I’ve been in Akumal a few days now and have written roughly three poems. The path is uncertain, but I’m on my way. A part of what I want to share on this blog is my process of poeming, as well as my plans. Here at the residency, with the other artists and the director, we’ve been talking a lot about day trips we want to take, and Cenote Dos Ojos has come up over and over again. I’ve stabbed at–and never quite gotten right–a poem about the time my ex-boyfriend and I saved a shirtless field worker who’d been bitten by a venomous snake outside of the cenote. It was a wild, unexpected day (Oh, but isn’t that Mexico!?), and one I hope to translate into a successful poem while working here.

A large part of my writing process is isolation, quietude, and music. I use the music to set the mood, which helps me find the nook in my brain where I can access memories, thoughts, and feelings. So as you might guess with this manuscript, there’s a lot of sad songs, but also some funkier Caribbean jams, for good measure.

I had a romantic disappointment right before leaving Boston, which has affected my mood just a little, but already I’m utilizing those emotions for the manuscript. Below are some of the songs currently inspiring me here in my first week in Akumal. Enjoy!

I’ve been discovering the town in bits and pieces, and had the chance to visit the farmer’s market yesterday. I was a little hungover after my overconsumption of Sol and Noche Buena beer upon our arrival to the residency, but as my friend Jacquie tells me, I’m a bon vivant.