More Poetry Month Love

More Poetry Month Love

by J.G. Annino

If you manage to entice your Muses to visit you,

might you write poetry?

Conversely-

could someone else’s poetry be the Muse for you?

Reading poetry that connects, that zings, opens your heart,

can entice in, the Muse that spurs you to write -  and, not

necessarily to write poetry. But to write whatever it is
that is on your heart.

As Christy shared so creatively on our Aprl 11, 2016

Group Blog, this is National Poetry Month!

  A Poem for Writers-- by Christy Mihaly

My hope with this visit, is to incubate the idea that

picking up a classic poetry collection that you

dip in and out of without pressure, could lead to

an ephinany, an “ah, ha” moment in your own writing.

Robert Pinsky

Favorite Poem Project Poet, Robert Pinsky

http://www.favoritepoem.org/

Such an honor!  The former U.S. poet laureate,
Robert Pinsky, brought the national Favorite Poem Reading
Project to our town, Tallahassee, recently.

Of course we managed to get to the event. 

Everyday people from around the state of Florida read a poem,

by an established author. This is the road show for a previous online
invitation at the Favorite Poem website. I didn't enter, as it was some
time back. But I'm so glad so many people did.

They picked one poem that over and over, calls to them.

This is one of Robert Pinsky’s favorite challenges. To ask everyone to

find a favorite poem or two, read them regularly,  and further, he urges

us to read the poem out loud and not stop there. Memorize a favorite poem.

That allows you to carry it with you, everywhere.

 This acclaimed poet looks like a cross between Bill Nye, the

Science Guy & that great space educator Carl Sagan. He was

just as engaging as each of them.  “A poem is a work of art made

for a human voice,” he told us. “But it’s not the art of one expert.

It’s the art of any and all.”

Here are just three of the poems read that evening.

“Nick and the Candlestick,” Sylvia Plath

“Why I Am Not A Painter,” Frank O’Hara

“Soneto XVII” Pablo Neruda

  

And I still remember how Pinsky quoted James Baldwin,

“Culture is everybody’s birthright.”

So, everybody, I have always been one of those who can't pick one

favorite poem. But he said in that case, know that you are
working with one of your favorites. Despite the title of the project,
it doesn't have to be THE one and true only favorite. Like picking 

among children, impossible to do.

So here is the title of a poem section I like a whole lot among

many favorites. It is, "Alphabets," (part 1) and it is 

from the pen of the great Seamus Heaney. It begins, 

Alphabets
by Seamus Heaney

"A shadow his father makes with joined hands

And thumbs and fingers nibbles on the wall

Like a rabbit's head. He understands

He will understand more when he goes to school.

There he draws smoke with chalk the whole first week.

Then he draws the forked stick that they call a Y.

This is writing. A swan's neck and swan's back

Make the 2 he can see now as well as say..."

c. Seamus Heaney