On National Poetry Month!

April is National Poetry Month in the U.S., as well as in Canada! While poetry is important year round and by no means limited to just this one month, I must say that I find it rather lovely to have a set time in which people can collectively celebrate it.

Poetry is important for so many reasons. It allows for expression, serves as a creative outlet, provides a connection with others, and offers a means of learning about the past. It can be as equally comforting as it is thought provoking moving us from laughter to tears to bone chilling fear to moments of understanding. There are so many types of poetry both in form and style. It can be whimsical and strange such as that of Mervyn Peake, funny and amusing like that of Edward Lear and Lewis Carroll, dark and brooding like Edgar Allan Poe’s, reflective such as Emily Dickinson’s, and the list only goes on from there…Really, in poetry there is something for everyone regardless of interests, age, ideals, and pretty much anything you can think of under the sun!

Being both a reader and writer of poetry, I truly do love the experience that comes with both. Discovery of a new poet is delightful and revisiting the old and familiar can be equally so. When writing, there’s the enjoyment of putting my ideas on paper and seeing where I go with my poem and what it becomes (with the exception of sonnets, which become miserable things that were supposed to be sonnets). And these are just a few things I gain from my fondness for poetry.

Whether you prefer reading, writing, or doing both, as this month goes on it’s a wonderful time to catch up on a favorite poet, find a new one, or write some poetry of your own in celebration of this age old practice! (The Academy of American Poets also offers a rather extensive list of things you might do to celebrate here, including participating in Poem in Your Pocket Day, and some other fun stuff!)

Happy beginning of National Poetry month! ♥