Poetry: Drawing Attention To Something That Is Real

Most people are so busy living their lives that they do not pay attention to what is around them. Poets are constantly beckoning and motioning their readers to stay alert to the things of this world – both the familiar things that become invisible to you through habit, and the miraculous things right in front of you that you are too busy to notice. Poetry can expand your awareness and keep you attentive to truth and beauty – and to what they can both teach you.

The Japanese master-poet Issa captures an exquisite moment in this passage:

morning:

one deer licks

snow from the other's

coat

This poem presents a delicate, exquisite image of animals seemingly taking care of each other in the wild – and it also suggests that it is a cold morning, and the deer have spent the night out in the snow. The poet does not have to comment on this image; he simply lets its truth show and lets you marvel at it. You may find the words meaningful, or you may find no meaning beyond their beauty – but surely that was worth the poet writing it down.

In this poem, Li Bai, a Chinese poet from the Tang Dynasty, mistakes one thing for another and gives you a vivid experience that ends on a meditative note:

Moonlight pools at the head of my bed -

I mistook it for frost blanketing the earth!

I look up: see the moon on the mountain;

I look down: think long thoughts of home.

You have to change the image in your mind from moonlight to frost and back again. Then the speaker, after he realizes it is moonlight, follows it up follows it up to the source of the light itself. That would be neat enough – call to be sensitive, just like a haiku earlier in this article – but then the speaker's eyes stray from the moon, and the speaker becomes nostalgic of home.

Why does this moment make the speaker miss home? Good question. Maybe something about seeing the moon on the mountain reminded him of home. Sometimes that happens: An image out of nature unlocks old memories, unexpected feelings. Poetry keeps telling you to pay attention. It is a way to expand your awareness, you understanding, your store of experience.

Although most people do not realize it, poetry is all around them. You may hang poems on your refrigerator or on the walls of your bedroom or desk, just so you have your favorite inspiration nearby. You can also find poetry in the more traditional places, like books and magazines. In fact, poetry is easy to find – it certainly is not hiding. And you do not actually to go anywhere to get it. If you are reading this, certainly you have access to the Internet. You can connect to poetry from all over the world, sampling the best poetry of all time for the cost of logging on.

The first tool when reading poetry is simply to pay attention and to read closely.