Poetic Hocus Pocus
By: Hayden Alexander
It’s Spooky season and what better way is there to get into the spirit than with some angsty poetry? With two meetings already in the books, Poetry club hopes to cast its spell on Jenks High School!
The club was started by Eliz Fitshugh 12 after she discovered that unlike her old school, Union, Jenks did not have anything devoted to poetry. She talked to Randy Williams who taught her Power of Story class, and together they developed the club.
“We wanted to create a club where we could get together and really just read, share, and workshop some of our own poetry,” Williams explains. “Just to look at beautiful words and share what we discover.”
Being a new club means exploring new ideas and that is what Eliz is currently doing. As of right now, poetry club meets in the JHS library every other Monday. During these meetings they have workshops to help poets at all stages of expertise to improve their skills. Eliz wants to eventually start doing open mic as a regular part of the meetings.
“I want to do an open mic because that is one of the best things about Poetry club, just reading your stuff,” says Eliz.
Through poetry, Williams and Eliz hope to create a safe place where students can be themselves in order to generate an outlet for all of the emotions that build up during the often stressful high school experience. It will be a place where their voices and ideas can be heard.
“I think language is important, like trying to communicate, trying to have a voice for all of us, and really to be able to understand perspectives outside of our own,” Williams stated.
Poetry club’s adventure into the unknown has just started, and they would love for you to join them. See the bottom of the page for dates and be on the lookout for posters in your English classroom. There are no requirements except a readiness to learn. So Grab your brooms, ready your wands, and take flight into the world of poetry.
In honor of spooky season Eliz has an eerie tale for you…
your lines blur in my perception
as each day passes
without your infectious buoyancy to
wrap around my heart and tuck safe into
sometimes I can't recall your laugh and
those are eternal eras of insomnia
where occurs
internal howls to the dead ink night
and the moon blotts out of sight
a skeleton, hooked behind that darkened sphere,
Creaks
Poetry club meets every other Monday in the JHS Library