Poetry Corner

[Wowbagger]

I am sure that such a thread must have existed, but I couldn't find it. (Mods pease merge if necessary)

I was very taken with this lovely little piece from Brian Bilston:

YOU ARE A MAP
In bed, my fingers trace your contours,
caress the lines from coastal margins,
slide along secluded pathways

and linger in hidden beauty spots,
before a gentle incline leads them
to the peaks of two majestic hillocks

separated by a narrow ravine,
to be followed down, down, until
vegetation arrives as a surprise,

scrub makes way for enchanting forest.
I ready myself to plunge into the interior
but then I am told to turn off the light

and I carefully fold my scale 1:25 000
Ordnance Survey OL4 Map
of The Lake District: North-western area,

including Keswick, Cockermouth & Wigton,
before placing it back in my bedside drawer,
alongside my pipe, nail clippers and loose change.

[Peter]

He keeps a PIPE in his bedroom drawer?  His change isn't all that's loose!

[Wowbagger]

It makes you wonder whether he was channelling Wainwright...

[Peter]

 

[Wowbagger]

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/mar/16/poetry-children-survey-poems-classroom

I find that incredibly disappointing that

nearly a quarter of schools teach poetry only once a year or less.

.

I haven't done any classroom teaching since 1986. On the occasion that I meet a former pupil (and I'm friends with a few IRL and on FB), one of the things they invariably remember fondly was that I used to spend a fair bit of time on poetry. It's a massively important part of our culture and essential for a well-rounded education.