Adrienne Crew of the lovely, quirky and always-informative LA Brain Terrain, offers her thoughts on poetry and her current favorites. Her post reminds me that some of the tried and true "greats" are called so for a reason:
Virginia Woolf said that people read fiction the same way they listen to gossip. People read poetry the same way they say their prayers because, in essence, poetry is a prayer. Religion evolved from a whispered wish to a full blown incantation. Therefore, I take a spiritual approach to poetry.
I start each morning with a poem--a puja in Sanskrit, really, that starts with "Atma tvam girja matih sahacarah/pranah sariram grham..." Like most poems, it's a song of the self that translates as "You are my Self, Parvati is my reason/My five pranas are Your attendants..."
I also read Rumi on a regular basis. His poem "Guest House" is pinned to my bulletin board at work. I read it every day.
I like to consider the force and rhythm of a poem. I admire poets because I don't write poetically. It's a struggle because i'm writing a novel and I always think my prose should be more poetic and lyrical. I like poets who play with language and include lots of images.
Although she's a musician, I've always considered Joni Mitchell as a poet. I like reading the works of Mary Oliver, Amy Gerstler, and Langston Hughes. My current favorite is:
Sometimes a crumb falls
From the tables of joy,
Sometimes a bone
Is flung.To some people
Love is given,
To others --
Only heaven.
"Luck" by Langston Hughes, 1946
