From a young age, I have been madly obsessed with poetry. I have always loved the poetry portions of literature classes, and Leaves of Grass by Walt Whitman has become my version of a beach read. While I’m not wild about poems written in Old English or obviously rhyming lines, I love a poem that cuts deep and provides tangible details. Call me a geek, but I have found a true passion in this field. That being said, I can vouch for its value in modern society. Both oral and written poetry transitioned into more uncommon practices throughout time, but this does not deduct from their importance. Personally, poetry changed my way of viewing the world around me and within me countless times. Specifically, the work of Rupi Kaur molded my mindset about femininity, love, and self-love. For those who don’t already know, Rupi Kaur is a phenomenal poet who published a collection titled Milk and Honey. This collection alone taught me a great deal about the process of human anguish, love, grief, and healing. I’ve read it so many times that I’ve bent the covers almost irreparably. I’ve underlined and highlighted many phases and lines I found to be absolutely exquisite. Kaur's incredible talent and work taught me so many important life lessons.
1. My emotions are a journey.
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One of the things I loved the most about Milk and Honey was the way the collection was set up. Basically, the collection was separated into four sections: the hurting, the loving, the breaking, and the healing. I really think this way of separating the text accurately depicted the progression of emotions we as humans face through emerging adulthood and in love. Not only did Kaur capture the whirlwind of feelings we have during love, she also captures the different feelings we face through trauma and with age. I can personally say that I have not gone through everything Kaur describes in this collection, but I can relate with a great majority of her poems. Her poems about atrocities unfamiliar to me allowed me to understand the feelings brought on by those situations. Overall, the collection allowed me to delve into many emotions, although I may not have been feeling all of those things personally at that time. The chronological process of emotions she created is so incredibly realistic, and it taught me to never feel crazy when I’m feeling things deeply. Emotions are most certainly a journey we all embark on.
2. Beauty is based solely on perspective.
From childhood, we are taught that beauty is long hair and even longer legs, thin waists with curvy hips, tan skin and hairless bodies. We grow up playing with Barbie dolls that convince us that conventional beauty is the only way to be attractive. These unreal expectations end up causing a lot of insecurities among young girls. I know I personally went through a lot of insecurities with my appearance, but Rupi Kaur taught me that beauty is based solely on perspective, and the most important perspective is my own. In her collection, Milk and Honey, Rupi Kaur emphasizes that things such as body hair and differentiating skin tones are 100 percent natural, and instead of hiding qualities we deem unfavorable, we need to embrace ourselves fully for who we are. That doesn’t mean you have to stop shaving your legs forever or never wear makeup. If those things make you feel pretty, that’s awesome, but if you want to avoid shaving and makeup, that’s awesome too! Rupi Kaur emphasizes that however you decide to keep your body is your decision, and that decision is never wrong. She constantly reiterates that no matter what, your body is a temple, and you should not allow any exterior forces to tear that temple down or try to change it. Any person who tries to do that to you is not worthy of your love. Throughout Milk and Honey, Rupi Kaur preaches these lessons and many more similar to these. In my opinion, these are the lessons young girls should be taught from a young age, and I think every woman needs to learn and embrace these lessons.
3. Poetry is more than rhyme and meter.
As I mentioned before, I’ve always loved poetry, but I definitely had much more traditional views of what a poem is until I read Rupi Kaur’s work. I associated a proper poem with rhyme scheme and meter, which are definitely important poetic devices, but not the only one out there. Kaur uses enjambment, metaphors, similes, and so much more to create the most relatable text I have ever read. I found myself really and truly feeling everything the speaker felt within these poems. I hate to sound like a literary critic, but the way she broke the lines and introduced such robust metaphors emphasized the intensity of every single feeling the speaker felt. Coming from a poetry geek, it was absolutely incredible. Coming from a female college student, it definitely is worth the read. Even if you aren’t interested in poetry, you’d enjoy Rupi Kaur’s Milk and Honey. It isn’t a set of stereotypical rhymed poems that are impossible to wrap your mind around. Kaur doesn’t use poetry to confuse readers, but rather to express her deepest feelings when she could find no other way. Contrary to popular belief, poetry is a phenomenal way to express feelings and deep, intense emotions. Because let’s face it, we don’t feel things in sentences or paragraphs or novels. We feel in fragments and ways that confuse us. We feel in ways that cannot be translated into prose and that is the purpose of poetry. Poetry is an outlet for those fragmented feelings and intense metaphors. It’s more than just rhyme and meter. It’s an art.
