Textual Poaching

I have titled this piece of black-out poetry, "The Daughters and the Lord." It is taken from 2 Nephi 14 of the Book of Mormon, which is actually attributed to the book of Isaiah, so we're getting quite multi-layered here! I wanted to take a text that was significant to me as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and reshape it into something that highlights my identity as a woman. Growing up, I had wonderful female role models who taught me and showed me what it means to create. Create art, create a family, create friendships, create yummy food, create strong testimonies, create children, create a home, etc. I learned to be a creator because of the women and mothers who also had a part in creating me. I also learned from these women how to rely on God and be a co-creator with him. But there have been times when I've had a lot of questions and have felt momentarily that women are on the margins of the church. My heart aches for the experiences and stories of women who have gone through any kind of oppression and marginalization. I will not say that the church is a perfect place and that everyone there is understood or valued by other people. But I do know that all are valued by God. And that with Him, we create all good things. I want to be a co-creator with Him in every aspect of my life, and I feel that is a major part of my identity.

I chose black-out poetry because I'd never done it before and have been wanting to experiment with it for awhile. I think it's a beautiful form, and a unique way to respond to a pre-existing text. It's a little bit trickier than I thought, but I just made sure to find a passage of scripture that included the words, "women" and "daughters" and then looked for other words I could highlight. I used Canva, which I wouldn't recommend for this kind of process, because it took me a lot longer than I would have like, whereas, a different type of platform would have been easier for coloring over a pre-existing image. It was also kind of challenging to decide on the words I would keep, but I think that's definitely the fun of it! Like Ford who responded to Audubon's works, I also took a historical text and added another layer of context and history. This layer is my own personal experience and perspective of what is important to me as a Latter-day Saint woman.

I would definitely use black-out poetry in my classroom one day, not just as a creative writing process, but as a way to respond to existing texts. This will require students to understand a text and really be familiar with it, so that they can make a new meaning out of it by choosing select words. I have also seen black-out poetry that gets a lot more creative and intricate with the way in which words are blacked out, sometimes drawing pictures or images that support the new meaning being created.