My poetry

So recently I've decided to 'come out of the closet' so to speak, but not in the homosexual manner. Put away your lesbian fantasies right now, thank-you-very-much!

No, I am a poet and would like everyone to know it! (unintentional rhyme).

I've been writing free verse with a passion since I was thirteen or so; but was enjoying writing it in school since the age of eleven. First it was just the teenage angsty stuff; tired metaphors and cliches about not fitting in and butterfly crushes. I think that's where it ends for a lot of people. Not for me however, 20 years old and still going strong, I suppose, and I'm actually starting to realise that maybe, just maybe, my stuff isn't actually that bad. Bonus points for discovering that a distant relative (I'm talking three or four generations back, on my dad's side) was once a published poet.

I guess I've been pretty reclusive, I really don't think there's a single person in the world that I could give my little book of pencil scribblings (always pencil, I detest writing in pen) to and say 'here, read whatever the heck you want!' for the simple reason that 99% of everything I write is really quite personal. Seriously though, it's all grayscale, raw, rich truth. Realise then, that if I ever decide to share entire poems with you, you should appreciate it, because for me there is no better way for me to say 'I trust you and you are a very important person in my life'. And if I write poetry FOR someone, like a friend, family member, lover, whoever, well that is a entirely new level all together. Even if I'm wrong about that person later and they've screwed me over or something, the words I have written will always, always be true. I guess because I write in pencil, I have the power to erase everything. But I never have, even with words that are associated with people that don't give me pleasant feelings now.

Moving into performance poetry (also known as spoken word or slam poetry) has been a huge leap of faith for me. I've discovered it is easy enough to perform in front of strangers; though when it comes to people I care about,my heart hammers and my legs tremble and I have to shift my weight to stop myself from falling over. Let alone looking them in the eye, oh no, I will gaze at a spot on the wall until it's over and I can sit down and...breathe.

Words have always been a passion for me; always a reader, always a writer. Why poetry? you may wonder. BECAUSE IT HAS NO RULES! There are no grammar, punctuation rules! You can take things completely out of its normal context and mess with it in any way you like. This is also why I've been a bit wary of poetry competitions; how can one define good poetry? You can't, and that is what makes it one of the most expressive forms of literature. That also means that anyone, everyone can write. And don't give me bull about 'how you have no talent' or you 'just can't' because those are excuses. Also, for the record, poetry is not 'girly' I can guarantee that the majority of the most widely celebrated and classic poets are men. Some beautiful beautiful stuff they have produced too.

My favourite modern poet: Sujata Bhatt
My favourite classic poets: John Keats and John Masefield
And a famous New Zealand poet: James K. Baxter

I guess I owe you a few scraps of my stuff:

'My Mind is fringed with peacock plume,
My Dreams are tinged with an endless sea...
This is my place'  (plan to get this as a tattoo one day)

'Mountains chasing the coast,
       turn back
in defeat;
as the mighty power of the ocean roars
      its challenge.
Sinous rivers flow,
     silently, slowly
freshwater slipping past
     saltine currents.'

'Who said night time had to be lonely?
I had never felt so comforted
By the voices that will never speak'

I'll admit even these seemingly vanilla verses are hard to share.

If you got this far, congratulations! I appreciate it :)