Poetry Friday: Celebrating National Poetry Day with…”A Poem”

Did you know that Thursday, October 4 was National Poetry Day? Well, it was!

In the U.K.

You see, the United States celebrates National Poetry Month each April, while the United Kingdom celebrates poetry now; it began as an initiative by the Forward Arts Foundation to encourage an appreciation of the literary form and to celebrate all its various forms.

So to celebrate, I thought I’d dust off a poem I wrote 7 years ago, in 2011. I shared it here two years later (in April, ironically), but it has gone through multiple tweaks and changes since. It still needs at least one more tweak – but I’ll deal with that some other day:

Photo courtesy of Katherine Esenwine, ©2018 Katie Bri Photography (Click to enlarge )

Many thanks to my daughter, Katherine, for providing another one of her beautiful photographs to accompany my poem! Need more poetry to celebrate? Then please head over to The Opposite of Indifference, where Tabatha Yeatts is hosting Poetry Friday with a German poem about a Chinese tree. (I’ve got you wondering now, don’t I??)

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Ordering personalized signed copies online? Oh, yes, you can!


  

You can purchase personalized signed copies of Flashlight Night, (Boyds Mills Press, 2017), Don’t Ask a Dinosaur (Pow! Kids Books, 2018), and nearly ALL of the books or anthologies I’ve been part of!

Just click the cover of whichever book you want and send the good folks at MainStreet BookEnds in Warner, NH a note requesting the signature and to whom I should make it out to. (alternatively, you can log onto my website and do the same thing) They’ll contact me, I’ll stop by and sign it for you, and then they’ll ship it. Try doing that with those big online booksellers! (Plus, you’ll be helping to support local book-selling – and wouldn’t that make you feel good?)

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Thank you to everyone for your support!

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22 thoughts on “Poetry Friday: Celebrating National Poetry Day with…”A Poem”

  1. lindabaie

    I do love every bit, Matt, but especially “it laughs and cries with open eyes”. Somehow the layers of that line seem endless. Thanks!

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  2. alwriting

    Capturing poetry’s essence is an eternal quest for those of us who write in this magical form. This is the second time this week I have read about the essential connection of poetry to life. Your poem sit beautifully in the mind of the reader Matt. It resonated strongly. Sometimes our best work and words take time to evolve. Your persistence with this poem has paid a rich dividend. I have noted many responses on Twitter to the UK’s National Poetry Day -a wonderful celebration.

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  3. Diane Mayr

    The photograph has a very relaxing effect and prepares the reader your words. Nice pairing! I’m curious as to what you’re still dissatisfied with?

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  4. This is truly beautiful….that the reader and the poem have a relationship…that there is touch and a heartbeat. I love this poem. And, the background photo is perfect. Well done. And, perfect for a celebration day!

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  5. I’m glad we’re celebrating National Poetry Day! I especially like “a poem’s breath is subtle” because it’s a living thing, alive from the interplay between poet and reader.

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