random
adjective
Made, done, or happening without method or conscious decision
Random Acts of Poetry Day is one of those days when we ask you to make a conscious decision to do something totally random. And that flies in the face of the word’s own definition, doesn’t it? How can a person do something random when they do it on purpose, even make a plan for it?
It’s simple, really. Just employ that handy little tool we call poetic license. While it might take a little conscious action on your part (choosing a poem to recite at the office, or to hand to the teacher at your child’s day care center, or to leave behind with the magazines in the medical clinic waiting room, for instance), the act will appear quite random to the unsuspecting recipients of your poetic surprise. The conscious act of committing a poem to memory leaves it ready to be recalled (and deployed) at any number of random opportunities.
Many of us can tell you of poetry’s healing or restorative, if not saving, qualities. William Carlos Williams will tell you the danger of poetry’s absence:
It is difficult
to get the news from poems
yet men die miserably every day
for lack
of what is found there.
Today, make a small conscious decision to randomly inject poetry into the world around you, wherever that happens to be. We have an abundance of poems you can choose from. Here’s a start:
10+ Luscious Love Poems (and the books they come from)
Top 10 Chicken Poems
Top 10 Fairy Tale Poems
Top 10 Funny Poems
10 of the Best Haiku (scroll down when you get there)
Top 10 Question Poems
We have beautiful, shareable graphics you can post on your social media channels. And we have a gorgeous and fun e-booklet full of ideas you can randomly dip into.
And check this out. Our friend over on Twitter, Red Brick Poetry has started the ball rolling, using our Coloring Page Poems and Take Your Poet to Work Day poets to share poetry in their community.
All set up and ready! @tspoetry pic.twitter.com/L9dIj4Kcrf
— Red Brick Poetry (@BrickPoetry) September 30, 2017
And, if you’re looking for even more inspiration, Robert Lee Brewer of Writer’s Digest has 8 Ways to Rock Random Acts of Poetry Day.
We’d love to see what you do, so post your random act on Twitter or Instagram using the hashtag #raopoetryday (follow us on Twitter at @tspoetry and Instagram at @tspoetry). Come back tomorrow and we’ll have a fun wrap-up featuring our favorite Random Acts of Poetry.
Photo by Jeff Kubina, Creative Commons, via Flickr.
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