The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily 1477: Surety by Anna Zumbahlen
Mar 16, 2026
A meditation on how poems freeze sensory moments and act as portals to the past. Reflections on choosing presence versus noting details. Thoughts about admitting the effort to memorize moments aloud. A reading that catalogs small images, sounds, and quiet epiphanies.
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Writing As Memory Work
- Writing functions as a way to memorize moments rather than merely describe them.
- Maggie Smith explains she often senses poetic possibility mid-experience and splits attention between living the moment and recording its future on the page.
Sit Still Before You Write
- Try resisting the urge to record every detail and instead sit with a moment to store it sensorially first.
- Maggie Smith describes taking a mental 'Polaroid' of light, sounds, and touch instead of immediately reaching for pen or phone.
Asking Permission To Memorize
- Maggie often tells trusted companions 'let's just sit here for a minute' to signal she's memorizing the scene.
- She notes this works only with people who won't give her side-eye and who honor the pause.