Poem: "Every Unfamiliar Trail Is an Invitation"

[ysabetwordsmith]

This poem came out of the January 5, 2021 Poetry Fishbowl. It was inspired by a prompt from Anonymous on Dreamwidth. It also fills the "Unfamiliar" square in my 1-3-21 card for the Fresh Starts Bingo fest. This poem has been sponsored by ng_moonmoth. It belongs to the series Arts and Crafts America.


"Every Unfamiliar Trail Is an Invitation"

[Saturday, May 30, 2021]

rani
Láadan: non-cup, a hollow accomplishment, something one acquires or receives or accomplishes but is empty of all satisfaction [ra = non- + ni = cup]


Nellie Augustine held
her new art diploma in
her hand and felt nothing.

She had been promised
a sense of accomplishment
and a good job, neither
of which had arrived.

So Nellie took off
her cap and gown
while her classmates
were still celebrating
and dumped them
on the return table.

She went home and
tossed her diploma
in a drawer, then
made arrangements
for a long absence.

Next she packed
her travel supplies
and plein air kit,
plus a travel guide
and a Láadan novel.

Nellie took a bus to
the nearest national park,
shouldered her bags,
and started hiking.

She had tried out
the conventional way
and it hadn't worked.

Now she would go
where inspiration is
around each turn and
every unfamiliar trail
is an invitation.

* * *

Notes:

"Every unfamiliar trail is an invitation."
-- Trenton Lee Stewart, The Extraordinary Education of Nicholas Benedict

rani
non-cup, a hollow accomplishment, something one acquires or receives or accomplishes but is empty of all satisfaction [ra = non- + ni = cup]
-- Láadan to English

Láadan is the womanlanguage created by Suzette Haden Elgin to express the worldview of women. It happens to have caught on a lot more in Arts and Crafts America -- enough that people write beach novels in it.

Plein air art is done outside. Explore paints and other supplies for it. Oil paint, watercolor, and drawing all work. This kit is watercolor. Choosing a surface can mean watercolor canvas or paper, regular canvas, pastel paper, or studio canvas.

White Nights Artists Watercolour Plein Air Set – 12 Whole Pans, Plastic Box

Cretacolor Noir Charcoal Drawing Set - 11 Pieces

You can make your own plein air kit for watercolors.

Nellie's complete travel kit for plein air can be reduced to a medium set or an everyday carry set. This way she can pick and choose based on current needs, without needing to lug a whole art studio around the world. You really don't need much for watercolor in the wild or basic sketching.

Packing light is essential on a long trip. Read a list written by and for men if you want the real deal. This is Nellie's luggage.

This is a typical "women's backpacking" layout. It is bigger, flimsier, and generally ridiculous. Nellie is packing to hike around the world painting and taking pictures and having adventures, not to show off her tits.

Comments

[alatefeline]

Thank you.

You're welcome!

[ysabetwordsmith]

College has turned into such a scam, especially for some fields, that I needed to remind people it's okay to say, "Well, that didn't work," and try something else.

[(Anonymous)]

Re: the women's travel gear (rhetorical?):

Why do you need more than 1 pair of shoes, barring a specialized set (pool shoes vs walking shoes)?

Why do you need multiple dresses? (And if hiking, why a dress at all?)

In other news, this poem reminded me of something amusing-funny I said on the phone the other day: "I collect language books like most women collect shoes."

Thoughts

[ysabetwordsmith]

>> Why do you need more than 1 pair of shoes, barring a specialized set (pool shoes vs walking shoes)? <<

Yeah, I would look at specialties:
* Start with all-purpose walking shoes.
* If hot, add sandals or the like.
* If cold, add boots.

I wear one pair of footwear for almost all purposes, because finding any that fit is a waste of a day and a drawer of spoons. >_< People who want lots of shoes are usually thinking about matching their clothes, not practical activities.

>> Why do you need multiple dresses? (And if hiking, why a dress at all?) <<

It's not unreasonable to include one dress/skirt (expecially a convertible) as they are cool, but they are impractical in many environments. The prevalence of these in women's "travel" wardrobes is an indication that people plan to be shopping or dancing instead of, say, slogging around a lake looking for the best view.

>> In other news, this poem reminded me of something amusing-funny I said on the phone the other day: "I collect language books like most women collect shoes." <<

*laaaauuugh* That is so me. I have at least a couple shelves worth of linguistics and language dictionaries, and then there's all the English writing related stuff.

Re: Thoughts

[(Anonymous)]

>>...footwear...<<

I mostly have specialized ones. Sneakers vs work boots vs at-work shoes vs pool shoes (and I'll sometimes buy replacements ahead of needing them.)

While I do have a few fancy/business/costume shoes intended to match specific outfits, I almost never wear them. Interviews, weddings, Halloween, etc.

>>It's not unreasonable to include one dress/skirt (expecially a convertible) as they are cool, but they are impractical in many environments.<<

A skirt makes decent adaptive clothing* for injured legs/feet. A wrap can be a dress, skirt, curtain, tablecloth, headcovering, or carrying-sling. Either can also be a pool coverup, if loose enough and made from an appropriate material.

*It might also be easier to dress an injured companion in a wrap-as-blouse than a standard shirt. (I've never actually tried this, but not having to manipulate immobilized limbs through sleeves sounds much easier.)

>>...linguistics and language...<<

Check out The Conlanger's Lexipedia, by Mark Rosenfelder. (Some of his other books have interesting things to say about writing systems. And The Planet Construction Kit has interesting info on culture/mapmaking/worldbuilding...)

Also DKs bilingual picture dictionaries (they all use the same photos & layout inside, and are therefore very easy if you need to work in multiple languages.)

The Indo-European Cognate Dictionary by Fiona McPherson also looks interesting, but I havent bought a copy yet.