Taking a Poetry Class as a Lifelong Poetry Hater

As much as I love reading and writing, I have never found much enjoyment in poetry. In fact, in my reading and writing habits, I have gone out of my way to actively avoid having to interact with and to understand poetry. However, this semester I have taken on the attitude that I want to explore new avenues academically and broaden my horizons. What better way to do this than to sign up for a class that exclusively centers around poetry?

Even during introductions on the first day, I found myself at odds with my classmates. Not-so-surprisingly, the vast majority of people who voluntarily sign up to take poetry classes are people who enjoy reading and writing poetry. Still, although I am a bit of an outsider in the environment, I am hoping that my peers’ enthusiasm will rub off on me.

There have only been three weeks of classes so far, but already I’m pushing myself to do things I never foresaw myself doing. For one, I’m reading a lot of poetry. Even outside of the required class readings, I find myself reading other works written by the poets we have read in class as well as reading poets that others in my class or online have recommended. 

I also decided to start dipping my toes into writing poetry of my own. Outside of required middle school writing assignments, I have never actually written poetry before. Before this month, I have never made an honest attempt to write something as personal as my own poetry. I have always enjoyed fiction writing, and I have often used writing as a means of escape. I have always loved making up my own characters and worlds. While there is value in having a creative outlet, my past creative writing experiences have all required me to forget myself and focus on a fictional story.

However, writing poetry has forced me to be more introspective. Writing poetry, I am forced to reflect on myself and my feelings. Although the few poems I have written so far are by no means perfect, I am proud of myself for writing them. Considering my own feelings and my own experiences while both producing my own and consuming others’ poetry has already been a highly valuable experience.