On Poets Being Relevant

My birthday now past, safely tucked away in slumber, not to be awakened for another year. Thanks to all well wishers.

Birthdays are a strange commodity. When young, we can't wait till the next one. Somewhere along the line that of course changes and we (or at least I) would be happy if they seemed not so frequent. The alternative is guess is not particularly appealing and I suppose it would be good to temper whatever negative attachments we (or I) have to them with the obvious reality. Having another birthday requires living. So, here's to living with all the joys and sorrows it brings and hope for more of the first and less of the latter.

Living it seems is a critical part of poetry. We hear so much about dead poets but they had to be alive at one point to be poets. And I do think that many poets have a more than casual focus on mortality. I know I do. But I don't think that is so much because I have a fixation on death, but a lust for life and I understand that the absence of one is the other. Further, reality is that we will all at some point be dead. So it is, that I measure much of life in the context of these two extremes.

I cannot offer any scientific evidence, but I have a gut feeling that on the average, poets are much more highly charged with emotion than the rest of the population. We see colors more vividly; we hear things that others miss. We witness both higher and lower realms of emotion with greater intensity. These of course are generalizations on my part, but they are opinions, which I hold. I try to accept that these are gifts. Yes, at times some of this may seem like a curse but on the whole it gives us a richer experience with which to share our world view, whether we are talking about the beauty of a trickle of water across the rockbed of a brook or the horrors of war.

There's a quote that I'd like to share which I believe deeply reflect my view of the poet and his or her duty. Salman Rushdi once said, "A poet's work: To name the unnamable, to point at frauds, shape the world and stop it from going to sleep." When I think about that quote several things happen. One is that it is good that most poets seem to experience the intensities of life. Another is that because of this gift we have an obligation or duty to share with the world. And to that end, the final thought is that poetry really does matter.

tag: Poetry

NPR : When Ordinary People Achieve Extraordinary Things

NPR : When Ordinary People Achieve Extraordinary Things

Jody Williams is the founding coordinator of the International Campaign to Ban Landmines. For her efforts, she shared the 1997 Nobel Peace Prize with the Campaign. Williams previously worked to build awareness about U.S. policy toward Central America.

Inspiring story!

Birthday

So it's my birthday and my horoscope is as follows:

Doing a job properly takes more than hard work and concentration now, for you could also be required to juggle several balls in the air. Flexibility doesn't always come easily to you, but now it's the thing that will do you the most good. You may have to alter your plans and adapt to unexpected conditions on the job. Keep in mind that any task you start is likely to take more time than you planned. Smart thinking will get you further than extra effort.

And after reading this, I'm thinking.... what makes this different than any other day?

Growing old is mandatory; growing up is optional. ~Chili Davis

~

Thanks to modern medical advances such as antibiotics, nasal spray, and Diet Coke, it has become routine for people in the civilized world to pass the age of 40, sometimes more than once. ~Dave Barry, "Your Disintegrating Body," Dave Barry Turns 40, 1990

Writers Contest for Kansas Writers

El Dorado Times


17th annual Kansas Voices Writing Contest. Check link for details

Possible

Stark white


opens

possibilities

we might
Never Understand

Love in a Bottle

If it were that simple.

Still one company is sporting love poems in a bottle for Valentines Day. The going price is $39.95 but a trial offer is $24.99 plus shipping and handling.

They offer dozens of both classic and modern poems - including the romantic verse of Shakespeare's Top Ten Love Poems along with the Top Ten Classic Love Poems for Men & the Top Ten Classic Love Poems for Women. Additionally there are modern poems by award-winning poets as well as short love poems and sad love poems in case you need to tell someone they broke your heart.

I suppose this must say something about the state of poetry in today's culture.


poetry

On Journaling & Blogging

Thanks Cindy for getting the discussion going!