I set myself a challenge in September 2025. Could I write a short poem every day? The plan was to develop a discipline that is easy to neglect. Often artists fall into two categories: inspired or grafters.
The inspired artist waits for inspiration to strike. They like to sit around, procrastinate and wait for the idea to drop into their lap. This isn’t to say that the inspired artist is lazy for they will often work with no thought of stopping when inspiration hits. Indeed it can become all consuming. The problem is it can take a long time (sometimes years) before they produce anything. I fall into this category most of the time.
The grafter on the other hand sets aside some time each day and get to work. Sometimes they set a goal: 1000 words a day or a new sketch or song. Either way, they show up regularly and do the work.
The daily poem is my attempt to show up and do the work. They are not meant to be perfectly crafted but they should show thought and consideration without judgement. They will be uploaded to this site no matter how I feel about them.
I hope that they will inspire you to show up and do the work also. We often think that our art has to be perfect before we share it. It doesn’t. Also, it can never be perfect. We learn by doing. We improve by embracing our mistakes and moving forward. It’s a design for life as well as art.
