Not a day of National Poetry Month was wasted , as Elizabeth Thomas – poet , teacher and performer – kicked it off by helping to connect people with their creative selves .

The April 1 event was sponsored by the Annex at WindhamARTS and Steven Dahlberg of Applied Imagination . The first Wednesday of each month features a different topic and presenter .

Thomas , who had just returned from teaching a two-week course in The United Arab Emirates , encouraged her audience of varying ages and backgrounds to find their creative voices . She was introduced by Dahlberg , who used a quote by Joseph Campbell to express what he hoped poetry would bring to the audience . “ We must be willing to get rid of the life we planned so as to have the life that is waiting for us , ” he said .

Thomas spoke about what makes a poet : “ I live life with a poetic awareness . I notice things . I always carry a journal with me , and once , I started writing on my arm because I didn’t have a journal with me , ” she said .

She began her “ Creative Networking ” activity by asking her audience to “ think about poetry or music or visual art and where we find the creativity for that art . Where does it hide in action , sound , object and nature ? ” Each person then wrote where they thought poetry was hiding and passed the paper on to the next . Each participant eventually had a sheet of paper with several lines written by others . She then asked each to read the image they felt most moving .

“ It is apparent that people approached doing this with honest effort , ” said David Boldak , a participating musician and visual artist . The selections read were filled with imagery one would expect of professional poets .

Dahlberg is connected with the University of Connecticut as an educator and is instrumental in creative networking , and his goals are to help people interested in creativity to come together and share and inspire each other in the various arts . The “ First Wednesday” events are designed to offer an inspirational and informative way for people to connect with each other .

The series , which began a few months ago , is gathering steam , and more people have been attending . “ I have been coming to the sessions regularly and find them informative and interesting , ” Emily Marker said .

Dahlberg hopes to grow the number of participants and bring them into the artistic resource of WindhamARTS .

Many programs – ranging from Any Kalisher’s show , which is on exhibit until April 23 in the gallery , to an evening of smooth jazz upstairs in the annex on April 10 – are planned in April at 866 Main St . For more information , send email to Gallery@WindhamArts . org , or call 450-1794 .