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As we bask in the warmth of summer (long time, no see!), we reconnected with Lennie Law, an old friend of Max and one of the coolest women we know. A true embodiment of living to tell the stories you want to hear, Lennie, quite literally pens moments of her life from New Zealand, to the big city lights of London where she’s living out her new chapter. So, naturally, we asked her to write our manifesto for Max Summer 23/24.
We’ve been big fans of your poetry journey; tell us a little bit about it. How did it come about?
I fell into my poetry journey accidentally, through journaling. I found that my everyday thoughts, events and feelings were best captured in short phrases and bullet points - and here we are.
When and how were you first introduced to poetry?
My earliest memory of poetry was primary school- writing haikus, learning to rhyme- and as young as I was, I remember it bringing me joy from an early age. However, poetry was very academic in high school and after dissecting the work of Seamus Heaney, it soon felt inaccessible. I love that poetry has floated back into my life in recent years.
Has it become somewhat of a ritual (or cathartic) for you?
Poetry is part of my therapy- it allows me to practice gratitude, ponder the past, present and future. It helps me celebrate, question, challenge, appreciate my life- as well how I spend it and who I share it with. I might write with a cup of a tea, light some incense, just before bed, or as I’m commuting- I love having a practice that isn’t bound to a time or place.
This might sound like a silly question, but how do you find the words?
And this might sound like a silly answer, but the words come from anywhere and everywhere - and when they do, I write them down. I think I can say all my poems start as passing thoughts, ponders, feelings and together, my Notes app and journals are the key to my soul.
Where do you find inspiration?
Often I’m moving- walking to the gym, on the overground to work, still getting lost in London- and I notice or have little moments that spark something. Like smiling and making eye contact with a yellow-umbrella-ed man as we’re both caught in the rain, an owner bargaining with their dog as it refuses to walk any further, an elderly couple sweetly grocery-shopping almost bringing me to tears. My camera roll is an endless source of inspiration too- a picture isn’t worth a thousand words in my case, because I always want to tell my story behind them. And finally, inspiration comes in the form of feelings- I might have had a stressful day at work, a hard therapy session, a confusing interaction. A breakup, a disappointment, a moment of anger, a sudden flood of tears I’m trying to make sense of - I write these feelings down and they flow into my poetry.
Is there a particular poem you have penned that hits a real emotive cord with you?
There is- and it was originally written as a note on my phone, at 12:08pm on the 3rd October 2020. It had been a challenging year, I’d had a big heartbreak and I’d lost myself - but it was in this moment and in these words that I realised that I was myself again. You can read it here: whole
Has your style changed as you pursue writing?
My style has definitely evolved and I feel lucky to have found my format in poetry. Being a millennial girlie, I grew up with a blog, a Tumblr and a diary. I would write about my day, my hopes, my dreams, my crushes, my friends, my mood- all in blog posts and journal entries or moody one-liners accompanied with highly-filtered, ‘repost’ photos. I’d let my blog subscription run out and then revive it every few years- and feel frustrated about the format, not being able to finish writing posts or I’ll be shy about sharing. But with poetry, it feels the most natural and I have no constraints.
What do you hope your readers feel when reading your words?
I hope in that moment, they feel connected- where it’s to the words, to themselves, to me, to their feelings, to a memory, to a place, to the ground.
We know you’re a little further from home this year, but what does an NZ summer mean to you?
It means sunshine, swimming, sand in all places and salt-crusted hair. It means losing track of time, endless possibility and leaving the house without a care. It means family and friendship, joy and love, rest and reinvigoration. And right now, as London hunkers down for a long winter, a NZ summer means a slight heartache for home.
How did the words for summer served with a twist come to you?
Hilariously, at about 10pm, sprawled on my bed with a cup of tea and a Hobnob in the midst of London autumn. I suppose this contrasting scene set me up to dream of a Kiwi summer! I asked myself- what ingredients would I need now to make myself a tall glass of summer that I could devour? And then came the words.
