Yesterday I was talking with a new acquaintance at a park, while our children explored the woods. I mentioned a homeschooling lesson I’d made inspired by the Dominican-American poet RhinaEspaillat. The poem “Bodega” immersed my children in her childhood memories, and led them to write about their own. Exploring how sensory descriptions could transcend time and experience. I loved seeing what moments my kids chose to capture in their own writing. She asked how I came up with lessons like this because, “poetry just want her thing”. I had to take a beat to process and respond, because her outlook on poetry was so other than my own and honestly probably more typical. Did I want to respond with a “well I’m just special and love poetry no stop.”- definitely not. Did I want to downplay my intimate connection with the craft?-no also not the move. I decided to just speak to my honest appreciation of poetry my whole life. There’s always been something essential and alluring about the power of a great poet’s economy of words and often piercing insights. Reflecting on the exchange I’m compelled to find more opportunities to demystify poetry and convert more people to converse with the form without fear of pretense or misinterpretation.
