Indeed, it is, a month set aside for the recognition, the celebration, of the written and spoken word. April is a time for poets to be recognized; a time for works of poetry to be read. It is also a time for poets or spoken word artists to be celebrated. Acknowledging National Poetry Month is a great time for the art of writing poetry to be front and center in the United States. My earliest experience of poetry were 1980s rap artists I heard growing up on the west side of Rockford, Illinois.