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what's so scary about poetry

A friend asked me to find the text of a poem today. Finding, reading, absorbing and liking the poem has brought me to a place of re-thinking my earlier post proclaiming my distaste for poetry.

The poem, The Avowal, comes from 'selected poems' by Denise Levertov. Levertov lived to 74, and died in 1997 (same as my mother). She was initially from England, an anti-war activist, an environmentalist, and most definitely a spiritual person.

Here it is:

As swimmers dare
to lie face to the sky
and water bears them,
as hawks rest upon air
and air sustains them,
so would I learn to attain
freefall, and float
into Creator Spirit's deep embrace,
knowing no effort earns
that all-surrounding grace.

So, what's so scary about poetry? That poem is nice. Pleasant. I can place myself in it, envision the moment, grasp it, and let go of it. So, what brings me to prefer journalism and well-outlined academic text, over a good poem?

Emotion.

It's that simple.

Poets seem to quickly zap into the emotion surrounding an event, a moment, even the description of a tree can pull up emotion. Quickly, seemlessly.

I can read an article from the daily news about a vice-presidential candidate wanting to prevent me from marrying the person I love. I can read a report about the large number of military servicemen and women losing limbs, senses (literally) and minds in a war that's gone on for five years. I can read these and not be forced to feel. Willingly reading a poem is another story entirely. God only knows how the topics above could be brought to life, and emotion, in a poem! Imagine the anger, fear, tears, joy, laughter, you name it. . . .

Perhaps I'll check the poetry book out and experiment with reading it in the comfort of my own home. See if I can live through - or even enjoy - some poems.

My Dad liked poetry. He used to read it aloud and become rather emotional about it. I would dodge these impromptu sessions at all cost. I remember one night the year before he died when we sat next to each other on his couch flipping through a National Geographic. I didn't realize it, but I was in for a pseudo poetry reading. He couldn't really follow the sentences and read at that point, so I started reading an article on penguins with him. It was heart wrenching! We started going through the cut lines below the photos, learning how they keep each other warm in bitter cold temps. . . who knew that National Geographic authors could be so dramatic and creative in describing penguin life. Before I knew it, my father and I were reading, looking at the adorable pictures, and crying. We may have been crying because I was reading to him (it had always been the other way around), we may have been crying because we wouldn't have many chances to sit together again, we may have been crying because the penguin pictures were more adorable than any we'd seen. Regardless, we were moved.

That was one session I'm grateful for having and I'm glad I didn't dodge it. Maybe having some of those emotional, poetic, poetry moments is worth it.

~

What if the Candidates Were Reversed

A friend of mine forwarded this to a batch of folks yesterday. She's not one to send many emails of that sort, and I'm not either. I am, however, happy that this one is floating around in cyber space. It's worth the read and some reflection.

What if the candidates lives were reversed?

What if John McCain were a former president of
the Harvard Law Review?
What if Barack Obama finished fifth from the
bottom of his graduating class?

What if McCain were still married to the first
woman he said 'I do' to?
What if Obama were the candidate who left his
first wife after she no longer measured up to
his standards?

What if Michelle Obama were a wife who not
only became addicted to pain killers, but
acquired them illegally through her charitable
organization?
What if Cindy McCain graduated from Princeton
and Harvard Law?
What if Obama were a member of the Keating-5?
What if McCain were a charismatic, eloquent
speaker?

If the above questions reflected reality, do
you really believe the election polls would
be as close as they are?

This is what racism does. It covers up,
rationalizes and minimizes positive qualities
in one candidate and emphasizes negative qualities
in another when there is a color difference.

You are The Boss... which team would you hire?

With America facing historic debt, 2 wars,
stumbling health care, a weakened dollar, all-time
high prison population, mortgage crises, bank
foreclosures, etc.

Educational Background:

Obama: Columbia University - B.A. Political Science
with a Specialization in International Relations.
Harvard - Juris Doctor (J.D.) Magna Cum Laude

Biden: University of Delaware - B.A. in
History and B.A. in Political Science.
Syracuse University College of Law -
Juris Doctor (J.D.)

versus

McCain: United States Naval Academy - Class
rank: 894 of 899

Palin: Hawaii Pacific University - 1 semester
North Idaho College- 2 semesters - general study
University of Idaho - 2 semesters - journalism
Matanuska-Susitna College - 1 semester
University of Idaho - 3 semesters - B.A. in Journalism

Now, which team are you going to hire?

PS: What if Barack Obama had an unwed,
pregnant teenage daughter...

Poet Laureate 2008 ~ Kay Ryan

I'm not a big fan of poetry. Actually I don't read poetry, write poetry, or enjoy listening to poetry. So. . . how did our 16th Poet Laureate, Kay Ryan catch my eye? Take a look at her photo below.

It's encouraging to read that our newest poet laureate is an out, gay woman. And, she credits her partner of 30 years for convincing her to take the job. Can you really say "no" to an honor of this sort? Note to self: If I get a call from someone at the Library of Congress, I may want to say "yes."

So . . . for those of you who are "into" poetry, read the article below, check out some of her books, and keep your eyes (and ears) open for a chance to here our national poet laureate at an event near you.


Photo credit: Peter DaSilva for The New York Times

Kay Ryan, 62, will become the country’s 16th poet laureate.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/17/books/17poet.html

Enter the Rachel Maddow Fan Club

(AP Photo/ MSNBC, Ali Goldstein)

I've attached a wonderful blog entry about tv journalist Rachel Maddow. Check out the link below, watch her show, let me know what you think.

http://wallwritings.wordpress.com/2008/10/06/now-more-than-ever-you-need-rachel-maddow/