By Page H. Gifford
CORRESPONDENT
Poet Sara Robinson will speak about the value and relevance of poetry at the Friends of the Library monthly meeting on April 1 at 10 a.m.
A staple of centuries past, poetry seems to be a lost art. Yet, many of us can recall a few lines from our favorite poems that have deep meaning.
“Poetry is enjoying a resurgence with young people, because short lines and few words fit how most of the young people communicate. We see most of that in hip-hop and rap lyrics,” she says.
After 35 years in the industrial chemicals and minerals mining industries, Robinson set out to write a book about her famous father and enigmatic mother.
“This was my first book, and when I was told I should be writing poetry, I took a class on
poetry composition and joined a workshop. That’s when I caught the poetry virus. This was in
2009. And I can’t stop writing. Writing poetry has inspired me to look more inside myself, and I am a better person for that.”
After writing the memoir, she realized that she wanted to write poems about her hometown and the friends she had known growing up. “It was a succession of moments.”
She says fifty percent of her poetry comes directly from her life, and the other fifty percent comes from imagination. Her best lines, she believes, come from quiet reflection, everyday moments, observations of life around her: people, plants, animals, rocks, rivers, and fish.
The subjects or emotions she says she finds the most difficult to put into words are war,
death, and depression. “I am a chronically happy person, so I tend to write more on the positive side,” she says.
Like any writer, novelist, or poet, writer’s block is an obstacle to completing a work. When she’s stuck on a poem, Robinson pushes through the block by stepping away for a few days and doing something completely different–like tying flies for fishing.
“My most recent book, Fraudulent Offerings, for example, uses fly fishing and fly tying as metaphors for a philosophy of life.”
Reading other poets’ works also helps, she adds.
People often misunderstand poets or the act of writing poetry because we are stuck in the world of high school-required poetry reading.
“Most of us poets are actually humorous and fun to be with. We actively seek interaction with people. And while writing a poem is not a team sport, it is still an embrace of humanity,” she said. “I hope that a person would be energized to read more poetry and embrace how creative words can spark feelings of connections to nature and people.”
She adds that readers should ask their local entertainment venues to bring in more poets for live readings and audience participation.
Robinson says if anyone remembers one single idea from her work, it is that poetry is about
discovery.
“A reader may not like all poetry, but just having the experience of reading poetry will enlarge a reader’s world.”
