In Love with rupi kaur

I have never particularly enjoyed poetry. I’ve always felt guilty about that, because I had this sense that I SHOULD like poetry. I had just never connected with any poet or collection of poems at a deep level. Until recently.

Last month the book group I attend at the local feminist bookstore chose to read the collection of poems by rupi kaur entitled milk and honey. In all honesty, I wasn’t initially excited about the selection, given my general disinterest in poetry. But I picked up the book while on vacation, boosted by the passionate recommendation of the bookseller at the small, independent bookshop. I owe her a sincere note of gratitude, because she connected me with the first set of poems that I truly love. I read through the entire collection over the days of my vacation, several times sitting in a relaxing teashop, another time sitting on a log alongside a trail in the quiet forest, or sitting on the front porch of the AirBnB I was staying at. I keep returning to numerous poems in the collection, their words echoing in my mind and heart. They speak to me of the pain of heartbreak and lost love, and the challenge of learning to love and value myself fully. They testify to the difficulties and the beauty of being a woman in this world. They witness the beauty and the brokenness that mark our lives.

I loved her first collection of poems so much that, as the woman who sold it to me suggested I would, I bought her second collection entitled the sun and her flowers. I haven’t had as much concentrated time to read this collection as quickly, but am finding more poems that speak to my soul. 

I can’t do justice to the extent this poet has touched my heart with her work. I want to quote all of her poems that resonate in my mind, but will choose just a few and encourage you to buy these books. I hope they will speak to you as much as they have to me. (All poems cited from milk and honey.)

i like the way the stretch marks

on my thighs look human and

that we’re so soft yet

rough and jungle wild

when we need to be

i love that about us

how capable we are of feeling

how unafraid we are of breaking

and tend to our wounds with grace

just being a woman

calling myself

a woman

makes me utterly whole

and complete

you

are your own

soul mate

to be

soft

is

to be

powerful

most importantly love

like it’s the only thing you know how

at the end of the day all this

means nothing

this page

where you’re sitting

your degree

your job

the money

nothing even matters

except love and human connection

who you loved

and how deeply you loved them

how you touched the people around you

and how much you gave them