What is Poetry?

"Pry me out of this hole they call a life and reveal the real me
White-out the mistakes that life has given me and capture my perfections.
Scars left from living with the incurable, I wish would disappear,
Pain endured and restrictions applied, I began to see myself asking why?
Why me?"

Its crazy how the collaboration of words can have so many different meanings, to different people. This just shows the power of poetry. There is no right or wrong answer of one's interpretation of any poems meaning, as long as you are able to defend your thoughts. When I wrote this poem, it was meant to signify the mind set of someone dealing with low self-esteem. I placed myself in shoes that I once wore and soon grew out of. Line by line, each verse reflected upon a stage in life that I once encountered. I hide behind the face of poetry to express any feelings I may have or what I visualize when I look at my surroundings.

From online sources, the definition of poetry can be described as "the spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings;" by Wordsworth. Emily Dickinson said, "If I read a book and it makes my body so cold no fire ever can warm me, I know that is poetry;" and Dylan Thomas defined poetry this way: "Poetry is what makes me laugh or cry or yawn, what makes my toe nails twinkle, what makes me want to do this or that or nothing."
According to Robert Pinsky's book "The Sounds of Poetry," Pinsky states, "Because the skill, acquired like the ability to walk and run, we have finely developed powers that let us appreciate the sound of even an isolated single line of poetry---even if we have very little idea of the meaning---that someone might quote with appreciation, like,

The fire that stirs about her when she stirs
Or,
In a smart burnose Khadour looked on, amused
Or,
Absence my presence is, strangeness my grace
Or,
Back out of all this now too much for us
Or,
Let be finale of seem
Or,
Sorrow is my own yard "
The beauty is still revealed through the words

All of these are ways of describing what poetry may mean and with all I agree. In simpler terms, the definition of poetry to me can be described as the expression of feelings, thoughts, dreams, inspirations, etc., put into creative verses. Poetry has no barriers or limits, its an art that continues to give. What one person perceives for a meaning of a certain poem, another person may be able to relate to the same poem and create a totally different meaning that still makes sense. Just as Emily Dickinson stated, the feeling that she gets after reading a book allows her to know its poetry. Poetry is not to only be read, but to be heard and felt. Even if certain words arent understood, the beauty of it is still exposed.

Music derives from poetry. In poetry we have iambic pantameter, in music we have a beat. Poetry and music both have verses and both express the same meaning in a different form. One you can dance to, and the other that can be read or hear and provide either the same or a different emotion. Poetry is soothing, beautiful, meaningful, and so much more. But to me, poetry is my expression of life.