Finding the Gesture within the written word

For this post there is a short video of my reciting a poem describing the four main types of clouds I wrote for a meteorology lesson for pupils in a school.

Each of the four descriptions are necessarily very different - portraying their own picture-image of a particular type of cloud.

Finding - establishing - the Gesture that supports speaking the words creatively and truthfully is achieved by speaking imaginatively the contrasting picture-images of the highest type of cloud Cirrus, whispy and white, with the lowest type of cloud Nimbus, heavy and black. The Gesture for Cirrus is light, whispy, very high, and transient - there one minute gone a short while later - and having the power to signal rain is on it's way! For nimbus a 'dogged determination by the heavens' to finally release torrents of rain.

You cannot have two more contrasting cloud formations or skies in which they sit - the former in blue sky, the latter sky often being black everywhere.

The purpose of writing the poem for the students was to enable them to "experience" these graphic differences in picture-images, gestures, through their reciting the description of each type of cloud.

I met one of these pupils recently and she spoke about the poem with great feeling.

Speak the poem and identify the specific gesture, picture-image, this creates in you about the different types of cloud.

Here is the Poem

Cirrus - whispy white cotton tails

             high in the sky

             foretelling of rain

Stratus - grey blanket cloud

              advancing steadily

              covering the heavens

Cumulus - white cauliflower day cloud

                  forever changing

Nimbus - heavy black cloud

                shedding torrents of rain

coming to a sky near to you soon!

The last two posts have looked at the connection between picture-image and gesture. The next post will explore the use of picture-image - (visualisation) by sports men and women to enhance their performance.