National Poem in Your Pocket Day: A Fun Way to Participate in National Poetry Month

April is National Poetry Month in the U.S. and, that being the case, people country-wide are reading, debating, and sharing poetry in greater numbers as the month progresses. A very popular feature of National Poetry Month is Poem In Your Pocket Day. This year Poem In Your Pocket Day falls on April 30, 2009.

What is it? Basically, this is a day on which every person is encouraged to pick a poem and carry a copy of it in their pocket on that day to share with anyone they may meet. In New York City it is said that on this day people can be seen swapping poems on the streets, in restaurants, and even on the subway. It is a fun and enlightening way to to promote poetry and demonstrate its usefulness in today's society.

Poem In Your Pocket Day has been added to the National Poetry Month celebrations only a few years, but it is already so popular that it has inspired the publication of a book. The Poem In Your Pocket Anthology features 200 pages of poems designed to tear-and-share. It is offered by the Academy of American Poets through their website at www.poets.org for $14.95 U.S.

There will also be a special Poem In Your Pocket Day reading on April 30, 2009 at 7 p.m. at the Strand Bookstore on 828 Broadway at 12th Street. Since this bookstore is the gathering place for all of New York City's writing community, it is a suitable location for such a reading and admission is free.

You can organise your own Poem In A Pocket Day event. Here are some ideas:

Start a "poems for pockets" give-a-way in your school or workplace
Urge local businesses to offer discounts for those carrying poems
Post pocket-sized verses in public places
Handwrite some lines on the back of your business cards
Start a street team to pass out poems in your community
Distribute bookmarks with your favorite immortal lines
Add a poem to your email footer
Post a poem on your blog or social networking page
Project a poem on a wall, inside or out
Text a poem to friends

On April 30, 2009, will you be toteing a poem in your pocket?