April is Poetry Month. Let’s talk about poetry.

The following is inspired from a workshop with Pat Schneider.

Poetry is about music of language and comes in all forms: Music, nursery rhymes, hymns, jump rope rhymes.

Look in anthologies for different kinds of poetry, different styles, different authors as poets.

Guess what . . . You don’t have to like all poetry.

Think about the language of your childhood. Imagine sitting around your kitchen table, or the living room couch or sofa . . . depending on where you grew up, you might call this item of furniture ” the davenport.”

Remember your family’s way of talking. Hear poetry in music that was spoken around the kitchen table. Remember the language of your childhood.

When writing poetry, don’t strain the language. Use normal words. Fall into the poetic playground.

One way to write poetry: Take the melody from a song that you know and sing new words to make up your own song.

Prompt: Write a short poem – using a theme running in your head – a song you like, a rhyme, hymn, nursery rhyme, jump rope rhyme. Or, don’t even worry about a rhythm. Just go with whatever comes up.

Write a poem about a time at the kitchen table when you were little.

Or a poem about night time.

Or a summer memory.        Just Write!