*Photo by Azamat E on Unsplash
Today I wanted to share with you not just pieces of poetry, but a really cool space I’ve found for poets online!
I’ve been spending a lot of time on the new ThreadsApp (Meta’s version of Twitter/X), and been pleasantly surprised by the folks that I’ve met and connected with over there. I’ve been pleasantly surprised by the actual community I’ve found there. I look forward to opening Threads App because the people I’ve connected with are genuinely interested in seeing work from me and collaborating and checking in to see if I’m okay as a human being. I’ve found it to be a very uplifting social media space, less driven by likes and followers and more driven by creativity, pushing each other to be creative, sharing each other’s work, and supporting artistic pursuits. Of course, there are other kinds of accounts, and I occasionally post and engage with content consistent with the topics on my blog around women’s health, social justice, feminism, and faith.
My experience with trying to start a poetry and writing-based Twitter page in the past was lackluster- it was a lot of competing writer voices and a lack of engagement with my content- even when I engaged with others. It felt like I spent way too much time consuming and interacting than actually building relationships or networking or driving traffic to my content on other platforms. Instead of a cesspool of political discourse, mean-spirited accounts, and SoundCloud rappers, I think I’ve found ‘my people’, and that’s an exciting space to have online especially. What’s really neat is that even if we haven’t met in person, some of these people are actually local to me. The option of getting together with other like-minded (by that I mean creative/artsy) people seems more genuine than even on facebook groups in my experience.
Enter one of my favorite accounts on ThreadsApp: @diversespoetry.
This is one of the accounts I found early on, and I’m so glad I did! I saw a poetry account and checked out their IG and YouTube page. I was pretty intrigued when I saw all the poetry content on their YouTube, so I watched a video or two and joined a livestream where Geoff & Matthias reviewed the work of several poets on ThreadsApp. The platform @diversespoetry is curating is 2 parts of a whole: 1 part educational and informational content on how to grow as a poet/writer and how to use poetry/writing to earn an income, and 1 part an amplifier for underrepresented poets/writers and their work. Anyone can participate in the live streams worldwide, and local to central Ohio there are many opportunities to connect in person. While I’m personally still working on my public peopling, I’ve found the live streams to be engaging, encouraging, and challenging.
Recently, they started something new: Every Monday evening at 9pm EST (NY Time), Geoff from diVERSES hosts a live stream called Lofi Poet. While Lofi beats play in the background, a new writing prompt is shared with the viewers every 15 min. At the end of that time, all poets are encouraged to share their work in a shared document and Geoff reads the poems of anyone who wanted to share. At the end, there was also time to join in on the live stream and share your work personally if you wanted to read your own work on camera. I participated last night and it was such a fun and inspiring activity. I felt artistically rejuvenated and actually wanted to write for hours afterward. Whether you are a long-term writer or a brand-new poet, I’d highly suggest you check out their content! There is so much covered on this platform that could truly be an asset to you and your work.
I’m going to share some of the poems I wrote during this time (mind you, there’s no editing when I do things like this, it was all from mind to keyboard… so no judgment please 🤣), and if you want to connect with diVERSES and checkout the live streams I’ll have all those links at the very end of this post!
“Saudade”
I lift my feet to a rhythm
Long lost in melancholy dreams
Discovered anew
Interpersonal symphony
Lift, time, beat, rhythm
Knee, 1, 2, 3,
Foot, heel, toe
I sing to me
Memories long lost
Rush a new
Amidst fallen trees
And ugly stumps
Sprouting new life
These trees
They hold my memories
Birds chirp in the forest
Like a punk song
On the radio
While we drove
Down backroads
On summer days
With the windows down
Nothing could erase
The feeling of
Momentary weightlessness
When we hit a pothole too fast
Gasp, laugh, gasp
Breathing never felt
So easy
Yet now
Breathing never felt
So hard
As I dance through
Apple Orchards
Long abandoned
Rows no longer straight
Trees no longer fruitful
I sit and wait
On a stump I’m sure
We had picnics on
Broke bread on
Drank cold beers
And laughed around
I ponder
I wonder
And I wander
Each tree a long lost
Memory
– @labellajourneys
“Layers”
Smooth
Crease
Fold
Repeat
All these lines
That come to me
Fitted tight
Origami
Smooth
Crease
Fold
Repeat
Soft and fluffy
Matcha Green
Delectable
I taste mochi
Smooth
Crease
Fold
Repeat
A morbid take
In dark clothing
Mortician Bell
A soft ringing
Smooth
Crease
Fold
Repeat
Stand akimbo
Brow sweating
Downward dog
Deep breath
Calm goal setting
Smooth
Crease
Fold
Repeat
–@labellajourneys
– M A R B L E S –
I’ve searched and searched
But I can’t seem to find
The one thing I’m lacking
(It’s always time)
I question and question
Without hearing an answer
And it eats at my heart
Like some sort of cancer
And little me searched
Just like peter pan
For the lost boy that couldn’t
Return to ‘neverland’
His marbles were lost
His thimble insufficient
All that was left
Were hopes reminiscent
I reminisce on the days
Where relationships thrived
Where the focus was love
Not if we would survive
So I begged and I questioned
Beseeched the divine
But they told me those marbles
Were never really mine
La Bella Journeys: 