Days River Poem

If you enjoy the outdoors, you might also appreciate a bit of poetry. This one was inspired by a recent hike—there’s still snow on the ground, and the rivers are running high with early-season flow.

Poetry often comes from making unique connections—capturing not just what nature looks like, but what it feels like. It draws on experience, observation, and a deeper understanding of the environment.

The Upper Peninsula of Michigan offers no shortage of that inspiration, especially around Escanaba. This particular piece reflects time spent on the Days River Pathway—an easy, accessible trail with a few rewarding views along the way. If you’re looking for a relaxed walk with some scenic moments, it’s worth checking out.

Days River Poem

Rivers among between the trees,

A soul it frees.

Covered with bark

A few the bucks left their mark.

Water flowing on its way,

in it the critters play. 

Days River offers a nature's hike,

or one can take their bike. 

Neural Mechanisms of Knowledge and Creativity in Poetry Composition

• The study uses fMRI to examine how the brain supports poetry composition, focusing on differences between familiar and unfamiliar themes.
• Poetry writing involves coordinated activity across multiple brain networks, particularly the language network, executive control network, and default mode network.
• Knowledge and topic familiarity significantly influence neural connectivity patterns, with familiar themes relying more on memory-related networks and unfamiliar themes engaging sensory and imaginative processes.
• The interaction between language and executive control networks is strongly associated with originality, but its effect differs depending on familiarity with the topic.
• Differences between expert and novice writers suggest that expertise alters how cognitive control is applied, with experts showing more flexible and less constrained creative processing.

He, R., Zhuang, K., Liu, L., Ding, K., Wang, X., Fu, L., Qiu, J., & Chen, Q. (2022). The impact of knowledge on poetry composition: An fMRI investigation. Brain and Language, 235, 105202. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bandl.2022.105202