matisse again. Whew. Hope I haven't worn you out with this saga. Anyway, glad you've fixed it so I can now add a comment here.

Perfect Virgo said...

"They looked out of place in grubby Southsea with their happening haircuts, brown leather jackets and black jeans."

Plucked from its proper loction this sounds more like an opening scene setter than a mid-paragraph description. Could be an interesting way of generating opening lines for a novel Patry...

Patry Francis said...

Natalie: This kind of synchronicity seems to be happening to me with increasing frequency leading me to believe--well, something that is probably too long and unformed for a comment.

Anyway, thanks for your comment. So happy to have your voice here. And that video! I'm now on the hunt. I'll be interested to hear your thoughts on it.

P.V.: What a great fifth sentence! And yes, you have to write the novel. I definitely need to know what those suave dudes in leather jackets were doing in that grubby neighborhood.

Patry Francis said...

Diana: Trying to become more organized is a constant struggle for me, too. Sometimes I think I progress, then I fall back. But I love the effort! I'm starting to think there is something mystical about the 5th Sentence meme.

Anonymous said...

Oh, now this was a good one. melly was right.

rdl said...

Well, here's mine(boring): I do have a theory tho that once the dust is thick enough to write your initials in (which it is at my house) it doesn't accumulate or matter anymore - who cares, obviouslyI don't.
Tho it was interesting that the 23rd was actually a saved draft so i skipped it and went to the 23rd post. The draft one was much more interesting and shocking and aprepro for a full moon last night and in synch with what is actually going on.

Patry Francis said...

Only the real draft counts--if you want to tap into the mystical aspect of the meme.

Matthew said...

"The two are silent for a moment."

taken from what i call a "non-play" entitled "Less than Pants".

i dig this idea, and your blog.

keep poeming.

Anonymous said...

Excellent, love it! »

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