Poetry of Nature

“It is difficult to get the news from poems, yet men die miserably every day for lack of what is found there.” – William Carlos Williams

We have been indoors more than I wish this summer due to the extreme heat, but I believe that the outdoors is a state of mind, a love that can that can be cultivated internally in children and adults – especially when it is too hot or cold to be outdoors. The stories, books and poems that we read to children – or provide them to read – can help accomplish this.

I didin’t really discover the wonderful world of poetry until I was in college. Poems speak in a language of the heart. You don’t always have to understand the words literally – sometimes you just feel them (especially with a poet like e.e. cummings). More often, children are able to navigate this creative world of language more easily than adults.

There are so many beautiful poems about nature, for children and adults. I enjoy the moments when my girls sit still long enough to listen to me read them a poem aloud, which is how so many poems should be experienced. How I love to see their eyes light up when a poem speaks to them in some way, or how they so easily recall a poem that I love, such as Eagle Poem by Joy Harjo or e.e. cummings’ poem love is more thicker than forget. Children realize, much earlier than we give them credit for, that words can come to life and create feelings and meaning.

Children are also able to memorize poems at an early age. Both of my girls attended a preschool that taught students several poems throughout the year. I was amazed and inspired by how many poems a 4-year-old could memorize!

This quote from writer Yona Zeldis McDonough speaks beautifully to what memorizing and reciting a poem can do for children and adults:

“…By committing the lines to memory, the poem had become mine in some essential way that could not have happened with the mere reading of it. I spoke slowly and softly, concentrating on the sound of the words, the pause between stanzas. This, I realized, was not just reciting a poem. It was invoking a spell I could cast anytime I said those particular words in that particular sequence. After that, I began to commit poems to memory just for myself, for the person I would become by having those words inside me.”

There are so many ways to discover poetry about nature and childhood and life. Your family can find their own collection of poems to enjoy and learn. Here are a few places to start:

We have enjoyed the book Poetry Speaks to Children, poems for children and a CD of some of the poets reading their work. My favorite is Robert Frost reading his poem Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening. My mom, grandfather and great aunt always loved Robert Frost, so getting to hear Frost reading this family favorite is really special.

The United States recently named William Stanley Merwin, age 82, as the 17th American poet laureate, charged with the responsibility of overseeing an ongoing series of poetry readings and lectures at the Library of Congress and promoting poetry in general. A nature poet, Merwin says that he hopes to emphasize his lifelong concern with the environment. Merwin has published more than 30 books of poetry – pick one up at the library, used bookstore or local bookstore to share with your family.

I was pleased to discover today, thanks to a fellow writer on FaceBook, that singer/songwriter Natalie Merchant recently released a CD, Leave Your Sleep, which is a collection of children’s poems she has turned into songs. I can’t wait to check it out – and maybe even take my girls to see her perform live. Individual songs or the entire CD can be purchased on iTunes.

I hope you and your family are able to enjoy nature during this heat wave, even if it is simply through books, poetry and music.