I used to always think that poetry was something easy and kind of second nature to everyone. I never really understood until high school that poetry was something that took a lot of effort and a lot of meditation, as well as required a certain amount of skill which I do not ave.

Anyone can string a bunch of words together and make them rhyme, but ultimately that’s not what poetry is all about. Good poetry provokes thought and stays with you long after you read it.

 Ever since I was young, I have always been a fan of Emily Dickinson. My mom raised me reading her writing, and certain ones have always stuck with me. Throughout elementary and high school, I did every did every History or English project on her, eventually knowing her life story like it was my own. Over the years, I’ve carried many of her poems with me in my head, creating and thinking of new meanings for them every time I think of them. This is hard to accomplish with simple rhyme-y 6 line poems written for children’s illustrated books.

Whenever I hear someone say that poetry is easy or EVERYONE can write awesome poems, it makes me doubt if they themselves have ever sat down and read a really good, deep poem. Because whenever I do, I have to simply appreciate it because I know that is something so intellectually out of my reach.