Introduction Poetry has been around since humans first started using language to evoke feelings. In Africa, poetry has existed and still exists in how we talk, joke and use language in crafting songs and tell stories. Poetry exists every day for us to evoke feelings for personal and societal uplift. This is the focus of this book. In Random Thoughts on Poetry, Poet Eriata Oribhabor practically defines poetry as the uncommon use of language buoyed by poetic devices with the target of re-orienting perspectives for individual and societal enlightenment and pleasure. Thus, poetry can be used as "creative pills" for curing individual and societal malaise. Drawing from the personal experiences of the author as a growing writer, this book demonstrates the essence of poetry as well as illustrates the process of writing good poetry. It shows the beginner poet-writer the importance of brevity and the use of other poetic devices that give poetry its intense flavour and delivery of messages. Towards deepening one's mastery of the ingenious craft of poetry, Eriata recommends that a poet must intimately experience poetry every day by waking up with poetry, eating and drinking poetry, whilst walking around refreshed.
In this book, Poet Eriata uses his poems to show that poetry writing is a journey that everyone could ply because there is a poet in everyone. He cautions that in writing poems, it is not the number of stanzas or rhymes written that make good poetry; good poetry stems from a practiced delicate balance between form and content. He therefore recommends that content and poetic delivery should sync.
On poetry, the Poet author demonstrates that poems can draw their themes from everyday mundane encounters to surrealistic subjects. What is important is that the poet-writer paints and captures the moments' beauties and uglies, events and characters in sundry and 'stunning lines' that make for great reading and performance to the delight of audiences/fans. Whatever the theme or subject of a poem, the Poet author assures that every good poem can be "likened to a well-prepared meal that everyone wants to taste every now and again."
David Oshorenoya Esizimetor Benin City, Nigeria - September 2018
