Poetry--Plain and Simple

I have always liked Carl Sandburg's words that grace our poster today. A few more thoughts on what poetry 'is'

Poetry is all that is worth remembering in life.   William Hazlitt

Poetry is the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings: it takes its origin from emotion recollected in tranquility. William Wordsworth

Poetry is language at its most distilled and most powerful. Rita Dove

Poetry is when an emotion has found its thought and the thought has found words. Robert Frost

Some poets write words that intertwin complicated thoughts with metaphors and other poetic means. Some write with meaning for themselves but the reader ends up confused. Do you remember teachers in high school trying to 'tell' you what the poet was writing about, what the poet was saying? Some are beautiful but confusing to the reader.

I prefer reading what I term 'simple poetry' by which I mean poems that are clear to the reader yet still portray beauty and emotion.  An example of this kind of poetry is one titled "Remember Me" written by T. L. Needham. The poem is included in his award-winning memoir "When I Was A Child."

Remember Me

If I should ever leave you,

And forget to say goodbye,

And you know I shall not return,

Don't let it make you cry.

Just know that I had business

in a place not far away,

Yet, close enough to you,

To hear each word you pray.

And know that I am always near

Though see me you may not,

But with you just the same,

in your memory and thoughts.

And know I love you always,

So wherever you may be,

I shall always be there, too,

As long as you remember me.

(c) 2010 T. L. Needham

The poem is plain, simple, but filled with emotion. There's little here that makes you guess, and there is also a heartfelt message. The author sent me a new book he'd recently written. The title of the book is The Biscuit and Other Timely Tales. He included "Remember Me" in the form of a bookmark inside the cover. I read it, then found myself reading it again and yet another time. Perhaps it touched me because of all the losses that have occurred during this time of the pandemic. So many people who can now only 'remember' their loved ones. 

If you find yourself confused or overwhelmed by some poetry, look for the 'simple poetry' like Mr. Needham's poem above. There is lots of this kind of poetry to be found.