From a very early age, I struggled with reading poetry. As an adult, I can tell you that reading between the lines has never been my strong suit. I prefer plainly stated over overly embellished. Yet, as a poet I enjoy the same processes. I like to plainly state what I want viewed. It is something I strive for. In a fast moving world, easy to understand by many seems like the best option. Even in the complexity of poetry, I become excited when I come across a poet that has a plain speech aspect to their work.
On this World Poetry day, I am sharing with you a poem from a writer called Spiritwind Wood. You can find his poems here. Within my veins flows a mix of Cherokee, Scotch-Irish, English, and Jewish blood. As I grew up in the Great Smoky Mountains, I have come face-to-face with a history and culture I didn't live. You see, I have white skin. Despite my Cherokee blood, my skin is so fair. Yet, there is a calling inside me. In my exploration of my heritage, I reached out. I explored new authors and poets within the Native American community. I viewed history from the eyes of my ancestors. What I found saddened me and caused such sorrow. It made me sick to my stomach.
And yet...when you read the words of poems such as Cherokee by Spiritwind Wood, you get a sense of hope. A perseverance that cannot be shaken. Words that, beneath all heartache and sorrow, exist in every human being. The desire to uplift and continue to walk the path - no matter what is put in our way. Spiritwind Wood's words are uplifting especially from the views of my ancestors.
On this day, I ask you to share and explore poetry from around the world. From cultures you do not know. From cultures you may struggle to understand. It is those moments, when we reach outside of ourselves, that we begin to shape the future for our children and our children's children. Let writers and poets like Spiritwind Wood show us the world from a different perspective and gain the respect to love each other for not what is on the outside, but everything we are on the inside. Kind. Proud. Generous. Human.
On this World Poetry day, I am sharing with you a poem from a writer called Spiritwind Wood. You can find his poems here. Within my veins flows a mix of Cherokee, Scotch-Irish, English, and Jewish blood. As I grew up in the Great Smoky Mountains, I have come face-to-face with a history and culture I didn't live. You see, I have white skin. Despite my Cherokee blood, my skin is so fair. Yet, there is a calling inside me. In my exploration of my heritage, I reached out. I explored new authors and poets within the Native American community. I viewed history from the eyes of my ancestors. What I found saddened me and caused such sorrow. It made me sick to my stomach.
And yet...when you read the words of poems such as Cherokee by Spiritwind Wood, you get a sense of hope. A perseverance that cannot be shaken. Words that, beneath all heartache and sorrow, exist in every human being. The desire to uplift and continue to walk the path - no matter what is put in our way. Spiritwind Wood's words are uplifting especially from the views of my ancestors.
On this day, I ask you to share and explore poetry from around the world. From cultures you do not know. From cultures you may struggle to understand. It is those moments, when we reach outside of ourselves, that we begin to shape the future for our children and our children's children. Let writers and poets like Spiritwind Wood show us the world from a different perspective and gain the respect to love each other for not what is on the outside, but everything we are on the inside. Kind. Proud. Generous. Human.
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