To Be a Poet

Over the past month, I’ve been writing lots of poetry. This whole pandemic really hit me hard in terms of mental health and how I cope with my autism, depression, and anxiety. I originally got the idea of writing poetry from my English teacher back in eighth grade. The entire class had to write poems about whatever they wanted. I forgot what I wrote about but it was probably about ice cream or something.

Anyways, the thought of writing poetry recently popped back into my head and I originally brushed it off but, once I actually took the time to sit down and write, I felt so much better. Writing about the things I see on a daily basis or the people that pass me by gives me a new perspective on the way I live my life. By writing poetry, I’ve allowed my creativity to expand and I’m beginning to learn a lot about myself. For example, I tend to write a lot about people and landscapes – beaches, mountains, etc. This is probably because these places calm me down when I’m stressed, but I also think that I’m starting to realize how beautiful the world is, even if it looks the same as it always has. True beauty comes from observation. If you don’t see that, you won’t realize just how beautiful your everyday world is. Throughout most of my life, I’ve always had to learn to cope with the stresses and fearfulness of society and the way that it is structured.

I’ve never been very understood in life and so I believe that poetry may be teaching me something. When I write, there are no rules that I have to follow. Sometimes I write about a girl that doesn’t exist and sometimes I write about how beautiful the sun is. The one thing that matters is that I can get my thoughts out of my mind and on paper. There’s just something about letting your mind go and creating something that you can touch, that makes it that much more beautiful. Poetry is an art in that everyone has a different perspective and everyone’s perspective matters.

Some of the best poets, in my opinion like E.E. Cummings, Maya Angelou, and Rupi Kaur each use their own experiences and voices to transport you to a world that you may have never thought existed. To be honest, I’m happier than I ever thought I could be because of writing poetry that I think improves as I write more. Through everything I’ve been through and continue to experience, poetry has not only given me an exit from the struggles of real life but has allowed me to achieve a newfound appreciation of both the simple but beautiful world around me and the mess of thoughts and emotions that make up my mind.

Go out and write something, anything. Just make it something that you love and cherish that allows you to express your true self and everything that makes you special.

 

Be great, smell great!

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• poetry
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