Poetry in the Modern World

Most mornings for more than ten years I have been a part of a conference call joined by up to twelve lovers of poetry. We refer to it as the call of joy. It begins with one of us reading a poem (or several) that we have selected and includes both discussion and, often, a response poem that one of us has written (we distribute the day’s poems ahead of time through email). We have held the line through tidal waves, fires, deep personal loss (including my own husband’s death) and recognition that these may be the end times of human existence. We acknowledge both the joy and the darkest truths of being human.

We have had many discussions about the meaningfulness of poems of joy in these times. All I can say from this is…

We are alive, here to taste and feel and see and touch and hear. I won’t deny the gift of life because we have foolishly brought ourselves to this threshold. For me, it is all the more reason to seek the beautiful and try to carry the joy of it to others. Perhaps if we all learn to love the world more, to recognize and be astonished by its beauty, we will set our minds and our actions more firmly against its destruction. And yes, we must also be willing to speak about that destruction in uncompromising terms. Poetry is a pointed way to communicate both the light and the dark.