🕊🖋Poetry is the rhythmical creation of beauty in words. - Edgar Allan Poe
April is National Poetry Month, and there is no better way to celebrate the beauty of poetry than with a feature on our own Zebra Poet, Ainsley Nidiffer. Ainsley is a Claremore High School Senior who competed in the Scissortail Writing Contest put on by East Central University in Ada, Oklahoma. Her poem "Al Balad" is the third-place winner, selected from over 600 entries across the state of Oklahoma.
We met with Ainsley to discuss the meaning of her poem and what this opportunity meant for her. She shared with us a personal reading and the story of her work told through images from her exchange year in Jordan. "Al Balad" is the Arabic word for "The City," where Ainsley Nidiffer spent her Junior year of high school studying abroad in Amman, Jordan. In her poem, she discusses the feeling and realization her time in Jordan was ending after completing an iftar, a meal-breaking fast, during Ramadan with her teacher and classmates. She was overwhelmed by the scents, memories, and the inevitable goodbyes that were inching closer and closer.
This was Ainsley's first time writing poetry; it was an assignment for her creative writing class where students received extra credit for entering any pieces into the contest. She shared, "It was really nice to win an award for one of my first poems and to have the opportunity to try something new." English has always been an enjoyed subject by Ainsley, and poetry will continue to be a hobby she enjoys. The assignment for this particular poem was to write a piece about a meaningful memory or moment in time. Ainsley chose this specific memory because "it was a simple moment where I was walking home from school with my friends after a very long school day … and in that moment I realized it was the end of April and my time here is almost over and I need to focus and enjoy it while I'm still here."
When asked who her favorite poet was, Ainsley shared that while she doesn't necessarily have a favorite famous poet, her personal favorite is her father. "My dad really likes writing poetry, so I have a book of poems that he has written" This natural gift for poetry seems to be in her genetics.
Ainsley will attend Oklahoma State University and pursue a degree in International Business in the fall. She wishes to continue her love of travel in her future career while keeping her talent for poetry as an expressive hobby. Good luck to Ainsley in all her future endeavors!
#CPSZEBRAPRIDE #NationalPoetryMonth #ScissortailWritingContest #ClaremoreHighSchool