~Spoken Word~

Instructions for A Bad Day

By: Shane Koyczan

 

          For my spoken word analysis I chose Instructions for A Bad Day by the famous poet Shane Koyczan, the writer of To This Day. Like To This Day, I really enjoyed this poem.
          I think one of the things I like most about Shane Koyczan is his voice, which obviously is extremely important in spoken words (Duh! it's spoken!). His voice though soothing, really brings the point across. It's a voice that resonates inside of you, makes you think about everything that he is saying. It's really beautiful.

          Another thing I really like about this spoken word is the small sentence followed by a long sentence. For example, "Be confident. Know that now is only a moment, and if today is as bad as it gets, understand that by tomorrow, today will have ended." This structure is frequently used and I believe it is effective because the short sentence hits you hard, while the long sentence flows and captivates you. Another structure that I really enjoyed in this poem is the constant repetition of the word "be." For example, be calm, be diligent, be gracious. It almost inspires the listener as all the traits are those that we wish to obtain. I also enjoyed how Shane Koyczan used the same sentence to open his poem as he did to end it.

          My favourite line in this poem is the following; "Realize every dark cloud is a smoke screen meant to blind us from the truth, and the truth is whether we see them or not--the sun and the moon are still there and always there is light."

          I really enjoyed the message behind this poem; the thought that no matter how hard life seems, there is always hope. The thought that no matter how bad a day is, there will always be another tomorrow, and though today may have bought you sorrow, the next day will always be better, so let go of those bad days, and look forward to a better time. It's something everyone can relate to; every child, teenager, adult. We all have to face bad days. And when we do, we need to keep our heads held high and face them with a smile on our face because the future will always look better. This message is so important, especially in our society today, where stress and anger plagues the mind of young adults. It's important to let them know it will get better.

        This poem really was beautiful and inspiring. Next time I have bad day, this will be what I listen to in order to keep smiling.