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Poetry says what photographs cannot |
Every time we return from holiday, our friends ask us where we went, where we stayed and what we did. Rarely does anybody ask us about the poetry we wrote while travelling. This is regrettable, because poetry is the most effective way to show what we emotionally experienced. Poetry suggests where we spiritually stayed. Our poems indicate our intellectual path. Instead of just showing everybody three hundred thousand photographs from your holiday, prepare a poetry tour to emphasise the deeper qualities of your holiday. Here are some examples from my poetry tour of Thailand called A Promise for Siam. This technique effectively converts your ordinary photo album into a unique and creative poetry album.
The Confluence of Rivers
Ubon Ratchathani Province
At the eastern edge of Siam
The Mun and Mekong mix their blood
In the confluence
Of searching for friendship and finding solitude
All frontiers are surpassed
Beyond nations of sadness and desire
Nature's song
Echoes in every river bend
Arrange your photo album with poetry and photos side by side. Keep the poems relatively short and most people will spend the time to read. If you include poems more than 12 lines, your friends may just skip to the next photo.
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In our Haste Phu Reua Mountain Loei Province In our haste to find beauty among mountains we did not notice the falling leaves the flight of birds the delicate wings of a silk butterfly |
Ø Photographs do not need to match the poems exactly.
Ø Photos and poems should complement and harmonize each other.
Ø Poems say what photographs cannot say.
Ø Photography adds an extra dimension to poetry.
Ø Poetry contributes extra meaning to photos.
Ø Consider the two parts as equal contribution to the work of art.