100 Days: Day 1

Yes, I know technically it was yesterday, but as I worked all day, I didn't actually get round to reading my first poem till 20 to midnight. So, it had to be a short one. Don't worry, I'm not going to post them all up on here.

I have quite a selection available, having gone a bit mad in Borders* on Saturday. One of the books I bought was an anthology of poetry, with a poem for each day of the year. Looking through, I clearly have a cursory knowledge of a lot more poems than I'd realised, as many are, if not exactly familiar, at least ones with familiar phrases. Or maybe it's just that I collect quotations.

I started at the poem for 1 December. It was the one which begins 'I must go down to the sea again', already slightly familiar, so perhaps later, if I'm struggling for inspiration. I turned to the beginning of the book. For 2 January, there was a poem by Wendy Cope, who was recommended by Shona, so I was able to tick off both an unfamiliar poet, and a recommendation.

Bloody Men

Bloody men are like bloody buses -
You wait for about a year
And as soon as one approaches your stop
Two or three others appear.

You look at them flashing their indicators
Offering you a ride.
You're trying to read the destinations,
You haven't much time to decide.

If you make a mistake, there is no turning back.
Jump off, and you'll stand there and gaze
While the cars, the taxis and the lorries go by
And the minutes, the hours, the days.

by Wendy Cope

It seemed kind of apt.

I liked her style, and I think I'll read more, and you can't say fairer than that for a start.

*How gutted am I that Borders has gone into administration? I love a bookshop, and can spend hours in there. Buying books on line is ok when you know what you want, but the sheer joy of browsing and discovering books you didn't know about is something that should not be lost.

The Hundred Days

Thanks to Corinne, I was made aware of One Hundred Days To Make Me A Better Person. Well, I guess we could all do with a bit of that, so I wondered what I could sign up for.

I wanted to find something which would give me a challenge, with an element of self improvement, but also something which, if I'm honest, I have a chance of sticking to, even on those days where work takes over.

The other week I had to admit to myself that I've never read the Complete Works of Shakespeare, at least not all of the Sonnets, and the longer poems, (and this was in the face of the fact that I have two friends who have read the whole of the Bible!), so my first thought was that I would challenge myself to read the rest of the poems.

But to be frank, this was a bit too easy. As I'd started thinking about poetry, I then began to think about all the poets and poems I've never read. Romantic poets, modern poets, there are so many out there. And this had the right element of self improvement. I may decide that I like some poets and not others, but I will be expanding my knowledge.

So, my pledge is, from 1 December, for one hundred days, I will read a new poem every day. I am open to suggestions as to what, or who, I should read (otherwise you just know the 20th Century isn't going to get much of a look in, apart from when I decide to read a few poems about cats), just please don't anyone suggest that I read the whole of The Prelude in a day. A couple of pages long please, at most.

I'll let you know what I discover, who I like (and who I don't), and how I get on.