Therapy Bits

When I sit down at my computer, there’s a feeling that anything could happen. Poetry gives me a freedom that no other form of writing allows. I don’t have to explain myself fully, I don’t have to write in straight lines, and I don’t even have to make sense to anyone but myself. Instead, I can weave words together the way I feel them—sometimes sharp and fast, sometimes slow and heavy, sometimes playful like a rhythm that dances across the page.

What I love most about poetry is how it lets me capture emotions that are too slippery for ordinary language. If I say, I am sad, it feels flat, like a shadow of the truth. But if I write about rain soaking into my bones, or a bird flying away before I could touch it, then the sadness lives on the page in a way that feels real. Poetry allows me to translate my inner world into something tangible.

I also love how poetry slows me down. In the rush of everyday life, I often move from one thought to the next without pause. But writing a poem forces me to notice small things—the sound of wind rattling a window, the warmth of a mug in my hand, the way a single memory can tug at me for years. Poetry teaches me to pay attention, to listen closely not only to words but to silence, and to discover meaning in details I might otherwise overlook.

Another reason I love writing poetry is that it feels like conversation without rules. I can talk to myself, to the past, to someone I miss, or even to an idea I don’t fully understand. I don’t need to tie up loose ends. The fragments, the questions, the pauses—these are just as important as the answers. Poetry gives me permission to be unfinished, to admit uncertainty, and yet still create something beautiful.

And then there’s the mystery of it. Sometimes I begin a poem with no idea where it will go. A single word or image opens a door, and I follow it down a path I couldn’t have predicted. In those moments, poetry feels less like something I make and more like something I discover. That surprise—that sense of uncovering a hidden part of myself—is one of the most rewarding feelings I know.

Ultimately, I love writing poetry because it connects me: to my own voice, to my emotions, and to others who might read my words and feel less alone. A poem can be only a handful of lines, but still carry the weight of a story, a memory, or a longing. It reminds me that words matter, that they can heal, reveal, and even transform.

Poetry, to me, is not just writing. It’s listening, exploring, and daring to put language to the things we often leave unsaid. It’s a way of creating meaning out of the mess of being human. That is what I love most about it.

https://ragtagcommunity.wordpress.com/2025/08/08/rdp-friday-poetry/