Jazz & Poetry

30/30 NaPoMo Challenge

April 13, 2009 at 3:12 pm 1 comment

In case you haven’t heard, it’s National Poetry Month. That means I pick up a few more Poetry Alive! shows and many of the writers I know are furiously hammering out a poem a day to meet the 30/30 challenge. I’m already behind. Is it possible to have word jammage of the brain? Between memorizing Eve-Olution, re-memorizing three Poetry Alive! shows, and writing/editing two articles each week while keeping up with hundreds of emails, facebook notices, and twitters I feel like the letters have started dancing out of place to simply trumpet sound without sense.

That’s when I turn to music. Granted if I get caught in song lyrics (I know I’ve driven 18 hours to Austin without repeating a verse or song) that still includes words. What I’m talking about is the sound without words. Whether its whistling with the birds or jamming with new friends, there’s something refreshing about tossing sounds through the air and catching harmony. I feel like it somehow clears my brain. That’s why when I reach the end of my day I don’t turn on the television to hear the corporate babble-on but instead seek out live music where real people are making the real sounds of change.

So, if I ever catch up with myself this month, my 30/30 Challenge may just have to include a few “tone poems” or songs without words to be able to communicate clearly what’s jammed in my brain.

Entry filed under: Poetry, reflections.