Five summers ago, I had the privilege of attending Brown University’s Summer@Brown program, having taken a creative writing workshop with an emphasis in poetry. The workshop challenged my thinking in unimaginable ways, and it opened up a creative side of me I didn’t think I had. Once I started college, my desire to write poetry diminished. Maybe I was caught up in the craziness of freshman year, but I know that wasn’t an excuse to bury a talent and passion, only to never let it flourish again.
New years call for new resolutions, and I’ve decided to make this resolution stick: I am going to start writing poetry again. Something I’ve learned over the years is that if you are good at something and take pleasure in doing it, do NOT let it fall by the wayside. Hone your craft and see where it can take you. You never know what you can accomplish down the line.
The following poem is probably the one I am most proud of, as well as the one that has inspired me to write again. The poem is titled “Poem for Graph Paper,” and it was written for an assignment at Brown. My professor instructed us all to create a “Poem for Graph Paper,” whereby each line of the poem would be the same amount of characters, as if written on a typewriter. When I think of graph paper, I think of math. So, I responded to the prompt by infusing mathematical elements into the poem with creative flair. Hope you guys like it!
Sami, this is fabulous! Keep it up. Definitely, keep writing.
Thank you so much, Uncle Russell!!