Write a poem, make a caffeine freak’s day at the Cotuit Library
Got a knack for Haiku? April will be the 20th anniversary of National Poetry Month, and you can celebrate during the entire month of March at the Cotuit Library with “Coffee Cup Poetry.” Come share your stanzas on a cardboard coffee cup insulator, and at the beginning of April, all of the coffee cup poetry will be delivered to the Cotuit Fresh Market. During the month of April, when someone orders a coffee there, it will come enveloped with a poem – possibly yours. You might just make someone’s day!
The idea was conceived by Antonia Stephens, Cotuit Library’s assistant director.
“It’s a way to bring awareness to people,” she said. “I’d read about this being done on actual coffee cups, but thought it’d be better on just the sleeves. They’re more portable than a cup, and people can keep them if they want to.”
National Poetry Month is now the “largest literary celebration in the world,” according to the Academy of American Poets, who started it in 1996. Their vision was to:
— Highlight the legacy and ongoing achievement of American poets
— Encourage the reading of poems
— Assist teachers in bringing poetry into their classrooms
— Increase the attention paid to poetry by local and national media
— Encourage increased publication and distribution of poetry books
— Encourage support for poets and poetry
Even if you’re not a poet, and you know it, this is an opportunity to try something new. Bring the kids! There are markers and stickers they can use to decorate their poems with, and you can find inspiration from the many books of poetry, which program coordinator Frances Bausman and Antonia Stephens have carefully laid out for the project.
Can’t think of anything to write? Feel free to copy from the likes of William Blake, Robert Frost, or even Shel Silverstien, from his ever-popular childrens’ classic “Where The Sidewalk Ends.” And of course, there are books of Haiku. Just be sure to attribute poem to author, especially if that author is you. It doesn’t have to be fancy, it can simply be a one-liner; something you feel might inspire someone.
“I think people will like the idea. It’s uplifting to read and it’s nice to take a little more interest in the things that we do every day,” says Megan Burdick, a manager at Cotuit Fresh Market.
Come and scribe your poetry at the Cotuit Library Mondays and Wednesday 1:30 to 8 p.m.; Tuesdays, Thursday, and Fridays 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.; and Saturdays 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Read more about National Poetry Month and the Academy of American Poets at poets.org.
– By Marina Davalos
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