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Ahoy! Cap’n Cache reporting for National Poetry Month (aka April). Bein’ a man o’ the high seas, I don’t dabble much in the world o’ poetry, but I figured for this special month I’d check it out.
National Poetry Month was established in 1996 by the Academy o’ American Poets. Arr! It be the largest poetry celebration in the world. National Poetry Month be a time for celebratin’ the legacy o’ American poetry as well as it’s history and importance in our culture. Savvy? Accordin’ to their website, the Academy o’ American Poets hopes the month will, “increase the visibility and availability of poetry in popular culture while acknowledging and celebrating poetry’s ability to sustain itself in the many places where it is practiced and appreciated.”
Fun Fact
Montpelier, Vermont be transformed into a poetry capital rather than a political one durin’ April. “Poem City” they call it. Poems be hung from windows all ‘cross the city in every store and shop ye can imagine. “For one month, little clusters of people and lone readers pause between Guitar Sam and Aubuchon Hardware, outside Rite Aid and Bear Pond Books, on their way to the State House and the DMV, to stare intently into a window at something other than merchandise,” writes Julia Shipley, author of the article “Poem City.” If ye’d like to read the whole article, and me thinks ye should, search for “Poem City” using Academic Search Premier (EBSCO) through Answer Cache.
If ye want more information about National Poetry Month, poetry in general, or maybe even swashbucklin’ poetry, the Answer Cache has plenty of resources for ye. Try using JSTOR (Arts & Sciences), Literature, Gale Virtual Reference Library, or Contemporary Literary Criticism.
If you want to see some of the great local poets in action, don’t miss ye ‘ole Battle of the Bards on April 29 at Harmony Library!
Pirate Poetry
Mateys, I leave ye with this pirate poem to start yer celebration of National Poetry Month.
The Ghost on The Wind
Like a ghost on the wind
He comes from the sea,
And trembles the foe
Like a storm on the lee.
With swashbuckling swagger
And a Jolly Roger laugh,
He flies the black flag
On a whalebone staff.
He has a black-patched eye
And a ring in his ear,
And on his wind-burned face,
A crusty-grizzled beard.
With a bone-cold glare
And a sneer on his lip,
He has a cannon by his side
And a cutlass in his grip.
With a thunderous blast
From his cannon’s might,
He shivers the strong
And cripples their fight.
He takes what he’s lost
And turns it to gold,
For He’s crafty and shrewd
And He’s fearless and bold.
He’s dashing and daring,
A fierce buccaneer,
For the sight of his plunder
Pales many with fear.
From East Carolina
Victories are told
Of the Spirit of the Pirate
And his purple and gold!
Alfred H. Lockamy 2005