poetry

When it comes to writing, poetry might be my niche. It’s probably too early to tell though.

All I know is that there is something about the short, abrupt, deep lines, that can reach you (well, me) more than narratives can sometimes. That’s what draws me to poetry – well one of them anyways. I know that the punchline will hit me quickly. And what’s better, is that the punchline is always specific to your own interpretation.

Besides that, poetry is something that has always come to me. Especially when given a topic or direction, I feel like I am able to spit up a poem in minutes. Either this means it is one of my callings, or I am not trying hard enough.

This summer, I was in a battle with myself to write more. At one point, I noticed one of my favorite poets – actually the first poet that made me fall in love with poetry, Tyler Knott Gregson, making Instagram posts where he would prompt his followers to write a few lines, a statement, or a poem by asking some type of question. I began doing this as often as I could.

One of his prompts stated, in part, “Tell me what lives at the end of you.”

This is what I came up with:

“what lives at the end of me, you ask?

instead, i will ask you, what lives at the end of summer?

i will ask you, what lives at the end of each day?

simple:

the leaves die and there is darkness

but you seem to forget

before leaves die and the sun disappears

they show us the marvelous colors they are made up of

and you seem to forget

that after the nothingness

there comes the budding tree and the rising sun

so to answer your question

what lives at the end of me

is the combustion of all my colors

and better yet,

a whole new beginning.”

love always, caitlin