Thank you. For your lovely posts and poems, and for lovingly, glowingly sharing magnificent poems and poets! I just delightedly devoured two of your posts in a row and feel this warmth floating between my smiling face and my bubbling heart.
There’s one thing I disagree with though. *You are a poet.*
Anyone who has written a poem is a poet just like anyone who has eaten a meal is an eater, anyone who breathes is a breather. Refusing to acknowledge your poetness 😀is like like reserving that word for these poets that you are sharing: those in the top 1% of their craft and fame, as if everyone else is not a Real Poet.
I am a poet.
I have been writing poetry since age 9, and I just turned 60 last month. That’s half a century of poetry, a poem here and there until four years ago when my soul (in a dream!) decided on Spring Equinox 2021 that I would write a poem a day for a year. I have been doing so now for over four years. I do not have grants. Yet I am proud to declare that I am a poet, and a prolific one at that. BUT at age 9, when I wrote my first poem, in that very innocent, sweet moment, is when I became a poet.
So please do not deprecate yourself. And anyone who has such a love of poetry as you clearly has a very poetic soul.
I encourage you to look in the mirror and say to that creative, talented being: You are a poet.
Then say: I am a poet. And breathe it in. Let it land in your giddy heart and tickle your fingertips from the inside.
Then go write a poem if you feel the urge, and come back here and share it with us.
Or if that all feels too much like A Grand Gesture, how about: “I’m a poet and I know it, clap my hands!” clap! clap! 👏 👏😘
You know what Sage…? You have actually convinced me! My poetry teacher tried to convince me for two years that I was a poet and couldn’t. But what you just wrote here is the best argument I have heard to embrace the word poet! How right you are! Why do we (I) complicate things? I thank you for your loving words and for changing my mind! I write poetry regularly. I write more poems than prose these days. Substack is where I publish them first. I often take them down after I had the chance to work on them and submit them to magazines. Next week it will be poetry for sure! Thank you again!
You are so very welcome, sweetie! I love this: “What you just wrote here is the best argument I have heard to embrace the word poet!” Hooray! This thrills me to no end.
And guess what? I am so inspired by our conversation here, I’m going to write a post about claiming and proudly owning “I am a poet and I know it!” I will link to this post of yours/tag you. I love how cocreative magic like this happens! I look forward to reading more of your wonderful poems.
BTW, I just ordered 2 books by Kim Addonizio and 1 by @Frederick Joseph and can’t wait to dive in! I love supporting and connecting with other poets all over the world, and it turns out Kim lives near me. Amazing!
This is beyond incredible!!! Yes, write that post and I shall read it! I am currently reading (and loving!) Richard Blanco’s Homeland of my Body. These are quite well known poets so it is nice to balance it with some less known poets here on Substack and elsewhere. Thank you for the inspiration!!
What wonderful poems you shared here (yours included). I occasionally wrote poetry too but would never call myself a poet. There are too many good ones out there.
Yes, these are masterful poets! But don’t be discouraged! Learn from them! I keep learning. I still prefer to call myself a writer, even if I write many more poems these days… :)
What a lovely post - and reminder. I am not a poet, but I often like to write poetry on napkins when I’m traveling. and no matter how dark my mind is, my poetry automatically brings me to a better place. I love your poetry as well!
Thank you. For your lovely posts and poems, and for lovingly, glowingly sharing magnificent poems and poets! I just delightedly devoured two of your posts in a row and feel this warmth floating between my smiling face and my bubbling heart.
There’s one thing I disagree with though. *You are a poet.*
Anyone who has written a poem is a poet just like anyone who has eaten a meal is an eater, anyone who breathes is a breather. Refusing to acknowledge your poetness 😀is like like reserving that word for these poets that you are sharing: those in the top 1% of their craft and fame, as if everyone else is not a Real Poet.
I am a poet.
I have been writing poetry since age 9, and I just turned 60 last month. That’s half a century of poetry, a poem here and there until four years ago when my soul (in a dream!) decided on Spring Equinox 2021 that I would write a poem a day for a year. I have been doing so now for over four years. I do not have grants. Yet I am proud to declare that I am a poet, and a prolific one at that. BUT at age 9, when I wrote my first poem, in that very innocent, sweet moment, is when I became a poet.
So please do not deprecate yourself. And anyone who has such a love of poetry as you clearly has a very poetic soul.
I encourage you to look in the mirror and say to that creative, talented being: You are a poet.
Then say: I am a poet. And breathe it in. Let it land in your giddy heart and tickle your fingertips from the inside.
Then go write a poem if you feel the urge, and come back here and share it with us.
Or if that all feels too much like A Grand Gesture, how about: “I’m a poet and I know it, clap my hands!” clap! clap! 👏 👏😘
You know what Sage…? You have actually convinced me! My poetry teacher tried to convince me for two years that I was a poet and couldn’t. But what you just wrote here is the best argument I have heard to embrace the word poet! How right you are! Why do we (I) complicate things? I thank you for your loving words and for changing my mind! I write poetry regularly. I write more poems than prose these days. Substack is where I publish them first. I often take them down after I had the chance to work on them and submit them to magazines. Next week it will be poetry for sure! Thank you again!
You are so very welcome, sweetie! I love this: “What you just wrote here is the best argument I have heard to embrace the word poet!” Hooray! This thrills me to no end.
And guess what? I am so inspired by our conversation here, I’m going to write a post about claiming and proudly owning “I am a poet and I know it!” I will link to this post of yours/tag you. I love how cocreative magic like this happens! I look forward to reading more of your wonderful poems.
BTW, I just ordered 2 books by Kim Addonizio and 1 by @Frederick Joseph and can’t wait to dive in! I love supporting and connecting with other poets all over the world, and it turns out Kim lives near me. Amazing!
This is beyond incredible!!! Yes, write that post and I shall read it! I am currently reading (and loving!) Richard Blanco’s Homeland of my Body. These are quite well known poets so it is nice to balance it with some less known poets here on Substack and elsewhere. Thank you for the inspiration!!
What wonderful poems you shared here (yours included). I occasionally wrote poetry too but would never call myself a poet. There are too many good ones out there.
Yes, these are masterful poets! But don’t be discouraged! Learn from them! I keep learning. I still prefer to call myself a writer, even if I write many more poems these days… :)
What a lovely post - and reminder. I am not a poet, but I often like to write poetry on napkins when I’m traveling. and no matter how dark my mind is, my poetry automatically brings me to a better place. I love your poetry as well!
And I love you soul brother!