The Poetteer

The Garden Through the window I see the morning dew  I feel your sunlight  the wind chimes and birds chirp  buds fill the branches  The morning spring light  nourishes the blossoming -  flowers and my soul  The breeze brings  the first fragrance  of freshly bloomed flowers  bringing vibrant colors to the earth  watching clouds float and shape-shift  perfect for bare feet and day dreams  I sit in silence, unmoved  two little birds were chirping loudly  playing in our garden  chirping to their friends  I hear their wings flutter and dance in the bird bath  the flowers you water pray for you  the birds you feed pray for you. Behind the Poem The poem wasn’t written in one sitting. It started as three haikus in response to some April prompts . In June I wrote a garden poem. I noticed one stanza had the same line as one of the haikus: " Enjoy the little joys  the breeze brings wind chimes and ...

Gold Gift Every time I look down at my wrists and see the bracelets I see their hands, I am reminded of both women who wore it before me I hope to embody their strength. Behind the Poem This poem is from Her Durian. I wrote it after my mom gave me her bracelet that she had gotten from her mother. In the moment it felt casual. She slipped on my wrist to give me some arm candy before our trip to Malaysia. My own grandmother didn't recognize it yet thought it was beautiful. This memory will always be attached to the bracelet and poem. Signed paperbacks are now available for purchase. 

Hello Poetteers, Brought to Life Driving by a beautiful sight seeing the dead trees covered in snow they wait to be brought back to life I listen to prayers and praise of God my heart yearns for Him. Behind the Poem I would share here what inspired the poem but I write about the inspiration in the poem. I was with my mom after a bookstore date. We chose to drive down a scenic route. I was specifically listening to a recitation of the prayers of the last prophet. We talked about how beautiful and calming both the view and recitation was. I can tell you how I felt. I was moved to tears. Has something moved you to tears? Stay inspired, Fida

Hello Poetteers, There is a list of songs I always listen to when I want to feel uplifted. The other day I thought the feelings behind these songs are similar to those when you read Blossoming Heart . I had to share this with you. Unwritten by Natasha Bedingfield - This was one of the first songs I heard and saw myself in it. Broken Glass by Rachel Platten - When I first heard this song I felt it is an uplifting dance song about standing up after getting hurt and working hard towards what you love. It is a motivating song I listen to first thing in the morning when I get ready to work. Brave by Sara Bareilles - An uplifting song that made me cry when I first heard it. It reminds me of my quiet self and how I use my writing to speak up and be comfortable with myself. The poem, Being Brave, was inspired by this song. Stand by You by Rachel Platten - The song is about reaching out and being with someone as they are breaking and healing. In the beginning stanza, it tal...

Hello Poetteers, Back in May , I revealed I was working on a poetry prompt book. With some help of a couple readers, I finally came up with the title for the book! It also has a publication date of Nov 7, 2017. Drumroll, please! Add it to Goodreads  first. It's also available for preorder . And the title is... Love Yourself: A Journey to Healing Stay inspired, Fida

Hello Poetteers, Three years ago I published Hugs & Kisses . To celebrate I want to share the inspiration behind the book. I get my inspiration from any and everywhere. My poems Strip Me and Let it Go are inspired by songs of the same titles. When everyone read my poem Let It Go they all thought of the song and teased me. I had shared the poem as a spoken word piece. I couldn’t get the song out of my head and it made the poem feel odd. You couldn’t think of the words let it go without thinking of the song. I feel the poem is different from the song. If I wrote it with more distance from the song, the comparison wouldn’t feel so heavy. It’s not always like that. The song Strip Me is not as popular as the song Let it Go and is an older song, so the song isn’t compared to the poem. With writing these poems I’ve learned to have patience in sharing them and be careful with your words. Show the difference and make it personal with your own story.  Has a song ever inspired yo...

Hello Poetteers, A dream day of a poet would be to spend the whole day reading and writing poetry and chatting with fellow poets. But the reality is that we have to balance poetry with life. You might be able to squeeze in an hour of reading a poetry collection or writing poetry. We would love to have all our poetry in one place in a virtual folder or physical notebook. There is a chance to try that. But throughout the day with a job, family, cooking, etc we don’t have time to write, so you have scraps of paper everywhere with poetry ideas and verses jotted down. Sometimes you forget why that line came to mind and where you were going with it. I haven’t tried it yet, but you can use an audio recording device or feature on your phone to help you better understand your thoughts later when you finally get the time to sit down. I consider my life with poetry to almost be my ideal lifestyle. How does poetry look like in your daily life? Stay inspired, Fida

Hello Poetteers, Over on Instagram , I’ve started a new series of sharing my poet confessions. When I first started writing poetry I didn't read much poetry.  Before last fall, I never wrote a sonnet.  I got a poem published in my high school lit magazine and afterward, I noticed a big spelling error.  I almost never rhyme in my poems.  I don't memorize my poems.  I search my own poems for verses to make sure I actually wrote them.  Sometimes I struggle to finish writing a poem.  Other times I can write a good poem in one try.  I don't curse in my poems.  What is one of your poet confessions? Stay inspired, Fida Read More: Never Wrote A Sonnet Part 1 | Part 2

Hello Poetteers, Doodle Doodle after doodle each outstanding and unique just like you (read the whole poem when you buy the book ) Before this poem was published in A to Z Poetry , it was written for a different purpose. It was a gift for a friend. The poem was inspired by said friend for their own passion. The story of knowing this person is special to me. From afar, I admired their art. As with every person you are talented in one thing and end up struggling in something else. I was able to be there to help. I wanted to remember that some way and this poem was born. For this poem and many other poems, you can get a copy of A to Z Poetry on Smashwords for $.99 using the code YE68T. Twitter-sized bite: Go behind the scenes of the poem, Doodle, by @poetfida.  (Tweet it!) stay inspired, Fida

Hello Poetteers, One of the things on my bucket list is to make a short film. This past week I've been filming clips here and there. It is cool to pick what goes with the poem. You get to be as creative as you want. No one else is behind you telling you if it works or not. I love the ability to experiment.  This is one of my favorite poems to have recored and I'm glad to do something special for it. I hope you enjoy listening and watching it as much as I enjoyed writing and making it. Behind the Scenes :  It takes multiple takes for you to get the right clip. I thought I filmed enough but last minute I had to do more filming. I scheduled a specific day for filming but the sky wasn't what I wanted so I hand to postpone my filming day. I had a different image in my mind when I first started but it change over the week of filming and it's better than expected.  Originally shared on my newsletter .  Let me know: Do you like short films? What d...

Hello Poetteers, Resistance is a poem I wrote a year ago. I wanted it to be about Palestine but as I wrote it changed to be about me. It's a confusing poem talking about both. You may be able to see it as you read it. You'll notice that parts of it is out of place: This is not going to be a city street with just a memory it will have its living moments. With the two story lines I decided to make it two different poems. I've changed to be about a person's journey. Rereading, it is one of my favorites I've written. Since then it's been revised and published in my book, Her Treasures.  Her Treasures is available on Amazon . You can get signed copy on Etsy . Stay inspired, Fida