Poetry Out Loud: My Poem

I'll be reciting the poem "The Obligation to be Happy" by Linda Pastan. I have to say that the title of the poem stuck out to me, so therefore I had to see it more. When clicking on that link that lead me to the page I was taken aback by the power the poem had behind it. The reality was so astonishing to see written in front of me. I knew from that very first moment I'd end up choosing this poem to recite.

I felt a connection when I read this poem and I still do to this day. There is a pressure to be happy, along with that the pressure to be beautiful and thin. Also, to be smart and dedicated to school work, while still keeping up with the latest gossip. So, I think this poem, really reaches out to me and practically everyone because this poem cant be altered to fit your own personally life. Whether your dealing with family issues, insecurities, or confusion. But when you think back on your own issues, think about why you have them. Its most likely because your trying to be happy? Or prefect?  Sound familiar, hence the poem's title. Everyday in our lives, we all face that one thing that will set us back and think this poem really portrays the pressures that everyday reality sets on you.

I feel relates to this poem  to me so much. I know that pressure to be happy and never sad, I live it everyday. Its the choice I make every morning. Will I come to school in morning sharing all the grieve and stress I suffer or will I put a smile on and pretend that I'm happy?  What do you do? Well, I smack that smile on my face everyday and this mask that's I have is tiring me out. I've now come to realize that I don't want to put on this charade anymore. I don't want to pretend to be something I'm not. If I'm sad I'll be sad. But things are easier said than done...

Urgent! Extra Credit Blog!

I looked back on the blog post, where I critiqued others, and thought of how I could incorporate those thoughts into to my own writing. I mentioned  that people didn't have a transitional statement, therefore the paper was somewhat bunched up. So, while doing the final draft I made an effort to really highlight the transitional statement. I think when people wrote them before, they wanted to make the paper flow, so the transitional statement had to flow, making it altogether hidden. I also talked about word choice, so I think that while I'm editing, the paper tonight, I will be making note of those words that are repeated, and to be frank plain boring, so I can liven them up. Lastly, I discussed my own improvements, which were to find my own writing style. To feel comfortable while handing in that paper, knowing that I laid fourth my best. I don't think I can really do this tonight but, its worth a try!

Poetry Out Loud

Part One: Website Cruising
1. As Children Know by Jimmy Santiago Baca
2. Ways Of Talking by Ha Jin
3. After Working Sixty Hours by Bob Hicock
4. Solitude by Ella Wheeler Wilcox
5. The Lost Land by Eavan Boland
6. The Obligation To Be Happy by Linda Pastan

Part Two: What do you think?
Out of the numerous poems that I've searched through I liked the poem "Solitude" by Ella Wheeler Wilcox because of the emotional connection. The easygoing feeling you get. The reality and truth to it. The sounds you hear while reading this poem are great and thought provoking. I love the simplicity of the poem and happy feeling this poems surrounds in you.

"As Children Know" by Jimmy Santiago Baca was the one poem I didn't like as much as others. The emotional connection wasn't there. I wasn't a bad poem but, I didn't speak to me in the way a poem should.

"Ways of Talking" by Ha Jin is the one poem that I'd like to study further. It isn't the poem that  I'd choose to read but, It is the one out of all my choices that really calls for you to really think and for you to relate your own life to land, tongue, or even a letter.

"The Obligation To Be Happy" by Linda Pastan is the one I personally connected with. I touched me in a way no other poem had. What is happiness? Why do you have to be? Is it all its cracked up to be? To me happiness is another emotion like sadness, jealousy, or anger but, for some reason it tops them all. I think another reason this poem connects with me is because I'm have similar thought with the author. While reading Linda Pastan's other poems I've really understood her depiction of life and daily concepts.

Part Three: Scoring Criteria
The two criteria that I feel will be easiest for me are physical presence and voice articulation. Physical Presence requires confidence in your work, showing that through how relaxed and positive you are. In my poem, it calls for a lot of clarity through reading it aloud. This means that I need to emphasize words to really pin-point the emotion I'm trying to create.

Level of Difficulty and Evidence of Understanding are the main two criteria I'm might have problems with. The poem I chose isn't a hard or complicated, quite short in fact. It has no hard words or an abstract theme. Evidence of Understanding is going to be my toughest issue because the true meaning of my poem is so far above me, it reaches into different levels of life and thinking. I'm just hoping that by the time the contest rolls around I would have had a good handle on the concept.

Part Four: Videos
"Frederick Douglas" recited by Shawntay A. Henery was the most outstanding performance I saw. Her presence was phenomenal. The tone of voice emphasized the importance of the the idea she was betraying. The other one that I watched was "Writ on the Steps of Puerto Rican Harlem" recited by Gregory Corso. His intensity was matchable. He made this poem fun to listen to. The exaggeration in his voice emphasized and hit the mark showing us that he understood the meaning of this poem.

Part Five: Summary
So from all this study and memorizing, reading, debating, and searching for that poem that really defines me I've come to the idea that, that is what poetry is about study, fighting with yourself, and finding what tells what is known to you. I've always like poetry  but, this whole experience has given me a wider range of poems to actually look at and into deeper. I'm pretty confident about the competition because I feel confident in my poem. It may be lacking difficulty but, I think the concept of it will cross cancel. I've chosen the poem "The Obligation to be Happy" by Linda Pastan,. I plan on visiting the Poetry Out loud Website numerous times in the next few weeks to get more information and watch more people preform. Overall, I'm enjoying this class activity more than any other before.

Something Interesting

When we first started our unit on poetry I was excited because, oddly enough I enjoy poetry. But, when it was reviled to me that there was so much more than the "feeling" you get or "emotional meaning" that connects with you but, the literal interpretation; the Tone, Word, Imagery, Style, and Theme (sound familiar?) I got weak in the knees. So, when we read the "Knife" it was easy to apply the "TWIST method" because it wasn't a poem. But, as I read the "Lobsters", I dreaded not knowing why the author even chose lobsters or what the connotation of "mud red" really meant. Discussing it as a group enlighten my understanding for the poem, then again bringing more questions... Who or what are the lobsters symbolizing? Because, in literature nothing is ever random;)

My thoughts on the poem, "Lobsters" are without end. I could ramble on and on and on and on about what I think but, to ease the pain of the computers glow on your eyes I will finally get to the point. I think the message that the author was attempting (and succeeding) to convey that we can get wrapped up in everyday life, the routine, putting other before yourself, the things that need to be done, without meeting your own needs- your dreams! As I'm sure that many of you (and myself) know that the author was comparing the lobsters to humans, but what if he wasn't? A lot of us English gurus have dedicated our whole understanding of "Lobsters" for humans, so I repeat, is this poem really about humans wayward ways? Or could the author just have been walking through a super market, truly called the Super Duper seeing lobsters and fantasizing about eating them? Could the description of colors really just be his imagination (or hunger) getting the best of him? I guess we'll never really know but, I'll leave you with a few question, in addition to the many other questions you have, to ponder about lobster.

Five Part Paragraph Critique

I thought that writing was something easy. The one thing that was simple and came naturally to me. But after weeks of writing drafts and drafts of my 5 part paragraph on theme, following the strict guidelines,and hearing my classmates reading out loud, I changed my outlook on writing. Not that I don't like it anymore or that its hard, but I think I just given writing a new respect.

A major recurrence I noticed between all the theme paragraphs is a lack in a transitional statement. This bothered me (and I'm sure it bothered you, too) because the whole paragraph felt "mashed" together. It took away from the paragraph and I didn't know when the author transitioned into another point. Also, the poor word choice. I really felt excited to get out my thesaurus and liven up my paragraph, excepting my classmates to do the same. But, sadly, it wasn't up to my expectations.

The one issue, I believe I could change when writing an essay is finding a distinctive writing style. While listening to other read their essays I heard their voices shining through. The way the paper flows, is crucial to comprehending the idea behind what the author is saying. I think that diction and tone play a huge role when writing. So, from my recently gained knowledge on those topics I feel I can grow and develop in my writing, so next time my essay will render with my personality.

A Lovely Bike Ride

So get out all my antagonism and affliction, bottled up within me, I go on the occasional bike ride. But, there were many precaution I had to take. To begin with, the horrendous helmet. Should I risk it? Hat hair could be a godawful decision, so put the helmet aside. Ensconce my rear end on the seat, pushed off the wet slick ground and took off. With the wind huffing and puffing in my face, it caused me to askance my eyes.
The slight rain drops were dancing in the atmosphere ever so lightly hitting my face. I still pedaled faster and faster soaring down the street, realizing that I'd have to eventually come back up the hellish and inhumane hill, but that didn't matter. I allowed my free spitired body pilot the way. Off to the trails!

I was flying down the aqueous pavement letting nature speak to me. Heal me in ways that cough syrup could not. Not only rejuvenating me physically but, mentally. I arrived, at the trail, seeking to find renewal in nature. I rode into the pathway entrance a strode into the civilized wilderness. The trees were so dark and tenebrous, touching the heavens. Birds caroling goodnight to one another. I kept riding searching for contest to my questions but today, I had not gotten any answers to my vexing inquiry but, I will someday. To end on a positive note, I had a lovely bike ride.

Extra Credit: Writing About Writing

While we were all writing that vigorous essay on theme, from To Kill a Mockingbird, I was stumbled across a poem I wrote in 8th grade.

It was started one cold and dreary Sunday night; Adora was sitting by the fireside, plowing through piles of papers hoping to find that draft on theme, from the book To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. As she sorted through the mountains of paper, a picture of a flaming heart caught her eye. She brought it close and found  a poem attached. The poem was brilliant, it brought back memories Adora will never forget.

In eighth grade, our block class was studying Edgar Allen Poe. The assignment was to create a piece of art, then write about it. I drew a heart on fire.I chose to express the picture in a poem. The poem "Twisted Love" was one of the most beautiful writing pieces I've ever proceduced in my writing career so far. The sense you got after reading it was mind blowing. The words were so meaningful and moving. I don't know how I wrote about love in such a powerful way, since I've never experience that kind of love before. This poem brought back so many thoughts. The issues I was going through in eighth grade, which now seem so small and petty. It showed me what passion I once had while writing this. I think now about why I'm not getting that feeling anymore when I write, why I'm not happy nor proud of what I do. What happened? This poem is helping me become that writer I was proud of, the writer where I care about what I’m writing about. Even though, I didn't have a good foundation for writing, I was still touched by what I wrote; I had an instinct that it was good. Writing has always been my way of expressing myself, the way I get out my feeling, and opinions, and somewhat sort out my thoughts, even when writing a book report. I think finding this poem, will truly bring back the wonderful writer I once was, possibly bring back the Adora, I once was.