Why I Read Poetry
Words, Art, Connection and Inspiration
I remember memorizing poetry in grade school and feeling like it was the coolest thing in the world. I remember it being the one thing, aside from reading, that I really nerded out about and spent time practicing and rehearsing. I remember picking the longest poems on purpose, especially Annabelle Lee by Edgar Allan Poe. Check this:
“I was a child and she was a child” — Damn, Edgar. Just Damn. And that ending, and those words, those lovely words that I remember looking up and being totally in love with, swooning over them, and also of course, being sad about, sad to the point of crying but in a dramatic and fascinated way — because spoiler alert guys:
……..
……SHE DIED.
Long lovely poems, stories in poetic form, moving or romantic pieces, I loved them all. But, I also remember being especially moved by Emily Dickinson. Her observational, insightful, short, moving pieces were like the things I said to myself all day in my head. And she was a famous poet? I was elated to feel this connection between her and I, between poetry and I. That anyone could convey the basics of the human condition as I had already experienced it to be at an early age and as, heads up, it pretty much remains the same now, at age almost 40, in such few words — nothing can beat that. Not one thing in this life, on this earth, in art, in music, can beat summing up the human condition, the meaning of life in such short and powerful ways, ready? Warning if you have not read her before — she will beautifully and utterly destroy you softly:
I read poetry then and now for the same reasons — because it is the simplest way to transfer deep emotions, feelings, and a sense of the sacred from one person — on paper, usually, — to another — silently, in the mind, in the head, in the heart. When I read poetry I feel there is something like an umbilical cord connecting me to the poet’s words — nourishment comes through, life comes through, spirit comes through.
I discovered Ginsberg, and Plath, and Sexton, and of course, fell in love with the confessional, the feminist, the beatnik, the subversive. I also discovered the poetry of spirituality, of zen, of Buddhism, of conveying messages about how to best live life at standards that are high and just, with actions that are compassionate and kind, with intent that is aimed at enlightenment and selflessness. Deep, deep, deep, deep and deep. Poetry inspires confession, it inspires facing up to reality, and it inspires doing better, being better, living better, which is also to me, in my mind, as easy as any reality, as vital as any confession.
Ginsberg — obviously, right? Poetry, activism, identity, voice, frustrations, hope, and everything in between plus some of the most important questions of all time:
Plath, Goddess, there really is none higher. Feminism, anger, rage, strength, calm destruction — this poem has everything and I love it to pieces:
Sexton, who inspires my love of writing and reading fairy tale poetry. Delightful, rambling, important, again feminist, real, tangible, making the familiar new, exposing, raw, tragic, and did I say feminist?
I cherish poetry that focuses on the small things of life and does it’s job by painting a picture of such depth that we can all see clearly that these small things, these little moments, these observations of the mundane, are actually the big things of life, the meaning of life, the motivation for carrying on with the vastness of life.
I cherish poetry and strive to write poetry that has a depth of feeling but is also accessible — not intimidating, not bearing down, not full of twists and turns. That may have been great for 1884, but newsflash: people in 1884 might have found that accessible. Accessible now means clear, means able to resonate, means that the feeling — the message, the meaning, the big bang of it, is equally there for all to grab and think about and take with them at the end. I read poetry to see if I can get to this level, to see if others have gotten to this level, to appreciate everyone’s efforts and inspire my own.
There’s a pleasure in the complex, and there’s an importance in the striving to learn and challenge and use big words and go wild with the full push of poetic form and history, but there’s also a pleasure in saying okay how can we bring this over here in a way so that my mom can read it and my daughter can read it and a graduate of any MFA program can also read it with the same delight.
I read poetry for this meaning. For this feeling. For this connection. And for the joy and beauty of it. Poetry is visually beautiful. It draws you in at first glance. It is word art, art with words.
I read poetry because I am a deeply spiritual person and poetry is the language of the sacred. Which is also why I write poetry.
Poetry is a delight and a comfort. I know I can come back to my favorites and read them again and again and still feel the same way, but in a good way, in a way that pushes and pulls and fills and rewards. When I read poetry I like to look at how the poet uses words and sounds, I like to look at how the poet described things, I like to look at how the poet convey emotion.
My favorite contemporary aka living poet just might be Denise Duhamel. When I read her poetry I feel like we are sisters, like she is talking about experiences, issues, concepts, jokes, thoughts, feelings that I have experienced or felt or laughed at or cried over. Here’s one from her -
Dang Denise! She takes you on this journey from being a kid in school, to being God, to being human and it all starts with an orange. This is poetry.
I love to read poetry because in this life, in this stage of where we are as a people and a planet, poetry can tell us about our humanity and our shared struggles. It can draw our attention to what is vital in our feelings. It can call us to action.
And also, yes, I like to read poetry because it is brief.
It is like meditation.
It is taking a moment to sit with something manageable, something I can hold in my hands and see all of it — there it is, small and on the page, I know what I am getting into time-wise. But of course, as I have mentioned before, we can never prepare for what we are getting into depth wise, spirit wise, feeling wise — three sentences, five sentences, fifty words, these brief poems can get to us in ways other things just might not be able to. They can connect with us, heal us, support us, challenge us, and inspire us in ways that reading books and books and books maybe never could. I love books and reading, yes, but give me a page of poetry before I fall asleep and it is like a brief trip to heaven.
Poetry asks the major questions and gives the major answers often in the same stanza or line. Poetry opens up our minds and opens up the world. Poetry takes seconds or so to read, as we have learned, but that original reading is never truly enough. It begs you to come back. Stay a while. Look at this line again. Read this part again. Think about it. Feel about it. I love reading poetry because poetry sticks with you. It sticks with me. A few words from an amazing poem can be in my head for days and days. Or for decades.
In the hopes we all stick with poetry, stick with each other, and you stick with me, until next time,
❤
Jenny Justice is a poet mom who longs to bring poetry to life in ways that spark empathy, connection, joy, and feeling. She loves writing love poems, climate change awareness poems, poems for kids, and of course, poems about poetry and poets. You can follow her on Medium and at Jenny Justice, Writer. You can support her on Patreon. You can follow her poetry at Justice Poetic.