The Art of KCF: Ritual Meal
I have this habit of listing during my writing process. Let me try to show it here. I like to create, to play, to follow a line of inquiry through its own unraveling. I try to follow it from the beginning of the thought to its landing place. Like a meditation technique, but instead of following the breath I'm following the thought. Observing it from afar, as if I'm some how disconnected from the thinker. I am still learning to accept I am not my thoughts.
Editors don't like my tendency to list. Nor do they enjoy my long meandering sentences that seem to start in one place and end in another. I get it. There are conventions we are supposed to adhere to for different forms of writing. But I've never been into conventions. I am not supposed to be like everyone else. And at what point does one's voice no longer reflect your truest self? My writing has further been changed by my deeper study of visual arts, I see the process differently now. From the point of view of an artist who makes objects material from the ephemeral. I love repetition. I love lyricism. Prepositions help me bring rhythm to my writing. I eat the same breakfast every Sunday, a Shakshuka that Vaimo* and I split duties on preparing. It's always best when we both work on it. It just tastes better. She slices the onions and peppers thinly and gets them softening in the cast iron pan. I'm in charge of adding the garlic, spices, and tomato and overseeing the baked egg process. We've been making this meal almost weekly for over a year now. I live for repetition. The ritual is complete for the week when I take the photo of the dish and post to my IG story.
I'm starting this newsletter as a means to begin a new ritual. A space for me to connect the dots between the media I'm consuming and the practices I'm engaging. A place where an editor won't tell me "I don't get what you're saying here," because it is possible I am unclear in my writing, and it may also be true that the message is not yet meant for you.
What you can expect - a brief vignette from yours truly, a round up of what I've been reading, watching, and thinking about like payday on the 15th and last day of each month for at least one year. The Art of KCF is one part experimentation on how to best share my authentic self with the world and one part honoring other creatives who help me tap into my fullest self. I'm committed to using this space to create. To reestablish my connection with my love of writing. To find ways to better connect, synthesize, my life's purpose -- to experience and inspire unabashed joy. Each newsletter will end with a brief update about my creative work and a series of questions I invite you to reflect on as a means to explore our creative processes. Questioning is what I do best, and I'm happy to share as a means to connect digitally during these increasingly isolating times.
Questions to Ponder
How does Spring fill you with joy?
What do you need for your creative process?
How are you finding comfort in stillness?
What new rituals are you engaging? For what purpose do they serve you right now? Are you letting go of any rituals currently? What are you shedding during Spring's bloom?
