The book “Poesia Caminho Pra Deus” (Poetry, Path to God), by poet Marcelo Rocha , invites readers to find strength and healing in life’s uncertainties through spirituality and love. The work, a collection of 52 poems, addresses themes such as self-knowledge and hope, highlighting poetry as a path to internal transformation and peace. Marcelo, creator of the project “Poetry yes, violence no”, seeks to promote peace and connection with the inner world through words, offering readers lessons on the importance of kindness and simplicity in everyday life.
What motivated you to write Poesia Caminho Pra Deus and convey this message of resilience and acceptance of life’s uncertainties?
My poetry is written amidst the problems of everyday life. Each poem in the book was born out of the day-to-day tribulations, challenges, bills to pay, deadlines to meet. But it is poetry in tune with hope and that goes hand in hand with the possibilities of crossing the desert of uncertainty and being reached by life’s beautiful surprises.
How do you believe poetry can be a bridge to spirituality and self-knowledge, regardless of religious beliefs?
In all my time dedicated to poetry, I have learned that poems can be a message of spirituality and convey a language imbued with faith. I have learned that poetry transforms through affection, that poetry embraces human emotions and speaks directly to the best that exists within human beings. Because of these characteristics, I believe that poetry can forever be a bridge to spirituality and self-knowledge, regardless of religious beliefs.
Your poems talk a lot about finding hope in everyday actions. How does this personal philosophy influence your own life and daily practice?
My contact with this poetry that transforms through affection and enchantment has turned my life around. Alongside other professional activities, I dedicate a little of my time every day to poetry: to poetry outside of books, to poetry eye to eye, to poetry as a performance, to poetry as a tool for building spaces for coexistence. I am currently leading 8 literary projects. And these daily practices with poetry have a clear and strong influence on the way I deal with challenges in the various areas of my life.
In the book, you compare love to a tree that sustains and protects the ecosystem. How did this analogy come about and how is it reflected in your other works?
The book contains the verse “love is a tree that we plant for the birds to make their home.” This could mean many things, but it is an attempt to make it clear that poetry is a food that should be served to everyone, that poetry transforms through affection, and it is in affection that we need to make our home.
The “Poetry Yes, Violence No” initiative has transformed the lives of many young people. What was the experience of implementing this project like and what impact did it have on public schools?
The “Poetry yes, violence no” project has already benefited 14,000 young students. Since 2019, I have been visiting public schools in the Rio Doce Valley, in Minas Gerais, to use poetry to encourage young people to adopt non-violent paths, with the aim of encouraging these young people to say no to violent paths and yes to the paths of peace. The project was born and is carried out in the city of Governador Valadares, the city with the highest homicide rate in Minas Gerais. Thus, the project has become the biggest partner of public schools in building a culture of peace.
You mention that poetry is a way to heal the soul and overcome insensitivity. How do you choose the themes you will address in your poems?
A poem is not made up of words alone, but of experiences, of life. And lived experiences speak of many themes and subjects. All themes fit into poetry. Therefore, the poems I write are a reflection of everyday life. Poetry is a way that allows me to feel the joys and sorrows of everyday life and to dress each verse with an energy that warms the consequences of these experiences with affection.
When organizing the project “A poem in every tree,” what surprised you most about the public’s response and the reach of this cultural initiative?
The project “A Poem in Every Tree” invites people to read poems hanging from trees. This initiative began on the corner of my house in Governador Valadares and has already been carried out in 156 cities in the five regions of Brazil. And this replicability of the project by poets, educators, students, universities, and city halls is the biggest surprise in these 14 years of the project.
With 5 published books and important awards throughout your career, what are the next steps for you? What do you still want to achieve in literature?
Literature is an exercise in humility. No matter how many steps we climb, no matter how many boundaries we cross, literature always puts me back in my place, which is to continue serving poetry and taking poetry to as many people as possible.
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