“I was surprised how helpful it is to just have someone listen and ask gentle but meaningful questions.”

“The poetry experience was very therapeutic and it made me realize how much I had been holding onto this entire year.”

“I thought it was very valuable to have a space that gave me the chance to think and talk about something that really mattered to me.

I ended up talking about something that has been on my mind for months. Something I haven’t been able to verbalize, or haven’t allowed myself to give words to before.”

“The experience with the poet could not have been more powerful. We met when the doctors had recommended that my mother move to hospice for her final days of her life. The poet asked if I’d like a poem and posed a number of questions that got me talking.

The poet had perfect pitch — and her poem, well, it brought tears to my eyes and to my older brother’s.”

“It was a nice reminder that people care about others, even if they don’t know them — something that I sometimes struggle to find at school and even with friends at home I have known for a while.”

“Lots of things just sort of blurted out. It was raw and emotional and quite a bit messy (thank you for the tissues). ”

“You had me crying even before I read your poem! Just beautiful. I had a smile on my face all day and posted to Facebook and the love kept coming all day.”

“I found it to be an unexpected bright spot in my day.

Poetry captures a moment, and if you are in a medical setting and worry tempts you to project into the future, staying in the moment is helpful.”

“I’m 50, and that was the first time I’ve ever felt heard.”