Treasuring Poetry – Meet poet and author, Cindy Georgakas and a book review #poetry #TreasuringPoetry #bookreview

Posted: February 19, 2025 | Author: robbiesinspiration | Filed under: Uncategorized |59 Comments

Today, I am delighted to introduce you to poet and author, Cindy Georgakas. Cindy is one of the most upbeat and positive people I’ve ever met and her book and poetry are a delight to read.

What is your favorite style of poetry to read i.e. haiku, ballad, epic, freestyle, etc.

I love everything about spoken word poetry.  The story, the inflection, the rhyming at times, the metered lines, the buildup, emotions that come with it and the message it sends.  Like most of us, Amanda Gorman is so talented and hearing her spoken word resonates deeply with me. I also love Sara Kaye and Phil Kaye and they are not related I might add.  I have posted about them which you can find here if you like https://uniquelyfitblog.com/2023/04/14/update-spoken-word-poetry-shark-tank-tonight/. This is a wonderful poem they did together which explains their story.

I love reading poetry or anything else for that matter that reaches my heart and soul and if it doesn’t it’s very difficult for me to engage with it.  If it’s too ambiguous and I have the think too long, I’m not interested.  

And although I love lot’s of styles and it fascinates me, my time is so limited, I need to adhere to what I love at the moment. Perhaps someday it could be fun to explore other forms but for now, I have to honor my truth. 

I find it the same with movies.  I’ll give them 10-15 minutes and if I’m not engaged, I’ll walk out. Life is too full in my world and I value my time and the people in front of me so I have to be selective to protect my sanity and those I love. 

The same is true with engaging with others online and in “real life”.  We can’t be all things to all people nor can we respond to everything or we wouldn’t get anything done.  So do what you love and do it well and be as kind to yourself as you are to others. 

What is your favorite poem in your favorite style to read?

I would have to say that freestyle/prose poetry is a favorite of mine. As you know, I am a non-poet turned poet without any formal training. Words come to me day or night and I write them down as they get downloaded to me, from where, I don’t know but deep inside my unconscious brain at times.  Sometimes they rhyme, sometimes they don’t, some lines appear metered but not by intention, some I use refrain and repeat which happens if it happens but not by design.  Often its stream of consciousness that appears on the page. 

With your question came the opportunity to visit poets that write similar in nature or of those I respect and admire.  Thank you, Robbie, for these questions that I have to say felt daunting to me at first.  I even asked our friend Diana Wallace Peach https://mythsofthemirror.com/ about freestyle poets I might connect with, and she gave me some insight. In her review of my book, she said:

 “Most of the poetry reflects a style I’d refer to as “delineated prose,” more conversational and accessible than poetry dense with metaphor and lyrical imagery. This style makes the collection a quick, easy read, primarily addressing “you,” the reader/seeker of a happier, more balanced life.”

This was very enlightening to me because I had never heard that term before. Digging deeper was a lesson in getting to know poets of my similar genre that I enjoy reading and writing and finding out what it is I love about each one.  Many poets came to mind, each that have a brilliant way with words.  Jack Kerouac, Walt Whitman, Emily Dickenson, Allen Ginsberg, Mary Oliver, Maya D’Angelo and many in our community as well, including you and Diana.  Thank you, Cindy.

While there are so many amazing authors, I have to say I truly connect with Maya D’Angelo.  Here writing is always aimed to connect people, stop the segregation and differences between us and look for the similarities.  She was bright, witty, funny and poignant all at the same time and left a piece of her heart in every word so we might share her message to those who might need to hear it.  I love this poem she wrote which is an example of her courage, compassion and love of humanity.

Try to be a rainbow in someone’s cloud by Maya Angelou

I’ve had so many rainbows in my clouds
I had a lot of clouds
So I don’t ever feel
I have no help

I’ve had rainbows in my clouds

And the thing to do it seems to me
Is to prepare yourself
So that you can be a rainbow
In somebody else’s cloud

Somebody who may not look like you
May not call God the same name you call God
If they call god at all
You see

May not eat the same dishes prepared the way you do
May not dance your dances
or speak your language

But be a blessing to somebody

That’s what I think.

What is your favorite style of poetry to write? Why?

I love how it flows from my brain to my fingertips, tongue and quill, otherwise mostly my computer.

What is your favorite of your own poems?

This was the poem Diana chose that was one of her favorites of my work, and I think it is a great example of words flowing through as a facet of myself and how I connect spiritually to the universe and my day.  Although a short poem, one that brings peace when I read it. 

The Way

It’s between the familiar and the unfamiliar where I meet my soul.
The calling, the dance, the way, where
 clouds shift, birds sing, around
 my head buzzing in my ears and eyes and
 the boulders of my mind,
that wake to what’s important in this 
uncharted territory.

Please tell us about your poetry book, Celebrating Poetry. What is your main intention with this collection of poems.

My poems are a culmination of poems moving the reader from dark to lightness in 4 Steps mirroring my first book, Re-Create & Celebrate: 7 Steps To Turn Your Dreams Into Reality.

Step 1 Finding Your Path

Step 2 From Darkness to Light

Step 3 Ignite Your Light

Step 4 Celebrate

My intention and hope is that as one of my word press friends says “reading Cindy’s books to find a warm embrace on a dark night”.  That really hit home with me as the writer of my own words and as a reader when I heard them in a review.  My hope is that we can heal the wounds of our past, grow from obstacles in our path, light a way to the future and celebrate each moment of our lives and hold ourselves through each facet of joy, pain, sadness and happiness by loving ourselves and others.  There is a place to write your own reflections and maybe even write a poem of your own.  Life takes us to places we least expect as I have found that keep unfolding before my eyes.

About Cindy Georgakas

Cindy is a San Francisco native and currently lives nestled in the trees in a small community with her husband. She is a health and wellness professional, a certified life coach, personal trainer, yoga/meditation teacher,and bodyworker. She draws inspiration from her clients, friends, four children, 4 legged furry kids and nature.

Her new book Celebrating Poetry is a #1 New Top Release on Amazon. It is a companion guide to her book, Re-Create & Celebrate: 7 Steps to Live the Life of Your Dreams, has over 41 5 Star Reviews. She was voted Author of the Month on Spillwords Press in April 2023 and Publication of the Month on Spillwords in October 2022.

She is a co-author of #1 Amazon Bestseller, Wounds I Healed: The Poetry of Strong Women, #1 Best Seller of Hidden In Childhood: A Poetry Anthology and is also a Treasured Contributor to MastecadoresUsa.

You can read more of Cindy’s work at Unique Times by Cindy Georgakas.

Author New Release Re-Create & Celebrate: 7 Steps to turn your Dreams in Reality  Amazon 
Author Of The Year 2024 Spillwords Press
Co-Author, #1 Amazon Bestseller, Wounds I Healed: The Poetry of Strong Women
Co-Author, #1 Amazon Bestseller, Hidden in Childhood, A Poetry Anthology
Co-Author, # 1 Amazon New Release, Petals Haiku:  An Anthology  
Monthly Contributor, 2022/23, MasticadoresUSA
Website: uniquelyfit.net 

My review of Celebrating Poetry by Cindy Georgakas

This delightful book of poetry is a companion to this poet and author’s motivational book, Re-Create & Celebrate: 7 Steps to turn your Dreams into Reality. Celebrating Poetry shares the same helpful and uplifting messages on how to help yourself make the most of life and find joy. Celebrating Poetry is divided into four distinct sections, namely, Trusting Your Path, From Darkness to Light, Ignite Insight, and CELEBRATE! Each of the sections starts with a motivational message of how the author has achieved the goal set out in the section title. The main messaging being as follows: “It is my hope that you move through these poems and grow more in acceptance and self-love so you can enjoy life to the fullest.”

The poet is an exceptional person with a strong character and ability to guide and provide strength to others. These characteristics shine through in every poem in this collection. I finished reading this book feeling revitalized and ready to take on the world and make the most of every opportunity presented to me.

One of my favourite poems in this collection is Enjoy the Music of Silence. This is an extract:
“Enjoy the music of silence
where stillness resides:
Feel your heartbeat,
your very first instrument.
Some days it might be out of tune,
and other times, in perfect harmony.
March to the beat of your own drum,
For you are the conductor of your life.”
These are words to live by, for me.

The collection finishes with this empowering quote: “The length of our life is love, not length of time or years, and as we love, eternity appears.”

A most delightful collection that I highly recommend.

You can purchase Celebrating Poetry from Amazon US here: https://www.amazon.com/Celebrating-Poetry-Cindy-Georgakas-ebook/dp/B0DNBPC4GP

About Robbie Cheadle

South African author and illustrator, Robbie Cheadle, has written and illustrated sixteen children’s books, illustrated a further three children’s books, and written and illustrated three poetry books. Her work has also appeared in poetry and short story anthologies.

Robbie also has two novels and a collection of short stories published under the name of Roberta Eaton Cheadle and has horror, paranormal, and fantasy short stories featured in several anthologies under this name.

You can find Robbie Cheadle’s artwork, fondant and cake artwork, and all her books on her website here: https://www.robbiecheadle.co.za/

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This segment of “Treasuring Poetry” is sponsored by WordCrafter Press and the Poetry Treasures series.

Get Your Copy Today!

Poetry Treasures: https://books2read.com/PoetryTreasures

Poetry Treasures 2: Relationships: https://books2read.com/PT2-Relationships

Poetry Treasures 3: Passions: https://books2read.com/u/b5qnBR

Poetry Treasures 4:In Touch With Nature: https://books2read.com/PT4-Nature

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