Today I went down to Hamden, CT (an hour-long trip) for my first meeting with a poetry-writing group, and Cia, my devoted best friend, was sweet enough to accompany me. While I attended the meeting, which was fairly disappointing, she did some of her quilting in the library where the meeting was being held, and took a walk in the neighborhood, and then met me at the library door when the meeting was over. The meeting was not what I hoped it would be. Each person shared a poem, and almost immediately the others began making suggestions for changes. I was stunned, to say the least, because while I was re-reading the poems -- and they were all good ones -- and trying to see into the life of them, the suggestions were all made and we moved on to the next poem. As I told Cia, it was as if you saw the Grand Canyon for the first time and immediately started making suggestions on how it could be even more interesting. It was definitely not my way of treating poetry. However, I guess I'm glad I went, and if I go back next month, it will be to set an example of a different, more humble and positive way of responding to good new poems. 

I say again, I am so grateful to my beloved partner for being with me on the long drive down and back. She is a total winner!