We make meaning through story telling and poetry is storytelling with a heartbeat

What happens when you go to a wedding or a funeral? At these life changing moments, where there is often a collective deep emotion someone will read a poem. Poetry is a way of putting the heart felt at arms length, serving as a bridge between us - a place where we can meet and share the trickiness or joy of our human experience. 

Most of us shelve the idea of poetry into some dusty corner of our minds, telling ourselves that it's not meant for us. Yet if you notice things in life, I believe that you are a poet, because poetry is always about transcribing the human experience. 

Maybe you sneak writing a poem onto a scrappy notebook, but would never share it. Maybe you love reading other people's poetry, but don't ever believe you could write something like that. I want you to think of poetry differently, There are so many different ways to write a poem that it serves as a great tool to take our confusing, isolating experiences as a human being and sculpt it into something meaningful. 

One thing that I have noticed working as a therapist is that people know their stories, can often recite them off pat with little emotion involved; litter their story with shoulds and shouldn'ts about how they feel. They have lost the heartbeat of their story. 

The story: I feel ashamed

The meaning: I hulp, a howl and gulp combined. A technique I mastered long ago to ensure my shame was not on show as I sat, in my heap of hulps. 

Poetry allows us to get under our well worn narratives and dig deep into the soil of our truth. It can surprise us, make us think about things with a completely different perspective. I know this, because I have experienced it myself time and time again, as well as witnessing deep shifts with the people I work with. 

 

Please receive my words as gifts

This poem a billet doux.

Each line a delicate heartstring

To see the tough times through

Please feel the feelings from these words

As small squeezes of your hand;

A gesture of solidarity -

Not too fancy, nor too grand.

That all I’m ever trying to say,

All I want to do

Is encourage you to be who you are...

To be the youest you.

 

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