I Won't Self Medicate Today...

The above is the opening line from Vow to Poetry. I love it in connection with poetry. It seems to me that poetry is in fact a good deal like "self medicating" and in this instance, I don't think that is half bad.

My profession in life, involves mental health issues. Self medication is a concept I am quite acquainted with, and it usually has negative implications. However, to actually "vow to poetry" is interesting in that to me, it conceptually commits one to self discovery and rediscovery.

In a session at a writers conference this weekend I was blessed to hear a woman of color named Bonnie Lynn Tolson. Bonnie is the author of a poetry book entitled Naturally Nappy. Of her work in the book, Bonnie shared that "this is where I was then." This comment underscores a point I believe is valid in terms of any commitment or vow to (write) poetry. By dedicating oneself to writing poetry, you are putting yourself in a position (like it or not) to find out things. To discover... More importantly self discovery. It can be scary but it can also be a very cleansing action in life.

I'll have a hot dog
then go off to a cave... Is this what we do when we don't write? When we refuse to medicate ourselves with poetics... or get in touch with our deepest insights? Yes, just like blogging, I've had those days I just fluff it off. Take my non-functional self to the caves... Or is poetry the real life, and going to the cave is the real self-medication. Equal to all the negative stereotypes associated with normal self medication. Either way, in the end the fact remains... poetry feeds the soul.