Celebrating Poetry, All Month Long

April is National Poetry Month, and we love each day’s flurry of new posts tagged #nationalpoetrymonth in the WordPress.com Reader and across the internet. WordPressers are busy in the #napowrimo tag as well, participating in NaPoWriMo, Maureen Thorson’s annual project that encourages and challenges poets to write a poem a day in April.

Let’s look at some poetry we’ve stumbled upon recently across the WordPress.com community.

“Me as a Child” series, Silver Birch Press

We’re enjoying the Me as a Child series at Silver Birch Press — poems on childhood by various poets. Consider this excerpt from “Swarm” by Alan King:

She was a sixth grader, who mistook
my lamppost legs and power line arms
for a fifth grader. She was as old as the boys
throwing grass in each other’s hair,
rolling around in a kind of awkward
tango towards manhood.

“I Allow Myself Poetry,” Summer Pierre

Poetry is the largest influence on the comics of Summer Pierre, a cartoonist and illustrator in New York. In “I Allow Myself Poetry,” she illustrates her world, where poetry and comics meet.

I guess this is where poetry and comics meet so clearly — neither art form will most likely pay the bills, but they both go along way to keep on the lights.

– Summer Pierre

Daily poetic musings, Optional Poetry

C., the blogger at Optional Poetry, is using April as a time for experimentation. Here’s a snippet of a poem from the first day of NaPoWriMo:

Today again I paid
to learn, watching refugees sit and wait
for their bus, and asked the doctor what the term
really means— she couldn’t say
exact qualifications, just that for some
recognized reason, a person had to leave
their homeland.

Astropoetry and art, Tychogirl

Tychogirl focuses on poetry about astronomy, uses found materials, and publishes mixed media art. Exploring the blog is like hunting for treasures.

Poems, Dry-Humping Parnassus

Just dive into Robin Lucas’ poetry category — you won’t be sorry. The Southern California-based poet and writer’s work is unexpected and moreish; here’s a sampling from “Red Flag Waving”:

This verse is not free,
and this poem is no poem— it’s a red flag waving at death,
at the comical futility of the poet’s every utterance be it rational
or absurd, sublime or grotesque; its rhythm is neither tranquil
nor its inspiration divine.

A Poet to Her Son, Words and Other Things

Nicole Marie at Words and Other Things spends her time penning short fiction and poems and is the assistant poetry editor at Philadelphia Stories. Her recent poem on pregnancy and motherhood, “A Poet to Her Son,” is a community favorite. Here’s a sample:

and you -- you are practicing self defense
beneath my flesh; to you, the only world there is.

Spine poetry, Stan Carey

Writer and editor Stan Carey publishes book spine poetry under his “bookmash” tag. We love his latest offering, “After the fire,” in which he finds inspiration in Jared Diamond, David Sedaris, and more:

Red gold
Beyond black,
Incendiary collapse
When you are engulfed in flames:
A bright red scream
From out of the city,
After the fire
A still small
Voice.

Poetry from Ireland, Poethead

Christine Murray compiles poetry from Irish and women poets on her site, Poethead. In a post celebrating International Women’s Day, she gathers work from a number of poets, including Nessa O’Mahony and Shirley McClure. Here’s a bit from McClure’s poem, “Mastectomy”:

and on these fine mornings
let me tell you it is good to know that there are two

Where nature meets poetry, Leaf and Twig

At Leaf and Twig, Catherine Arcolio explores the intersection between nature, photography, and poetry and celebrates the natural world with photo posts and succinct poetic musings. She looks forward to spring in “Resurrection,” her post from April 1:

the ground begins
to make itself
known again

Blackout poetry, Ochwoman to the Rescue

We’ve spotted some great newspaper blackout poetry, which is created by blacking out lines and words in a newspaper piece using a permanent marker. Here’s a poem called “Memoirs of a Teacher (Day 1)” from a seventh grade English teacher:

I have not yet taught
Albert Einstein
or
President of the United States,
but I
strive for
a great foundation,
grand schemes of
profound
comments and creations,
comfort,
constant
learning.

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Want more? Dive into the #nationalpoetrymonth and #napowrimo tags, or explore the poetry tag in the Reader.