About “Comfort Zone” & “The Ninth Month”

1. What was your motivation for writing “Comfort Zone” & “The Ninth Month”?

Comfort Zone came from a phase in my life where I had left my nine-to-five grind & was pivoting into a new world personally & professionally. The pace of life suddenly changed; and I had time to do some deep soul work in the cocoon of my wonderful apartment. Comfort Zone is about this phase, this experience, and this time of my life where ‘slow living’ and self- care led my days. 

Ninth Month, on the other hand, is about hope & harvest. After a long ‘comfort zone’, Ninth Month hints at the cycle of birthing and ‘coming alive’ after a long period of hibernation & exile in one’s comfort zone. The poems are a beautiful nod to each other & the cyclical nature of life; of how ‘waiting’ and ‘cocooning’ is beautiful; and part of the process of ripening, becoming, birth & harvest. 

Both poems are deeply personal & point to a life-changing period in my life; where everything as I knew shifted completely. These poems point to the continuum of time as I started and ended this phase; and the grace & gifts from this definitive ‘waiting’ period in my life. 

2. What challenges—if any—did you have writing your poems?

I did not experience any particular challenges whilst writing these poems; as they were so reflective of what I was experiencing personally at the time. In fact, the poems helped me process & heal- created in a continuum of flow and beingness. 

3. What is your favourite line—if any—in “Comfort Zone”?

The news is on mute, 
But prayers keep me busy. 
They are my questions 
To God 

4. What is your favourite line—if any—in “The Ninth Month”?

Come September,
Our hearts won’t be ours, but 
They will be each other’s, 
And we will 
Know why this long wait 
Has been. 

5. What do you want people to walk away with after reading “Comfort Zone” & “The Ninth Month”?

I want people to reflect on the beauty and sacredness of their everyday life after reading these poems. I want people to understand that even when we don’t get what we desire in the here and now, there is a gift in the simplicity of the present moment that we should nourish. 

I want people to understand how gestation leads to harvest; and to know that divine timing is much more magical than our ‘linear’ human understanding on how life should play out. 

6. Is there anything else you would like to talk about regarding “Comfort Zone” & “The Ninth Month” that hasn’t been asked?

NA 

Reading 

1. What are you currently reading?

I am currently reading ‘The Mountain is You’ by Brianna Wiest. 

2. Do you have a favourite book? If so, what is it?

The Magic Faraway Tree by Enid Blyton. It represents to me the ideas of possibility, magic & the limitlessness of human imagination. 

3. What is your favourite poet or author, if any?

I relish the poetry of Maya Angelou & Pablo Neruda. 

4. Do you gravitate towards reading genres outside the ones you write?

I enjoy books at the intersection of spirituality, memoir and female empowerment.

Writing 

1. Why do you write?

I write to purge; I write to understand; I write to release. 

2. What do you love about being a poet?

I love the romance of poetry; the lyricism; the intuitive flow of words that seem to know exactly what I wish to express and say. Writing is deeply spiritual to me; where my pen seems to know what to say; in what brevity and in what intonation and rhythm words want to come into being.  

3. What time of the day do you write, and do you have a writing routine?

I write on long journeys. I write when I’m feeling a lot. I write before going to sleep at night. 

4. Where do you get your ideas from?

I get my ideas from the vignettes of daily life, from simply watching intently and being present;  and when I am disconnected from phones, computers and digital technology overall. 

5. How long does it take you to write your projects?

A poem can take me 20 minutes or 5 hours. Often, I revisit it a couple of days later to refine the words, their flow & prune out any extra words that aren’t adding to the work. 

6. What advice would you give to other authors/writers/poets?

Write often. Do not judge the quality of your work. The drafts, the half-words, the sketches are as powerful as the final pieces that find their published home(s). Simply stay honest to the process of expressing yourself, if it calls to you and is something you wish to do. 

Also, do not allow the audience or the process of publishing interfere with the creation of your work. Write your authenticity, and the right audiences/channels will find you. 

7. What project(s) are you currently working on?

I am currently finishing my upcoming poetry manuscript, titled Entangled.