It will quickly become apparent what this is not a poem is, and what it believes. I do not feel it necessary or beneficial to adhere to some manifesto or objective. Like poetry, this is not a poem is an organic creation, whose seed was planted today.
What it does believe in is the beauty, the freedom and joy of poetry. It believes that poetry is a living thing that can easily be suffocated through over-analysis. Similarly, neglect can kill a poem, and neglect is killing 21st Century poetry. To keep it alive one must read it, talk it, breathe it.
this is not a poem is not an academic study of poetry, on the contrary, it is a place where reading, writing and discussion are the sustenance for poetic longevity. It believes if poetry is to have any place in modern society, we need to keep probing it with questions and not let it shrivel.
These questions need to be asked. Questions like, ‘what is it doing here?’, ‘why do we need it?’, ‘where is it going?’, ‘what is its purpose now and what was its purpose in the past?’, ‘who reads it?’, ‘why do they read it?’, ‘ ‘do we want it?’, ‘can we do something more with it?’, ‘where does it belong?’
These are just a few ideas this is not a poem will explore as it grows, and reminds us why poetry is so unique.
