ON FRIDAY, South Street Arts Centre played host once again to a poetry collective which sees guests from the world of verse take to the stage alongside Reading’s own bards.
The monthly Poet’s Cafe continued its run of diverse and accomplished poets and offered the chance to perform for budding poets and veteran verse-makers alike.
This time, Dr Khadija Rouf was invited to share a number of her poems, following publication in a number of collections and having been shortlisted for a Hypocrates Prize in 2021.
Her work, some of which is informed by her work as a clinical psychologist, has been included in anthologies such as These Are The Hands, which collects poems from NHS staff.
She began with a poem about her experiences caring for patients, followed by a poem inspired by her relationship with her daughter.
Her set also included Housework, which examined household chores, and 13 Ways of Looking at A Washing Machine.
It concluded with Skirt, a humorous poem which detailed the day-to-day life of a married couple through the lens of an argument about the ironing.
Speaking after the event, Ms Rouf said: “I’ve been writing since I was a kid and have just carried on; I find it very therapeutic, so I feel very passionate about it.”
She is relatively new to performance, however: “There was a Zoom group which had been set up on Wednesdays during the pandemic by Carl Tomlinson, Julia Iball, and Sam Day, where people could meet for a half-hour set.
“People would give talks or readings or even play music with their sets, and I was asked if I’d like to read, which was my first dip-in.
“This is only about my third or fourth gig.”
As to how much her career contributes to her creative output, she said: “I don’t tend to write about it very often; I write more about life outside of work.
“I try to write to switch off, really; it’s about observing the day-to-day, finding unmapped zones of experiences and things that might go unnoticed, be it humorous or sad, and saying the things that often go unsaid.”
Poet’s Cafe returns to South Street Arts Centre on the second Friday of each month, presented by Reading Stanza.
The next session takes place on Friday, June 9, with guest poet Zoe Brookes, hosted by John Froy.
Details and tickets are available via: whatsonreading.com
