Blades is a poet and he knows it
Published Thursday October 8th, 2009
Don't be surprised if Joe Blades recites a poem to you this week as you pass him on the street.
The vice-president and membership chairman of the League of Canadian Poets is one of 31 poets across Canada participating in the sixth annual Random Acts of Poetry week.
The poets are dedicating this week to reading poems out loud to strangers on the street and giving away copies of poetry books.
The celebration of poetry and literacy is a project of the non-profit literacy organization Victoria READ. The event is funded by the Canada Council for the Arts.
This is the third year in a row that Blades has taken to the streets of Fredericton to promote poetry. This year he's reading selections from one of his five published poetry books, From the book that doesn't close.
Blades said most people react positively when he asks if he can read them a poem.
"People are generally fine with it," he said. "Sometimes I have to walk along with them if they're on their way somewhere in a hurry, but they usually don't mind."
In addition to spreading poetry interest on the street, Blades is visiting English as a second language and adult literacy classes this week to recite poems and give students the opportunity to write their own.
Blades said he views this week as a chance to share poems with people who might not normally have much poetry in their lives. Although he recites his poems at poetry readings in bookstores and cafés throughout the year, Blades said this is a unique opportunity to bring poetry to a different audience.
"Most people only get poetry through the occasional song lyric or well-written ad," Blades said.
"This really is a fun thing. It's always nice to break things up and do things a bit differently."
Blades will be reading out loud around the city until Sunday. Keep an ear open, because you might be the next recipient of a random act of poetry.
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