The Crude Life, ESGU Partner to Honor National Poetry Month
Stephen Heins is a very respected poet and researcher and in my opinion, it’s important to show the people who use oil and gas on a daily basis you care about them and their interests.”
The Crude Life, ESGU Partner to Honor National Poetry Month
Campaign promotes creative writing in a world seeing a rise in artificial intelligence content and mental health issues.
Apr 4
2
For over a decade now, The Crude Life has supported and sponsored arts, entrepreneurs and children’s events. The reason for this “has always been” to promote creative thinking, the use of all five senses in education and creating a space free of judgement.
“Creative and critical thinking are areas in life that need immediate attention,” Jason Spiess said. “The rise in mental health issues and decline in arts are almost always related in history. Steve Jobs hired poets and trained them code because it’s difficult to teach someone the intuitive nature of the soul, whereas the mind can be trained math and sterile tasks.”
The first week has featured the work of Stephen Heins, energy research and advocate. Heins past accomplishments are numerous in the Poetry Culture, but his professional highlight was working as a literary and legal researcher during the AOL Time Warner Merger, the largest merger in history at the time.
“Poetry is a type of literature that conveys a thought, describes a scene or tells a story in a concentrated, lyrical arrangement of words,” Heins said. “Poems can be structured, with rhyming lines and meter, the rhythm and emphasis of a line based on syllabic beats. Poems can also be freeform, which follows no formal structure.”
Spiess sees how literature can easily be symbolic to professional and personal lives.
“Heins has a unique perspective of the industry,” Spiess said. “Anytime you have an old beatnik from Columbia University who sees the value in ethical energy, you have to give them a platform. Heins is a very respected poet and researcher and in my opinion, it’s important to show the people who use oil and gas on a daily basis you care about them and their interests.”
Spiess continued citing examples of Hein’s contribution to arts and energy.
“Actually Stephen was one of the one who saw the issues and opportunities with ESG,” Spiess said. “He became known as one of The Crude Life’s “ESG Doubting Thomas” since 2019. He’s been skeptical of ESG for years. Skeptical, not cynical, there’s difference.”
Heins has had well over 1,000 poems published and sits on many national literary judging panels.
National Poetry Month, a celebration of poetry which takes place each April, was introduced in 1996 and is organized by the Academy of American Poets as a way to increase awareness and appreciation of poetry in the United States.
Today we honor Poet Stephen Heins and one of his submitted pieces:
Like Any Boy
1
Above me seagulls show whites of wings
while gliding in upward draught.
Then, their stiff wings move
circles in air reaching
like butterfly stroke of swimmer.
Their patches of gray match
color of cloudy sky's broader wings.
Their lofty views shrinks me back
to properly human and child-like.
2
Watching seagulls smile that silly
smile of theirs,
I think,
if I watch closely,
if I practice in starched shirts,
moving my arms like wings...
their lofty view is possible.
3
One seagull high overhead
circles the shore.
He tilts upright
a kite rising in gray
expanded air.
While here below
on the Chicago lakefront,
I stand half way up
huge concrete blocks
chest out,
arms spread into wind,
like any boy
practicing to fly.
The Crude Life is featuring the work of Heins and other poets all month long on social media, online and their weekly radio newsmagazine show.
“Heins is a skilled wordsmith who is able to convey complex ideas in a clear and concise manner,” Spiess said. “He is a master of the English language, and his work is characterized by its clarity and precision.”
In addition to his poetry accolades, he is an accomplished editor, content researcher and has an attention to detail that ensures that his work is of the highest quality.