Description
A reminder of common humanity, To Be Heard is a poetry collection rooted in vulnerability and self-compassion. Poet Courtney Bellush has encountered great loss and great triumph in her life, and each poem provides reflections on what it means to be seen, to be known, and to be loved. Cozy up with this book and open each page with heart.
In the words of Sheila Bellush, "Make beautiful creations with the knowledge you gain. They reflect the beautiful creation you are."
Description
A reminder of common humanity, To Be Heard is a poetry collection rooted in vulnerability and self-compassion. Poet Courtney Bellush has encountered great loss and great triumph in her life, and each poem provides reflections on what it means to be seen, to be known, and to be loved. Cozy up with this book and open each page with heart.
In the words of Sheila Bellush, "Make beautiful creations with the knowledge you gain. They reflect the beautiful creation you are."
Beyond the looking glass
Lies memories hidden inside of a musical box
Opened up, creaking metal against metal
Until a ballerina blossoms from within
She spins to a measure on repeat
A measure on repeat
The soundtrack of memories
Hummed underneath
Like a lullaby
Reminding us of a time
When we were free to simply be
And believe
As our hands reached into the windstream
Hands splayed across the dashboard
Banging, beat after beat
Singing for release
To meet and bequeath
The power of the moonlight
To be heard, seen, known, and loved is the foundation we all wish to stand upon. To belong and to be accepted just as we are. This is poetry that rings true of life itself.
From a critical viewpoint: 1.) Some of the poetry is too light. There is no depth of being able to read between the lines for more. No hidden meanings or secret treasures. 2.) There is a mixture of God, chakras, and universe. To mix Biblical schools of thought with Hinduism and a blanket of Spirituality is a sacrilegious practice and one that should be avoided. 3.) Speaking of the universe, some words and themes are repetitive and unoriginal. Such as the overuse of the word universe, stars, the ocean, and its depths.
Yet, despite the above, I kept reading. In part, because this volume is thin, its section headings intriguing, and almost all of the poems you begin to sense are a reflection of the author's life itself. If indeed these poems are of the author's life, I would have liked them to have been laid out in a bit more chronological order. I would have appreciated more backstories. For instance, more backstories and poetry about the friendship of the loved one lost through suicide. So that the feelings sought to be shared through the poetry itself could have had a bit more oomph and impact on the reader.
In my opinion, a few poems should have ended sooner. The first poetry section shared contains some unique vocabulary words that may prove challenging for the average reader and therefore hinder the flow of the poems themselves; the majority of the poems have a natural rhythm, but some skip a beat as they come to a close.
Despite what has been laid out above, there are moments of genius for all of the negative. Some sentences are sublime and breathtaking.
This book, like all books of poetry, is worth reading. Poetry is subjective, and my takeaways may not be yours at all. Perhaps all you will notice is good, perhaps all that will stay with you is the words of breathtaking beauty, and for that, this book is meant to be read by many and, most assuredly, not just by me.