For the past few years, I’ve recorded a series of podcasts every April for National Poetry Month. It’s 2025, and I’m doing it again. Woohoo!
The original goal was to do a new poem every day: 30 poems over the course of the month. That is always too much work: finding the poems, doing some research, recording (on site outdoors!), editing, and posting. A daily podcast, even just a little ten minute job, could be a full-time job.1 In the past, I’ve had a full-time job and I don’t have the energy for two, and so I’d fade.2
My plan this year is to play it by ear. I suspect that I’ll start out strong and midway through the month have a couple of hiccups that slow things down. It’ll be an adventure for the both of us!
Shakespeare’s Sonnet #1
Here’s the text of the poem:
From fairest creatures we desire increase, That thereby beauty’s rose might never die, But as the riper should by time decrease, His tender heir might bear his memory: But thou, contracted to thine own bright eyes, Feed’st thy light’s flame with self-substantial fuel, Making a famine where abundance lies, Thyself thy foe, to thy sweet self too cruel. Thou that art now the world’s fresh ornament And only herald to the gaudy spring, Within thine own bud buriest thy content And, tender churl, makest waste in niggarding. Pity the world, or else this glutton be, To eat the world’s due, by the grave and thee.
Recorded on-site on a single track trail up Provo Canyon.
Some interesting links
Sir Patrick Stewart reading the sonnet in the early days of Covid: video
The Wikipedia page about controversies surrounding the word “niggardly” which, I remind you, is not etymologically related to the n-word.3
Over the upcoming days and weeks, we’ll go through a number of Shakespeare’s sonnets, and a bunch of other poetry as well. If you have favorite poems, or poems that you’ve always felt guilty because you didn’t “get” them, send ‘em my way! I’ll do a podcast about it and you’ll get a wedge into understanding what you previously considered ununderstandable.
The real goal of these is to help non-poetry people grow to be poetry-tolerant. You know who I mean: folks (maybe like you?) who say, “why do they have to make everything so difficult? Why can’t poetry just say what they mean?” Or maybe folks who when they see something in poetry, they just stop reading and move onto something else.
If that’s you, you’re missing out. Poetry is one of the great art forms. Every culture throughout history has poetry, and it’s important. Reading poetry will put hair on your chest.4 Or if nothing else, you could learn to enjoy it.
I am genuinely excited for this. Which is nutty, I know! But I really do love poetry, and I like talking about poetry, and people have enjoyed listening to me talk about poetry before.
Do you know anyone who already enjoys poetry (or who might enjoy poetry) that might like listening to a slightly gruff-voiced guy read and give a (very brief!) explication? If so, forward this email on to them. Ask ‘em to subscribe! Wait: have you subscribed? It’s free! What’s stopping you?
Until next time.
All is well,
Jeff
I’m certain that a professional with better tools and more experience could do what I do much, much more efficiently. So this should actually say “could be a full-time job for me.” Alas, I’m a one man show with all my one-man limitations.
Of course, I could, theoretically, start before April and have them in the can just waiting to publish. I know this, but somehow I always look up and discover that it’s March 29th and it’s too late. So it’s a just-in-time production thing.
Please do not cancel me over this. I’m just quoting Shakespeare, and, really truly it only sounds like the n-word.
Unless you don’t want hair on your chest, in which case it’ll have some other positive impact on your body. Remove the hair from your chest? Give you a glossy, healthy, shiny coat? Strengthen your teeth and gums? You get to pick: that’s the beauty of poetry!
Share this post