How poetry will save our souls
When thinking about poetry, what comes to your mind?
Phrases like To be or not to be and weirdly-behaving men dressed up in funny costumes?
Or, perhaps, those longsome, boring evenings when little you had to repeat the same phrase over and over again, in an effort to memorize that seemingly senseless verse your teacher had assigned to you.
And why are literature teachers so extatic about poems, anyway? Some people are just too emotional.
Back then, it wasn't worth thinking into the depths of the poem, no. The games you were going to play afterwards were much more fun and exciting. They were about you, your own storyline and characters, not some drama written by a middle-aged dude centuries ago.
And so, you trick your mom into believing you've memorized well, grateful to your young brain for picking information fast, and you go play. The next day you recite the poem in front of the class (which in itself is a traumatizing and cringe experience) to never think of it again, 'cause the school education system is stupid, anyway.
For most people, when thinking about poetry, names like Shakespeare or Pushkin pop into their mind. Those are wonderful thoughts, however, it might leave us with a misleading impression that poetry is just some late-night fantasy world of a stranger, living in distant times, not having anything to do with our current lives.
What if I were to tell you that writing verses could be about you: representing your own character and spirit, externalizing your innermost thoughts, fears, dreams and aspirations, in a beautiful, heart-warming form?
That poetry is simply art, not lesser, to some extent greater, than any other kind of artistic expression available to humans.
What if I were to convince you that this healing, intimate yet adventurous kind of artistic process is completely accessible to you. You've got everything it takes to write.
Poetry has been around for as long as language existed. It developed in ways in which we shaped it. Further, each one of us encountered poetry from a very young age, before even knowing how to read and write. As toddlers, we interacted with poetry through short and amusing children's songs. They stuck easily to our brain just for how catchy they were.
Children sing all around because it makes them happy. People sing, at any age, because the lyrics make them feel something: sadness, nostalgia, rage, gratefulness, optimism, grace. It is the words that hold the meaning.
Not just reciting but also writing poetry comes naturally to humans, as we are considerably defined by our ability to use language. As long as one can arrange words into sentences in a structured and cohesive way, one is capable of writing poetry.
What is a poem, anyway? I could only be confident to define it as a structured thought: it might rhyme, as well as it could lack rhyme completely; it could be brief or lengthy, descriptive or bold. There are so many different kinds of poems that sticking to rigid rules would become boring.
Rhyme should never be the goal in itself, I believe. Keeping this idea in mind might actually help one rhyme. Undoubtedly, it has happened that, with or without your intention, you've rhymed words at some point (and thought "Wow, I could become a rapper."). Let go - the aim should always be the process, feeling alive while making art.
The chance that poetry is not suitable for you might well exist, and that's fine. However, if you haven't tried since school days, there is no possible way for you to know, other than... trying again, for real.
Meanwhile, the chance that you might actually find incredible pleasure in this process, exists equally well. The only thing that differentiates you now from you after venturing into the artistic process, is that right now, while reading this, you are not aware of what you are capable of creating. You do not know how it can make you feel: nervous, intrigued, excited, fearful, small, big, proud, blessed.
You have yet to experience the muse, that divine force which comes in a flow, giving you shivers, almost physically, while your dreams become alive on paper through ink. And are they your thoughts? If yes, how long have they been there? If no, where do they come from?
The magic of poetry is what I would want to be talking about forever, but I know it might be hard to grasp for some right now. There are tangible reasons I could name instead: the chance of exploring your unconscious, liberating feelings that are stuck, letting go of the ego altogether with its stress and panic, setting your childish spirit free, resting the mind. What matters most is the magic tho, I'm telling you.
Perhaps I was wrong all along and not anyone could write, I apologize. But to the ones who know you can, I say: you must.
Taking a moment of reflection: I've known few people who write poems, while knowing so many with a wonderful mind, having something to say, to give to this world, yet hesitating.
I have certainty that among my readers, there are creators who have been looking for a sign. Regardless of what your daily work or study is, there must always be time for the creative spirit to unleash. It will not only save your soul, it will save humanity.
Be the one who writes for pleasure in times of hardship, the one who seeks meaning through darkness, emptiness and vein, do things for their sole beauty and excitement. I promise, it will be worth everything.
Note: in a following article, I will present to you ways and techniques to get started with your poem writing.