Adopt a Poet
Part Humor, Part Begging
Have you ever gone about your day wishing to hear a nonstop rhythmic, almost chanting voice in your head? Have you ever thought to yourself: Wow! It sure is lonely here at the top of the writing food chain, maybe I could lift up a humble poet? Well, if so, have I got an idea for you, hear me out: Adopt a poet.
In the writing and artist communities, in the blogging and online communities, in many if not most communities, poets need your support. For just .06-.09 cents a week, you could adopt a poet.
We don’t cost much because we exist on empathy and sacrifice. But we certainly could use a big brother/big sister program where writers who write about the big things — technology, productivity, money, self help, mental health, relationships, humor — could maybe take one of us under their wing and show their readers what poets look like. We are the unicorns and the dodo birds of online writing spaces. We are magical. We are rare. And we are thought not to exist.
We make do, we have our spaces, our caves, our lairs, our mines. We peek out sometimes. We see what you are writing about. We see how many readers you have. We see you are featured. We scurry back to where we belong. To the safety of the dim light that is our little lamps, ancient fires, laptop screens. Poets are timeless in this way.
There are so many types and styles of poets to meet all of your poet adopting needs. Short poetry, like haiku and tanka, for those who have busy hectic corporate lifestyles of success and achievement but who might want to get in touch with a bit of nature or brief commentary on feelings or issues. We have sonnets, for those who might want a little romance in their lives and also prefer traditional and difficult forms of poetry. And of course, the free form, wild and untamable type of poets for those who are comfortable stepping outside of their comfort zones and who want to feel a lot in a little time.
It does not take much to adopt a poet. You can search for us online. You can look for open mics that focus on poetry in your area. You can let us in when you hear us scratching at your screen door in the rain, glasses fogged, using a book as an umbrella, smiling with saintly wisdom and the satisfaction of momentary misery.
We are out here. We are waiting for you. Adopt one of us today.
Until next time,
Jenny Justice is a mom, Sociology instructor, and writer. You can follow her on Medium and at Jenny Justice, Writer. She has been recognized as a Top Writer on Medium in Poetry, Parenting, Reading, Education, Books, Racism, Feminism and Climate Change, so far. You can follow her poetry at Justice Poetic.