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bad poetry

amanda.simone's picture

Recently I've been free writing or writing poetry when I feel particularly stressed or emotional as a release and as a way to organize my feelings. In following with Morrell, "writing becomes a catharsis, a letting out of emotions that become painful or even dangerous if they remain internalized. I am convinced that much of great literature begins this way; even though it can ultimately be shared with others, it began as a strategy to help the authors to successfully cope with otherwise overwhelming emotion" (169). I've never really done this practice consistently before. (When I kept a consistent diary as a preteen, i wrote it with the hope that it would be discovered years later and published as an authentic account of the life of an 11 year old in the late 2000s so it wasn't truly personal/for me.) So when I started I kind of expected that my most intense feelings and ideas would translate into good, passionate, reflective poerty. I didnt think I would be moved to share it or make it public but I kinda thought that it would be good enough to share. When I go back and reread it though, I realize that the self care and healing aspect comes from the action of putting words down on a page or in the notes of my phone. The rough product I actually produce is not that great or beautiful or exciting but at leaste writing it feels really good.