POEMS FOR LIFE

Poetry is one of those things that has always been on the periphery of my interests, I know I'm not alone when I say that a lot of poetry just kind of goes over my head and can be way too out there to resonate at all. I wanted to dip my toe in though so last year I bought this collection, Poems For Life, selected by Laura Barber, and have been dipping in and out since. One thing that's quite good for poetry newbies is that these poems are divided into sections such as 'Birth and Beginnings', 'Family Life', 'For Better, For Worse' and 'Mourning and Monuments' so it's easy to find something that might make you have the feels when you're in a certain type of mood. In some ways I do feel like this kind of defeats the point of a poem, or makes it all just feel too easy to be forced to feel stuff (does that make sense?) but it's good for someone like me as a way to start out reading poetry.

The book is beautiful as you can see, with lovely illustrations and a nice feel to it (all book lovers know that the way a book feels is very important) it has a good weight to it and the cover feels lovely. I thought I'd share a couple of my favourites from the collection and maybe inspire you to pick up a poem next time you fancy something to read (or maybe the next time you're tempted to check Instagram just one last time!).

The Confirmation - Edwin Muir

Yes, yours, my love, is the right human face.

I in my mind had waited for this long,

Seeing the false and searching for the true,

Then found you as a traveller finds a place

Of welcome suddenly amid the wrong

Valleys and rocks and twisting roads. But you,

What shall I call You? A fountain in a waste,

A well of water in a country dry,

Or anything that's honest and good, an eye

That makes the whole world bright. Your open heart,

Simply with giving, gives the primal deed,