AYAN GULED

Language is the most important tool humanity has. It allows us to express endless emotions and experiences with one another. Poetry is one of many art forms that have enabled us to do this.

I had the wonderful opportunity to attend the first night of Tonight It’s Poetry’s brand new community stage at the Woods Alehouse on Sept. 7.

First of all, if you haven’t been to the Woods I suggest you stop by — a clean, friendly and relaxing environment awaits you. They offer an impressive selection of draught beer proudly made by the Saskatoon-based breweries Paddock Wood and Prairie Sun. In addition to the fine pint selection, customers can enjoy an assortment of burgers, sandwiches and starters with their Sunday night poetry fix.

The show began with a quick introduction about the group Tonight It’s Poetry from board member Isaac Bond. I first met Bond this past summer at Shakespeare on the Saskatchewan where he performed some inspiring spoken word pieces. Bond described TiP as a weekly spoken word — or any other form of poetry — series that gives both local and national artists a stage to share their work.

The main feature for the opening night was the extremely talented Joel “Dash” Reimer. The audience was taken on a tear-jerking adventure as Reimer shared his experiences with love, life and his daily struggle with mental health issues.

Many talented poets took to the stage, which in turn inspired me to read my own work — and let me tell you, it was a nerve-racking thing to do. But the audience’s warm and welcoming smiles got me through it.

Now I know what you’re thinking — how can I possibly stand in front of a crowd of strangers and read my personal thoughts to them? It is definitely not an easy task, but it is an exhilarating thing to do.

Many of us have to present in our classes all the time and to have blank-faced students stare back at you is dreadful. Imagine being in an environment where people are eager to hear what you have to say, where judgment is left at the door and your success is all anyone wants. That’s what poetry night with TiP is all about.

Discrimination and hateful slander is put aside and all that is left is a loving place where anything magical can happen. I will most likely be making the weekly trip to the Woods for some tasty brews and enchanting readings in the future. I honestly cannot think of a better way to spend a Sunday evening.

Next week will feature Shanda Stefanson at the Haiku Death Match. If you’re like me and have no clue on how to write a haiku you should go a bit early, hang out with some new faces and learn a few fun tricks about the art of poetry writing.

“If you have something to say, you should come on down and say it. We exist for speaking and listening. It is an honour, privilege, specialty and gift that the Tonight It’s Poetry community want to extend to as many people as possible,” Bond said.

You can catch the Tonight It’s Poetry crew Sundays at 7:30 p.m. at the Woods Alehouse.