Here Be Dragons

Introduction to my book of poetry

In the not too distant past, the world remained largely unexplored. The map-makers of the time would fill in the gaps on the maps with images of sea serpents and various mythological creatures along with the words: "hic sunt dracones" ("Here be dragons”)�"ominous words to fill in the gaps of an ominous world. We have since filled in those gaps with other things�"islands, land masses, or whatever fills those spots on the globe, but we only know what is there because someone was brave enough to go there, to explore, to face the dragons and other monsters that may be lurking. Map-makers and sailors may have understood that the words “Here be dragons” were merely a convention of cartographers, but whether or not dragons existed in those places, the words reminded all who would dare to go there that they were entering into a place that was largely unexplored and potentially dangerous. So the phrase “Here be dragons” certainly applies to the poet, who searches out the unexplored and unsafe reaches of himself, writing them down on the map of his own making, for all who care to look to see.

The poet, above all else, is an explorer, never satisfied with what is known, but rather animated by the prospect of what is still yet to be discovered. The discoveries not external�"out there in the world; they are internal�"within the poet himself. Yet, but looking deep within, the poet discovers something about the world as well as about himself�"for the world we all experience is the world that is filtered through ourselves. This is neither merely a form of narcissism, nor solipsism, but the state of reality�"the whole vastness of the world is contained within our minds, and our minds turn out to be bigger on the inside than our outsides would lead us all to believe�"an infinite universe passes through our minds, and although we may digest that infinite realm a bite at a time, it passes through us if we are willing to open ourselves to it.

The poet, as an artist, neither hides from himself, nor does he hide himself. If anything distinguishes the artist from “normal” people, it seems to be the artist’s willingness to open himself for public inspection. We all, after all, wrestle with demons throughout our lives; yet, where most people seek to conceal both their demons and their struggle, the artist, and especially that particular flavor of artist known as the poet, exposes the demons and invites all to witness the struggle. Where most people strive to keep their contest against their demon private, the poet chooses to wrestle with his demons in the plain sight of all who care to witness it. This wresting against the inner demons of the self is the impetus that inspires so much self-exploration. 

The poet may consider most people to be cowardly�"more content with living their lives in blissful ignorance, rather than explore the vast, empty, and unknown places of the self. Even when they are forced to address these areas in those random moments where they are knocked out of their comfort zones, they invariably slink back to the comfortable confines of their ordinary, familiar, unexplored lives.

This is not to suggest that the poet is not every bit as cowardly as any other person. Yet, perhaps the fear for the poet is the fear of there being something more that will never be discovered, rather than a fear of discovering something more, which seems to plague many. “Is this all there is?” is a terrifying notion to the poet. So fear for the poet is fuel. It speeds him on his voyage. Fear becomes the wind that fills his sails and carries him to those uncharted places where he seeks to explore, knowing all the while he is rushing headlong toward the uncharted territory and unknown regions of the self, marked only with the ominous words: “Here be dragons.”

Self-awareness is both the curse and the blessing of the poet�"it is both treasure and treason. There is no fulfillment in what has been discovered. Fulfillment, or the promise thereof, lies only in the prospect of what may yet be discovered. The commonplace is eschewed for the uncommon. The poet does not merely slip through the cracks, but searches out the cracks and then intentionally plunges into them. The reason why the poet does this is simple: the poet simply must! So as the vast majority of people will close their eyes and mind to the possibility of a larger world beyond their own mental shores, the poet must test to see if the world is flat, and if the only way to know for sure is to fall off the edge of the world, so be it! If the poet returns, he will gladly display the vast array of strange and curious creatures and artifacts and previously undiscovered objects he has found along the way.

Yet, even though the poet has returned, he will not stay. He may talk of staying. He may even want to stay. But there is a hunger in his soul that pushes him out again, finding new and still uncharted territory. And so the best description of the poet may simply be: “He searches.”

The poet searches. The poet searches out those dragons�"those blank spots on the map of his own psyche, and by the simple act of exploration, erases the dragons, filling them in with truth and fact. It is the search alone that slays the dragon. A willingness to explore the self is the only weapon that is needed. 

So it seems that the conscious or unconscious goal of the poet is to seek out and slay his own self-mythology�"a mythology that would keep him imprisoned in the realm of banality, conformity, and whatever life-robbing monster that arises. So the irony is that even though the poet may often seen to be overly fanciful, bordering on a Romanticism that very often appears to lack any level of pragmatism, the poet, by slaying his self-mythology, chooses what is real over a fiction, whether that fiction be self-imposed, or imposed on him from others.

The poet finds that he is liberated from his exploration. Travel is said to broaden the mind; therefore, perhaps travel within the mind broadens the self. This is not to say that the poet may not from time to time be shipwrecked and marooned on some lonely island of pity and complacency, but he seeks rescue from those shores, and should he find it, the voyage of exploration and self-discovery resumes once more.

Here be dragons�"these are not merely the words on ancient maps, but are, in fact, an accurate description of the poet, as well as the poetry the poet produces. The pages that follow are the treasures and curious oddities gleaned from many such voyages of exploration conducted over the years. They are not for the faint of heart, for in the pages that follow, here be dragons...