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Paris cemetery, scultpture, memorial to Holocaust — Père Lachaise Cemetery Memorial photo by C. Sunderman

I woke to thoughts of France, perhaps because it’s Bastille Day. I miss long walks through Paris.

Twelve years ago I made a promise to myself that someday I’d stay in Paris for a month so I could enjoy my time instead of rushing through seven or nine days as I had twice before. Close to three years ago I spent a month in France with my friend Amada.

This might sound morbid, but this morning I pictured walking through Pere Lachaise Cemetery which was close by to the apartment we rented. Over two million people have visited this site, so I guess we weren’t so morbid after all.

This two-century-old cemetery is a remarkable place to visit. We spent several hours in this burial place where the famous, infamous, and ordinary people lay.

flickr photo of Pere Lachaise Cemetery — Flickr photo of Pere Lachaise Cemetery

Shady chestnut trees lined the lengthy winding cobbled promenades where the dead lay buried. A scenic walk through the hilly cemetery seemed an unlikely attraction, but we wanted to visit the tombs of writers, composers, singers and holocaust victims.

There are so many twists and turns in this place that a map is necessary to find the over 100 notables buried over the 110 acres.

The works of art in this city of the dead surprised me. The magnificence of stone and granite buildings mesmerized. Marble columns, mosaic tiles, and stained glass windows decorated tiny mini-chapels over tombs.

Some of the tombs appeared new as they were so well taken care of by family, estates or fans. Other tombs were in decay, blackened with soot and overrun with ivy. Jim Morrison’s gravesite was unexpectedly plain but enlivened by souvenirs, flowers, melted candles and tons of graffiti on the adjoining cement slabs.

During the walk towards the top of Pere Lachaise, I almost forgot I was in a cemetery as there are thousands of trees, plants, and hundred’s of scultpures. A black cat darted across gravesites while ravens circled treetops.

The view from the top of the hill is well worth the climb.

Eiffel Tower, Pere Lachaise cemetery, Paris — View of Eiffel Tower from Père Lachaise Cemetery

I think Paris is calling. Again.

Dali quote, art and dreaming — Salvador Dalí quote on Dreaming

Yesterday I searched for a gift for my son whose birthday is coming up. He’s an artist who favors surrealists and abstract expressionism.

I came upon some Salvador Dalí paintings which made me remember a trip to London with my son where we visited “Dalí Universe.”

I read that much of his artwork came to him in the few seconds between sleep and wakefulness. I imagined Dalí dipping into his dreams while creating his artwork. He referred to his art as “hand-painted dream photographs.”

Dali called this “method” his “secret of sleeping while awake,” or the hypnagogic state.

This captured my attention since I frequently find that dawn is when I feel most creative.

Today during those seconds between waking and leaving my dreams I found a poem.

Sleep State

In the depths of the morning

I touch heaven,

the dawn rises

in ribbons of blue,

in the quiet

before the hum

of living.

In the depths of the morning,

when light creeps through

a flutter of lashes,

I reach back into a dream

to salvage a memory

relive a feeling.

In the depths of the morning,

in the silence

where there is only me,

I breath life

through a yawn

and decide

to try another day.

Luckily, I have my cell phone on my nightstand and use it to record notes, including this poem. I find if I turn on my lamp to use my pen and jot words down on paper, the bright light distracts me.

Maybe this technique of “sleeping while awake” will help you as a writer, artist, or poet.

Or you can try sleeping more, 😴

What prompts your creativity?

A Remarkable Tourist Attraction in Paris

How Dalí Helps Me Create

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