Poetry: Self-expression and Excellence

"Consideration."

The elevator ascends

whilst my mind descends towards

polluted lands, torn terrain,

diseased children, unfit men,

traumatized hearts, & bent brains.

Found no leisure in lobbies.

My most favorite hobby

is to shine a little light

on the crippling cruelties

cutting the beauties of life

into grotesque processed "foods."

Let's go vegan, let's not lose.

    The previous words you have just read constitute a poem of mine on veganism. I want to talk about the link I have noticed between poetry and veganism. To be a poet, one has to practice both writing and reading poetry. To be a vegan, one has to practice mindfulness regarding food ingredients to abstain from animal byproducts. There are rules with poetry and there are rules with veganism. Both things require critical thinking. Such thoughts include: Is this vegan-friendly? Can it be made vegan-friendly? Is this a form of poetry? What poetic form is this?

    To be a poet, one has to be completely fine with self-expression. If a poet becomes too concerned with how other people will interpret the poet's poems, that poet will stress too easily over something rather therapeutic. Poetry can release built-up emotions in a creative and helpful method. Poetry allows people to connect and encourages emotional bareness. I like to use hashtags on Tumblr and Instagram to discover and connect with other poets on a global scale. Interacting with other poets has brought me a stronger confidence and a peculiar joy. This stronger confidence in myself allows me to be proud of who I am and what I stand for. I love sharing my poems and getting the word out about veganism.

    The internet allows us to read endless amounts of poetry. The internet also contains endless information regarding a healthy vegan diet/lifestyle. We can go to other poets for their digital advice on writing good poetry; we can receive helpful tips from online vegans on maintaining a healthy vegan life. I've noticed a great deal of respect and kindness between online poets. There are also friendly communities of online vegans. For example, I was invited and accepted into a Facebook group of vegans called "Vegans United." There is much support amongst the members. They enjoy answering peoples questions and responding to their posts.

    We never stop learning and inspiration continues. I feel that both being vegan and practicing poetry have pushed me closer to compassion and respecting other people's passions. I encourage anyone reading my post to try something new! It could be a change in diet, a change in performing activities, or a change in self-expression. Do not be afraid to attempt something new or seemingly difficult. Try it today and you'll more than likely surprise yourself. Today's stick figure could be tomorrow's Mona Lisa.

    If you'd like to read more of my pieces, you can read them at

https://www.instagram.com/amidstflowers/