1) It will inspire you
Every time I write a poem it's like the Universe is giving me a pep-talk. "You're the fucking shit," it says. "Thanks Universe!" I say as we hi-five. Poetry is inspiration manifested into words. It is like having the key to who you are and what you stand for no more than a pen stroke away at all times. It is an incredible asset to the liberation of the individual.
Most people think you have to read poetry to be inspired by it, but did you know you can gain more by writing your own?
It's a very intimate experience with yourself. You can learn more about yourself in one honest poem than you could in ten essays filled with details and facts about your life. Also, if you wrote ten essays about your life then you're most definitely a narcissist.
The inspiration I get from poetry is like a cup of coffee for my soul. Each symbolic sip lets me sink more into myself, and gets me totality invigorated with a fresher perspective on my day. And unlike a drug, you don't build up a tolerance to it. In fact, it's the opposite - the more you do it, the better your high.
Most people think you have to read poetry to be inspired by it, but did you know you can gain more by writing your own?
It's a very intimate experience with yourself. You can learn more about yourself in one honest poem than you could in ten essays filled with details and facts about your life. Also, if you wrote ten essays about your life then you're most definitely a narcissist.
The inspiration I get from poetry is like a cup of coffee for my soul. Each symbolic sip lets me sink more into myself, and gets me totality invigorated with a fresher perspective on my day. And unlike a drug, you don't build up a tolerance to it. In fact, it's the opposite - the more you do it, the better your high.
2) It frees you to be honest
While most of us believe telling the truth is something to be valued, not all of us feel we are allowed to do so 100% of the time. Sometimes it can feel like we're forced to bite our tongue because we're trying not to offend someone, or because we're afraid of having an unpopular opinion.
A lot of what we truly feel about the world can get stored away in the back shelves of our mind. This can translate into a negative mood, headaches, or angry texts to significant others. Poetry is a good way to unburden yourself before you unwittingly choose to do so on an unsuspecting bystander. Poetry, and art in general is, in my opinion, the best way to get that which is repressed out of your system before it can manifest as something shitty in your life.
Poetry, like many art forms, allows the truth to flow free through the use of symbolic language. Poems are in this sense sort of like codes that contain that poet's perspectives of truth. Because poems tend to express at a rawer, under-the-skin level, I sometimes recommend that people who are starting out make a point of not sharing their poems on Facebook, or other social media for two reasons:
If you still want that cathartic release of posting your poem on the internet, I suggest posting here on Shoot Poetry!
I think, overall, poetry opens up the door to a freer level of expression that many of us could use.
A lot of what we truly feel about the world can get stored away in the back shelves of our mind. This can translate into a negative mood, headaches, or angry texts to significant others. Poetry is a good way to unburden yourself before you unwittingly choose to do so on an unsuspecting bystander. Poetry, and art in general is, in my opinion, the best way to get that which is repressed out of your system before it can manifest as something shitty in your life.
Poetry, like many art forms, allows the truth to flow free through the use of symbolic language. Poems are in this sense sort of like codes that contain that poet's perspectives of truth. Because poems tend to express at a rawer, under-the-skin level, I sometimes recommend that people who are starting out make a point of not sharing their poems on Facebook, or other social media for two reasons:
- Knowing you will be judged, however much, for what you write will make it less honest and
- Because poems are highly interpretive a lot of people just won't get it.
If you still want that cathartic release of posting your poem on the internet, I suggest posting here on Shoot Poetry!
I think, overall, poetry opens up the door to a freer level of expression that many of us could use.
3) It is pure creativity
Poetry is art. You are creating with your mind, a pattern of words that, read together, invoke feelings and images in other people. You could say that other forms of writing do this too, but I would argue that none do it better or with the sheer distilled purity that poetic expression offers.
The difference between telling a story in a poem, and telling a story the traditional way is that the traditional form is more focused on realism - it wants to know the details, who "was" this guy exactly, what was his name, who did he hang out with? Poetry is more concerned with the essence of the guy - what archetypal features did he most portray, what vibe did he resonate, who is he on a deeper level? This could sound like a less accurate way of describing the guy to some people, but I'd argue that it is a more accurate way of telling his story, because really, how much of us is contained in our birth name, job title, and the fact that we have brown hair?
Poetry shares the deeper elements of a story, instead of weighing you down with irrelevant details.
The difference between telling a story in a poem, and telling a story the traditional way is that the traditional form is more focused on realism - it wants to know the details, who "was" this guy exactly, what was his name, who did he hang out with? Poetry is more concerned with the essence of the guy - what archetypal features did he most portray, what vibe did he resonate, who is he on a deeper level? This could sound like a less accurate way of describing the guy to some people, but I'd argue that it is a more accurate way of telling his story, because really, how much of us is contained in our birth name, job title, and the fact that we have brown hair?
Poetry shares the deeper elements of a story, instead of weighing you down with irrelevant details.
4) It makes you suave if you're a man
Almost every time I've told a girl I write poetry her eyes light up. I have yet to run into a girl who thinks poetry is unattractive. I'm sure there's a girl out there, who I imagine spends most of her day using the word "hashtag" in real life and tweeting about Kim Kardashian's ass, who thinks poetry is lame, as she bumps 2 Chainz while twerking maniacally. I know you're out there, but I haven't met you yet. Maybe that's for the better.
As a man, I think that embracing the feminine aspects of yourself can serve to make you a better man. Some guys are so afraid to associate with anything remotely feminine that their life becomes a nightmare of bar fights, sexual harassment and affliction t-shirts. There are other guys that presume that most girls want a dude who is essentially a neanderthal. Most girls don't want you to be legit a girl (I don't think), but they probably don't want you to treat them like a sandwich either. If you're the kind of guy who is really into "pick-up" and alpha male mentality (let's face it a lot of us have been there), then poetry is something I offer to you as a remedy to rekindle your true identity as a man, and more importantly, human being on the planet earth.
All people are different. Some girls actually do want to be treated like a sandwich. Still, most don't, so you're better off being authentic, which starts with knowing who you are. I find that poetry helps tremendously with that.
As a man, I think that embracing the feminine aspects of yourself can serve to make you a better man. Some guys are so afraid to associate with anything remotely feminine that their life becomes a nightmare of bar fights, sexual harassment and affliction t-shirts. There are other guys that presume that most girls want a dude who is essentially a neanderthal. Most girls don't want you to be legit a girl (I don't think), but they probably don't want you to treat them like a sandwich either. If you're the kind of guy who is really into "pick-up" and alpha male mentality (let's face it a lot of us have been there), then poetry is something I offer to you as a remedy to rekindle your true identity as a man, and more importantly, human being on the planet earth.
All people are different. Some girls actually do want to be treated like a sandwich. Still, most don't, so you're better off being authentic, which starts with knowing who you are. I find that poetry helps tremendously with that.
5) It increases awareness
There's a funny thing that happens while writing poetry. You start to notice something odd, a phenomenon of poems writing themselves. It's as if, the poem reaches a threshold, and then, BOOM, it's alive - no longer a mechanistic slave to your input, it becomes rather like a horse pulling a chariot; you started off guiding it, but before realizing that it was guiding you! You might start to notice that the poems begin to feel familiar before they're even done, like you're remembering something old, not creating something new.
Many of us are very attached to the idea of our identity, but our idea is just one perspective, and ideas and perspectives change. It stands to reason then that our perspective of our identity will change over time as well. I have a lot of ideas on identity, as you can probably sense, but I will spare this innocent poetry article a long philosophical diatribe. All I will suggest, is that poetry helps you see your identity not as a something fixed but as something much larger and expansive. This to me is an empowering realization, and paves the way for growth and the expansion of one's consciousness. I am immensely grateful to poetry for it's role in my life thus far, and encourage you to write a poem. Who knows where it will take you?
Emanuel Rafael Caparelli is a poet who loves to inspire new and invigorating ideas, with the goal of helping nudge our world in the direction of freedom and peace. You can read some of his poetry here.
Many of us are very attached to the idea of our identity, but our idea is just one perspective, and ideas and perspectives change. It stands to reason then that our perspective of our identity will change over time as well. I have a lot of ideas on identity, as you can probably sense, but I will spare this innocent poetry article a long philosophical diatribe. All I will suggest, is that poetry helps you see your identity not as a something fixed but as something much larger and expansive. This to me is an empowering realization, and paves the way for growth and the expansion of one's consciousness. I am immensely grateful to poetry for it's role in my life thus far, and encourage you to write a poem. Who knows where it will take you?
Emanuel Rafael Caparelli is a poet who loves to inspire new and invigorating ideas, with the goal of helping nudge our world in the direction of freedom and peace. You can read some of his poetry here.
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