A new series about the poems we carry with us through life. Poems that speak to us so strongly that we return to them in times of confusion or fear… loneliness or joy… love or doubt. Some of us might scribble these words on Post Its and stick them next to the mirror or on the fridge door. Some of us send them to friends or read them at funerals. Some of us mutter them under our breath like a mantra in moments of stress. Some of us ink them permanently into our skin. How much do we know about these words that move us so deeply? What are the stories behind the poems that we carry and that carry us in turn?

The poet Vanessa Kisuule speaks to people about the poems - and bits of poems - that mean the most to them. She finds out why the poems matter, and then unfolds the backstory of the poem itself - who wrote it, what was the context it came out of and how does it work on us?

In this week's episode - poems that offer invitations and make demands.

There is a poem by Rainer Maria Rilke that has always meant a huge amount to the poet Richard Scott - with the stunning last line 'you must change your life'. We speak to Rachel Corbett, author of 'You Must Change Your Life: The Story of Rainer Maria Rilke and Auguste Rodin' about the encounter between poet and sculptor and the huge impact it had on Rilke.

And Dr Altaf Saadi tells us about a Lucille Clifton poem she has carried in her pocket for many years and that has given her strength as a woman of Iranian-Iraqi heritage who came to the US a month before 9/11. A poem that Tara Betts also carries with her - as a tattoo covering her left arm.

Produced in Bristol by Mair Bosworth for BBC Audio Show less