It seems as though Lansing no longer supports the arts and poetry is slowly becoming a fad for an older generation.
No longer does youth revel in time when poetry was the cornerstone of movements, when poets were revolutionaries, visionaries and willing to bear the scorn to be a conscious person.
Now the poetry scene is struggling to move on. Children no longer revel in the joy it is to release your feelings in an art form on a wide scale. I enjoy performing for people all over and its a good feeling when people applaud and recognize you for a talent you have that is not widespread. Poets are highly respected people in the art community because it takes a tremendous amount of courage to actually preform poetry in front of an audience. Its like putting your soul on display for people to look at. I enjoy seeing other people perform as well and not just in performance poetry.
Slam poetry is also one of my favorite genres. Slam poetry is a competition between poets to see which is more liked by an audience and they receive a monetary sum. Many slam poets also perform all over the place so they are not hard to find encourage your child to write and possibly perform for people. It is a great experience that more and more people have stopped doing it. There are venues all over the place that showcase poets and they need your support so go to the shows around town. I am sure you will enjoy it and possibly be jump started into writing your own poetry.
Also if you do meet any poets you enjoy ask them do they have published works so that you can sample all of their work. Enjoy poetry and don’t let it die out.
Gianni Risper is a student at Eastern High School in Lansing, MI.