Poetry has a way of flowing from a stanza I read to a line sitting on my heart. On this day, I want to write about five of my favorite poets and how their work has shaped what I know, and aspire to be, as a poet.
I will also be including a few lines of their work to see if you may appreciate the work of them like I do.
- Sabrina Benaim— After stumbling across the Button Poetry channel on YouTube, I immediately fell in love with Benaim’s performance poetry. But I am not the only one! Her most famous poem, “Explaining My Depression to My Mother,” has 50 million (50,000,000) views across poetry platforms. She speaks/performs with such a bubbly energy, and the best phrase I can think to describe it is this: a compilation of coming-of-age movie feelings. You can read more of her work in my favorite collection called Depression and Other Magic Tricks.
“Explaining My Depression to My Mother” (excerpt)
“You see, Mom, each night Insomnia sweeps me up in his arms, dips me in the kitchen in the small glow of the stove-light
Insomnia has this romantic way of making the moon feel like perfect company
Mom says, “Try counting sheep”
But my mind can only count reasons to stay awake
So I go for walks, but my stuttering kneecaps clank like silver spoons
Held in strong arms with loose wrists
They ring in my ears like clumsy church bells, reminding me I am
Sleepwalking on an ocean of happiness that I cannot baptize myself in”
- Andrea Gibson—Andrea Gibson is one of those people I read and immediately want to shift my whole poetry writing style because it’s just that beautiful. I reached out to her once and sent her a fan-girl tweet explaining how much her work she writes and the work she shows her doing on her herself inspires my prose. And she RESPONDED. Her performance tone is powerful with deep ebbs and flows. My ultimate collection of hers comes from Pansy.
“Honey” (excerpt)
“Honey, you just need to know
This is the first time I’ve ever done this without looking for an exit row
And I’m pretty sure my seat can’t float
But I’ve already fallen to the sky for you
Already said no to the parachute
Already told my mother you curse like a sailor
And you love like the war is finally over
And you have just come home
And you are running down the dock and the harbor
Screaming my name
You’re screaming “Honey! Honey!”
And I’m screaming “Don’t trip!”
And you’re screaming “Honey! Honey!”
And I’m screaming “Baby, don’t fall down!”
I am running for your red lips
I am running for your red heart
With my red heart
Red, as a Mississippi sunset
Honey. Honey. Honey
- Michael Faudet— Michael Faudet is the only male poet on this list, and there’s a very good reason for that. He writes like how I want all of my significant others to think about me. Because I like to spruce up my social media with beautiful writing, I follow copious numbers of poetry accounts, especially on Twitter. That’s where I originally heard Faudet’s name. Since then, I’ve fallen so deeply in love with his book Dirty Pretty Things. He does write some things to make your mother blush, but I’ll let you seek those out on your own time.
“The Kiss”
Crashing waves on an empty beach,
The rhythm of our hearts,
Two drowning lovers lost at sea,
My lips adrift in yours
“First Love”
“Petals unfurl
From a delicate flower,
Closer to picked
With each passing hour,
Losing the I
And gaining
An our”
- Lang Leav—While familiarizing myself with different poets to write this piece, I found Leav is actually Faudet’s partner! Small world, but a world full of beautiful writing for those two. I haven’t had a lot of time to immerse myself in her work, but I think she might become a new fast favorite. She had two poetry books come out in 2019: Love Looks Pretty on You and Poemsia.
“Memories Lost”
“If I could, I would erase every trace of myself from your memory.
You would lose all recollection of loving me.
You won’t remember why you stopped.”
“No Longer Mine”
“It should be my right to mourn someone who is yet to leave
This world but no longer wants to be a part of mine”
- Rupi Kaur—Rupi Kaur has become more of a household name in the poetry world, due to the ease that her poems can be shared in 140 (which is now 280) character limit on Twitter. They’re airy and short, but they can still have quite an impact on readers, especially if they’re just trying to dip their toes into finding a favorite poet. I also love the simplistic illustrations that accompany her work. She’s most known for her book Milk and Honey.
“The world
Gives you
So much pain
And here you are
Making gold out of it
there is nothing purer than that-rupi kaur”
“I am water
Soft enough
To offer life
Tough enough
To drown it away”
I hope reading this article gave you some insight into this type of poetry I love and helped you discover a poet to appreciate next time National Great Poetry Reading Day rolls around, although I believe that can be every day.