How can Poetry play a part in your life?

Read A Poem Every Day! You could start here. If you've read all mine, try the links page (see those snakes above -- click one.) Also, every day at Poetry Daily is a NEW poem! Listen to Eminem. Yes, the rapper, then read Emily Dickinson aloud, and try to figure out what they have in common. (If you need a hint, email me.) Visit The Academy of American Poets for tons of ideas, poets, news and all sorts of other stuff, including the National Poetry Almanac with a new topic every day. Buy a book of poetry. Don't know where to start? Ask your local bookstore where the new poetry is located. Speaking of bookstores. DEMAND that they carry more poetry/literary journals and a wider selection of poetry in general. Memorize a poem -- ANY poem. PREORDER of InkPot #7 (Oct '05,) If you order it, you can celebrate my birthday with me in October and read three of my poems then! Read poetry to your children as often as possible. Recite the poem you memorized yourself. Watch a movie that features poetry. Try Wit with Emma Thompson. This is a masterful film. The subtlety, the humor...yes, the wit. It's a first person narrative that speaks directly to the audience, about things including, "If I were writing this scene..." or "I'm supposed to now say..." You will want to rush out and study John Donne immediately. Don't. Instead watch: Million Dollar Baby Dead Poets Society Russell Simmons' Def Poetry Jam (HBO) Four Weddings and a Funeral The Basketball Diaries Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle or watch The Simpsons (yep, those Simpsons) The Simpsons has featured Robert Pinsky as himself! Lisa is a poet too. Here's a few lines from her poem about the death of her cat: "I had a cat named Snowball. She died! She died! Mom said she was sleeping. She lied! She lied! Why oh why is my cat dead? Couldn't that Chrysler hit me instead?" The Academy of American Poets has this to say about The Simpsons: Much like poetry itself, The Simpsons can contain almost anything, and the interests and knowledge of its writers span from Greek mythology to pop culture. The writers' expressions are mixtures of the new and the old, the forgotten and the unforgettable, the eloquent and the bawdy..." Buy A Literary Magazine. Buy another. Read a bunch, pick your favorite, then Subscribe to ANY poetry magazine. You can start here or here for listings of a few poetry magazines, or read their current reviews. On a different day, visit and read an ONLINE Literary Magazine. Don't know where to start? Try The Hiss Quarterly then hit that "links" snake again -- there's a massive list there. Pick your favorite song -- analyze the poetry within. These are typically called "lyrics" and often have a lot in common with what you find on a page. Then do the opposite. Find a poem you like and listen to the music within. It can be seductive. You may want to save this for a Sunday. Write a poem You don't have to show it to anyone but yourself. Just make sure to date it and keep it. Read it in a month or so, then try it again some day. Add a line from a poem to your email signature. Send your significant other a poem. Are ya like me -- without a significant other? Then send anonymous poems to people. They'll LOVE it! Make 25 copies of your favorite poem. Then sprinkle the poem everywhere you go (accidentally at the bank, the bathroom, Starbucks...) Make sure to post one at work. Get to know a poet you like. Learn about her/his life, love, work, circumstance... Give someone a book of poems. Read one aloud with them. Talk about it. Discover your friends and a poem together. (Buy a copy for yourself, since after reading a poem with someone, you'll want the book.) Visit The Awakenings Project/Review -- publishers of poetry by those with mental illness. Repeat the following mantra: Poetry Saves Lives. Remember that, and continue -- through the whole year -- to support poetry. You'll be saving a life. It may even be your own.