May 28 2024
Last Friday was the @landlinepoetryseries at @abbyshighway40. Got to chat with some lovely folks. 🎉❣️🎉
Landline Poetry Series – Good Times with Good Folks
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Tag Archives: poetry
Storytelling Slam – A First Time Experience
May 24 2024
Storytelling Slam was an absolute blast!! 💥 I didn’t make it past the first round, but I sure as hell laughed til my face hurt for some of the stories. Reno has some amazingly talented folks! ❤️🔥🔥❤️🔥
Throwback Post: Sunset Walks While Reading and Cooking
**THROWBACK POST**
September 10 2015:
Just WOW! Beautiful walk tonight. Plus a moving quote from the bedtime book we read last night … “Do the little thing that comes from YOUR heart and everything might change, in ways no one could imagine.” – The Brave Little Parrot
September 10 2013
Gonna enjoy as many of these sunset reading moments as we possibly can in the next month and a half …. LOVE, LOVE, LOVE!
September 10 2012:
I’m so excited!!! Prepping for my annual “Lillian Presentation”. Every year I present to Lillian’s classmates about her differences. This year I’ll have a larger audience as all of the 4-6 grade teachers want me to present to their students instead of just Lillian’s class! WOW!! I’m thrilled to be given the opportunity to have these little minds to inspire and educate … My desire is that I say just the right thing, in just the right way to inspire at least one of them, hopefully more, to accept themselves just as they ARE and to carry that forward to acceptance and kindness towards those with differences … The magic happens this Friday, the 14th … not just any Friday and not just any 14th …. It’s a very special inspiring little ladies birthday that day too …. Rock on Ms. Lillian … Keep on shinin girl!
Makin dinner adventures for Team Member T … Fillin my boy with confidence and kindness tonight … Spaghetti and Meatball Stoup … And I was Thomas’ helper all the way!
A little poem inspired by Team Member T & L this past July 2012 …
September 10 2011:
About 10,000 feet up on Southwest Air on our way back to Reno from Vegas!!!
Never Stop Being on Fire – sea change
May 8 2024
To all the sisters who are on fire. 🔥 🔥🔥 Never stop. ❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥
sea change
To quote Stevie Nicks,
“The rooms are all on fire
Every time that you walk in the room
Well, there is magic all around you”
She’s on Fire means
she has shed the layers of herself she wore
for everyone else’s comfort.
The layers she wore to people-please
For fear that she would be rejected
That she would be rejected
Would be rejected
Rejected
She’s on fire means
She confidently asks for what she needs
She walks into spaces
With an air that she is supposed to be there
That she belongs there
She allows all of her self to enter
No longer afraid to take up space
She’s on fire means
That she fully steps into vulnerability
Unafraid to let the sensitive underbelly
Of vulnerability be exposed
For she knows that being vulnerable
allows others to be vulnerable
Letting others know they are not alone
This sharing creates waves of healing
that permeate the air
Inspiring all who are open to receiving
She’s on fire means
She knows when it’s worth the effort to
Engage in disagreements
She knows when being kind is the way
She knows that there are times when
Not being kind is the way
She no longer argues with those who
Are committed to misunderstanding her
She no longer tries to convince
Someone of her beauty, her worth
She’s on fire means
She has mastered the skill
Of knowing when to stay
And when to walk away
She walks away from toxic, one-sided, dead-end,
low vibrational relationships and friendships
She knows when to say, “I’m done”
She actively works on detoxing the part of her
That resonates with toxic people
She’s on fire means
She has mastered the skill
Of setting boundaries
Of knowing when those
Boundaries are not being respected
She knows when to leave
Burning down the damn bridge on her way out
She’s on fire means
She shares secrets with her skin and bones
With her blood and her heartbeat
Together they know
The older she gets
The quicker time moves
They know the finish line of life moves ever closer
She has decided not to waste
Any more time stopping herself from
Being moved by art, nature, music, poetry, words
Whatever it is
She will permit herself to feel it
She will allow it to express outwardly
She will no longer hold this inside of herself
No longer hold this inside of herself
Inside of herself
Herself
She’s on fire means
She will absolutely not be acting her age
Because what the hell does that even mean?
She will tell other women
How absolutely beautiful they are
How absolutely fucking amazing they are
How absolutely on fire they are
She will never use other women for kindling
In burning down what needs to be burned down
She’s on fire means
She allows herself to fully embrace her style
She will not be a paraphrase
In someone’s life
For she is the whole-ass story
She knows that there is magic
In showing others her true self
She’s on Fire means
She has been to hell and back
Where she collected the ashes of past struggles, past hurt and trauma
To use as confetti whenever she celebrates
And she brought back fire-tinged glitter
To sprinkle on her sisters when they need fire
she has stepped into her true, fluid chameleon self
she has released worry about what others think
Released
worry
About
What
Others
Think
For this is true freedom.
This is true freedom
True freedom
Freedom
And it is fucking glorious.
Camilla Downs, 2024
Poetry Workshop – Thanks to the Heretics’ and The Radical Cat
April 14 2024
Awesome poetry workshop this afternoon. 🐦⬛🎉🎉🎉🐦⬛ Thanks to The Heretics’ and The Radical Cat. 📝📝📝
Poetry – The Love of Laughter
The Love of Laughter
We meet for coffee
Ordering our favorite, hot, steaming beverage
In a mug that fits perfectly into the hands
We begin catching up with one another
Sharing about life events
Future plans
Taking turns talking
Darting from one topic to another
Then back again to the same topic
Oblivious to the buzz and chatter
Of the cafe and people around us
We pause between words
Lift the mug to the lips
Inhale the intoxicating scent of that
Dark liquid gold
Take a sip
Feel it touch the tongue
And slide down the throat
Next the conversation takes a turn
For the lighter side
We share something that
Only the two of us would find funny
We begin to laugh together
What we laugh about
Is something that could be crushed
By the weight of sadness
Were it to be viewed in that way
Nevertheless, we laugh
This is how we have chosen to
Meet these life moments
Laughing til our faces hurt
Laughing til we can no longer form words
Laughing til we can’t breathe
Laughing til our stomach muscles contract with pain
Laughing til the laughter spreads to the people next to us
Laughing til the laughter
Sprouts wings
Fluttering down the lane
Infecting all in its path
Taking to the skies
Bringing laughter to the clouds
The sun, the stars, the moon
When the wave of laughter subsides
We take a deep breath,
sip our coffee
And think how good this felt
We open our minds
And see into one another’s soul
With this shared experience
Our sense of humor is our virtue
There is nothing that compares
to this type of joy shared together.
Camilla Downs, 2024
Poetry: Unfinished Poem
**THROWBACK POETRY**
August 2023
Unfinished Poem
White puffy clouds in the sky
You know how I feel
Bright blue sky
You know how I feel
The first time we met
I could feel him in my bones
Heart beating faster, entire body lit up,
Lightheaded
Sizzling, tingling,
thick clouds of sweet, sticky nectar invading my brain
Drunk on him, I was
I’d lose all capacity
To think and speak coherently
We began texting
It felt as if we gave one another
Permission to go deeper
Holding hands in the darkness
We were safe from the world spinning around us
Sharing a little more with each message sent
And with each of those messages
The fondness grew stronger
I felt safe with him
A light breeze blowing through my hair
You know how I feel
The cool water caressing my body
You know how I feel
His uniqueness
authenticity
beauty
willingness to share his truths with me
His enthusiasm about getting to know me
Filled me with excitement, anticipation
The first time we kissed
Warm, tender, sweet
Delicious
The messages getting hotter
The fondness growing stronger
The hugs shared drenched me
With a feeling of being home
Sitting under a shade tree
You know how I feel
The touch of the cool, soft grass
You know how I feel
That time he touched my inner thigh
Telling me he loved my legs
Igniting the desire even more
I thought this was mutual
He wanting to know more about me, my life
Me wanting to know more about him, his life
Then he turned away,
stopped sharing, stopped reaching out, something had shifted
My neurospicy brain and tender heart
Wanted to make sense of it
Warm sand between my toes
You know how I feel
The scent of honeysuckle
You know how I feel
One minute into me, the next not
This continued for a while
Until I had to turn away
As the Mystery of this Love
Was tormenting me
My fondness, my desire for him
Was not where he could be
I had to leave us Unfinished
Unfinished as is the poem
He wrote to me
That lives in the messages on my phone
Two unfinished poems
That came together for a
Brief moment in time
The sun shining through my window
You know how I feel
The full moon in the deep black sky
You know how I feel
A brief moment in time
To experience an intense, sizzling
Safe, bright connection
The bits of our lost souls coming together
For a sweet, slippery dance to the tune of our poetry.
Leave out: This experience,
these poems,
The music he shared with me,
him
I treasure.
And That’s where this poem must end.
Unfinished
Yet, complete.
Camilla Downs, 2023
Poetry Writing Workshop – The Radical Cat
March 23 2024
Great afternoon of poetry writing, led by @griffinspiration. We wrote two poems in image chain style.
My two are titled, The Goddess of Lust and She’s Been Through Some Shit. 💋🦋💋
Everyone’s poems were awesome! @theradicalcat is a fabulous, local book+ shop! 🩷🩷🩷
Monday Night Poetry – Filling My Cup
March 23 2024
Monday Night Poetry filled my cup to overflowing! 🩷🩷🩷
Thank you Paolo, Isis, Levi, Jesse, Fredley, Caleb and a few others whose names I cannot remember (sorry!) for the hugs and holding space for me to share what I needed to share.
If you’ve followed my writing for some time, you know that I write to process life experiences. Nearly 100% of the time, I feel much better afterwards as it helps me to get on the other side of it.
Everyone at Monday Night Poetry instinctively understood that I was not asking for advice. I just needed to get this out of my head, heart, and body. And I needed comfort by way of hugs. That’s it.
I appreciate this wonderful group of creative folks so damn much! 💋💋💋
Have You Ever Discovered Treasure – National Poetry Month – April 16th
April is National Poetry Month. I’m going to attempt to write one poem every day this month. Halfway there! Today’s poem: 16/30 for April 16th.
Have You Ever Discovered Treasure?
The year was 2014
I was struggling
I was sad
I felt stuck, felt trapped
I felt without direction
I didn’t know how to support myself, my two kids
I desperately needed and sought answers
During this time
I had a profound dream
My two deceased grandmothers had a starring role in this dream
Estelle Eady Mann
Elnor Key Downs
In my dream
They lived together
I was extremely happy to see them
We sat enjoying each other’s company
I caught them up with my life
We began to go from room to room
Looking for treasures
Treasures that belonged to each one of them
Treasures that had been lost
There seemed an urgency to our searching
Something was about to happen
Unsuccessfully we searched the house
Attempting to locate these treasures
It felt like we searched for hours
When nearly all hope was lost
I discovered a hidden room in the house
Galvanized and relieved
The three of us entered the hidden room
Surrounding us were the lost treasures
My grandmothers knowingly stood before me
Sharing a message
This room represents you, Camilla
You are searching outside of yourself
For answers
for direction
For knowing your why
We want you to know
You are the treasure
Everything you need is within you
In that moment I woke from the dream
I was visibly touched by this profound dream
By my grandmothers visiting me
I immediately got out of bed
To capture this dream in my journal
I did not want to forget any details
It was an intense dream
Helping me to relax into the present moment
Helping me to release a shit load of worrying
It helped me to keep going
Helped me to keep going
Keep going
This dream was vivid
It seemed real
I had never had a dream like this
I have not had a dream like this since
My two amazing, strong, tenacious
Grandmothers rescued me that night
They entered my dreams
Took me by the hand
Guiding me to the treasure for which I had been searching
Estelle Eady Mann
Elnor Key Downs
Thank you for your help during that time
Thank you for continuing to enter my thoughts when I need it most.
Thank you
Thank you
Camilla Downs, 2024
**Prompt: RECALL ONE OF THE STRANGEST DREAMS YOU’VE EVER HAD AND WRITE ABOUT HOW IT MADE YOU FEEL OR WRITE IT OUT IN AS MUCH DETAIL AS YOU CAN REMEMBER.