THE POETRY OF MINIATURES

"Sometimes the smallest things take up the most room in your heart".  Winnie the Pooh

How wonderful is it to stumble upon a item of tiny perfection?  Any miniature collector knows just what I mean.  It's that moment when you discover the quintessential representation of maybe even a common everyday item replicated in diminutive form.  And somehow it takes your breath away.  Here is a recent one of mine snagged on ebay for a song.  How the whole world missed it I have no idea. The stars were shining on me that day.

The Perfect Miniature Tea Set on Tray ~ Artist Unknown

 Not everyone gets this. 

 Maybe because they are too busy to stop and notice something that small and that perfect.  It takes a special sort I guess and I am one.  This tiny tea set is wheel thrown clay with a lovely, earthy green glaze.  The pots have perfect fitting lids and the tiny cups and saucers are the true and perfect 1:12 scale.  If you did not see the lemon in the photo, you would not know it is miniature.  It came from the UK and I wish I knew the artist.

 This is Realism in Miniature.

At it's best.  And to happen upon just the most perfect tiny thing is a huge part of being a miniature collector.  It's the thrill of the hunt.  The discovery of, until that very moment, exactly what you wanted.  It might not even be something you were actually looking for but you know when you see it it has to be yours.

 It's poetry you can touch.

The perfect miniature piece or setting or diorama can evoke a feeling or emotion just like a poem.  They are lovely little bits of art to me and many and I think the world needs to stop and have a better look.

I subscribe to a poem a day newsletter by Samantha Reynolds  and a recent one reminded me of miniatures.  With all due respect to Samantha, if I plug in 'miniatures' for 'poetry', you'll see what I mean.  And I thank Samantha for that.  I think she just might agree that in this case, they interchange.


The Dharma of Poetry 

Poetry isn’t meant to educate you
or make you laugh

it isn’t meant to motivate you
improve you
or mend
your heart

it might do it all anyways
poetry is like that
ambitious
for a little guy

but it isn’t the rumble
in the centre
of it all

every time letters are stitched together
into a poem
it is simply
a polite request
to obliterate the fog
that tricks you
into numbness

look
look

there are a thousand ways
to see each simple thing
an eternity
of newness
with each blink.

Tell me your miniature 'poem'.  What's the perfect tiny thing for you?