As the undergraduate student selected as Virginia’s Young Poet for 2022, there is more than what meets the eye. Aderonke Adeleke is not your average journalism student. She insists on the discipline of poetry. Adeleke states,
“Poetry helps with writing skills and abilities. It strengthens your savviness in knowing how to make metaphorical illusions, too. There is so much you can learn if you take a creative writing course or just delve deeper into poetry.”
Is it so unheard of for journalism majors to willingly take creative writing courses and win poetry awards? Adeleke was not expecting to win, but she took the chance in her abilities as a writer to expand all areas of her expertise. Adeleke goes on to state,
“I know how to make a story sound better and sound more appealing to an audience than just saying ‘on this day…’ There is a way you can say things where the audience can be captivated in journalism instead of just informed.”
As any writer knows, it is important and crucial to take risks because that is how our writing develops and grows. It could be argued that Adeleke is a talented writer, not only because she is Virginia’s Young Poet, but also because she identifies as a journalist and lyricist. She is a multifaceted writer of her generation, willing to take risks and expand off horizons to delve deeper into her writing.
The Virginia Young Poet topic for this year was to use the power of poetry to influence social change, community, civil engagement and emotional well-being. Adeleke submitted three pieces, one in particular that seems to captivate the audiences is “Imaginary Things.” Adeleke speaks on this poem as she wrote it based on her family who are immigrants from Nigeria,
“I wrote this piece spontaneously. There are things that immigrant families go through on a regular basis, they have to take in, suck in, and just have to keep on going… To some people that would be imaginary. To immigrant families like mine it’s not, it’s real. It’s about resiliency and hard work all together.”
The young poet is not only influencing the world with her rhetoric, but is also making a difference throughout her university. Adeleke has developed The Anonymous Poetry Boxes around Old Dominion University’s campus. These boxes will give students and faculty the ability to put their anonymous poems into them for others to read. She hopes it will not only shed more light on poetry, but the power that poetry can have on each other’s lives.
From one writer to another, Adeleke has advice out there for those whose eyes are rolling along the screen:
“Nurture your gift, not everyone can write. People learn to write, people take several classes to learn how to write, but some people just have the natural skills. Study about it. I would like to be more literate in more styles of writing, so just dive deeper.”
