Rhythm and Meter Question

Hi everyone. Class today was a lot of fun and was inspiring and helpful. But I was disappointed I didn't have my notebook to take down some of the interesting information on rhythms and meter. Is there some type of overarching key word that I could use to look up further information on this? I have looked up "Iambic pentameter" and "Dactylic pentameter" but do you know what I could look up to find a list of meters like these or further information on this? Any good book resources or videos? I found this site that seemed to be helpful:

It's a glossary of poetic terms: http://www.poetryfoundation.org/learning/glossary-terms?category=rhythm-and-meter

I'm also trying to remember what we covered in class. We covered Iambic and Dactylic, did we cover something else and what was it? Also, I wanted to ask but I forgot, the two beats in a row - what is that called? I think it started with an "S" but I am not sure. Thanks for reading my post!

Muscle Memory for Story Learning

For several years (in one of my other lives) I worked as a special education assistant and as an advocate. In training sessions current research data would be presented and we would learn about various teaching tools for learning skills. But muscle memory was always a go to that aids in everyone's learning. Methods such as sky writing a large looping "O" while using this vowel's sounds "O" "ocean / Otter / coat/  cot" and so on with each letter aids learning and retention.

As we move from station to station with a story and physically demonstrate scenes from a story we engage muscle memory. When we make those large body movements around our stage area our story gains description and depth in our memory while also including /inviting our audience in.

Moving chairs

I found today's exercise of moving the chair around the room really powerful.  It made me see the story in totally different ways.  Associations about the three goats keep finding their way into my head.  It seems to me that the story is existing in all of our minds.  This rearrangement then is like rearranging furniture.  The invisible is seen in a new light.  Very cool.

Blind Spot to Insight

I loved this thought from Megan Wells today, about how she tries to move a story "from blind spot to insight." I've lately been reading a lot about self-deception, and as I have I've been thinking about storytelling as a way of unraveling self-deception through vicarious experience. Basically, we're made to identify with a character who has some sort of self-deception--"a blind spot"--and then when they, through their experience, come to understanding, we experience that lovely synchronicity where we have the same epiphany with them. I was thinking about that, and then Megan went and summed that up so elegantly.

A lot of what we've done in this class could be considered as sort of preparation for this, from practicing being physically centered and rooted to learning to ask hard questions of the stories we work with. It takes that kind of rootedness to have the courage to explore the little lies we live; it takes that kind of inquiry to break open the puzzle.

If it's True one place it should be True everywhere

I have heard Chris say some things about story listening, that there is a part of learning to tell stories that is also about learning how to listen to others stories ( forgive me Chris, I am not trying to quote you).

Equally I think there is a power to being able to sit with peoples stories, the happy, the uncomfortable, the sad, the angering.  As we listen to we become aware of our blind spots can we help shed light for others for theres?

Megan Wells sees storytelling as a consciousness building.  A holy temple so to speak.  I must admit being far from home and safely emerged in story land.  I have been using the tools of story creating and story listening to the story unfolding at home.

Some of you know Tom and I, have a little family drama taking place with one of our kids.  Maybe it is because I have been desensitized by a weeks worth of powerful personal stories, but I find myself better able to be present.  I am more helpful as I look to allow my own blind spots to be illuminated.
I have just started talking about everything in terms of story and story arc, and I am surprised by how much more this is able to be received.

The touching of consciousness that Megan Wells refers to?

xeno's rope (not sure of the spelling)

I appreciated the exercise with the rope to visualize the arc of the story line. I find that adding a 3D effect to a story like this helps me see it in another light.  What I was wondering though was how to do this in real life for working with your own story. It would be hard to hold both ends of the rope and then move other pieces. Doing it in your head isn't the same thing as the physical feeling of moving the rope with your hands (or feet as in some cases). I was just trying to see how this exercise could be translated into an exercise to use by ourselves as we work with our own stories in development. Any thoughts?

e.e. cummings poem

I couldn't resist sharing my favorite e.e. cummings poem here. I especially enjoy the lack of punctuation in it, that leaves the reader free to pause in their own interpretation. - Laurina

[i carry your heart with me(i carry it in]

BY E. E. CUMMINGS

i carry your heart with me(i carry it in

my heart)i am never without it(anywhere

i go you go,my dear;and whatever is done

by only me is your doing,my darling)

                                                      i fear

no fate(for you are my fate,my sweet)i want

no world(for beautiful you are my world,my true)

and it’s you are whatever a moon has always meant

and whatever a sun will always sing is you

here is the deepest secret nobody knows

(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud

and the sky of the sky of a tree called life;which grows

higher than soul can hope or mind can hide)

and this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart

i carry your heart(i carry it in my heart)