Why Poetry

Let the cat have all the cream

The dog snuggle up on any blanket of his choosing

Tell my sky to bring me whatever weather it thinks I need today

I felt like smoking ever cigarette that was ever rolled

Letting each lungful of killing comfort make me more

Than just a woman writing line after line after line

Of something that may never be seen

What makes a poet

Is it the reading aloud

The making of two words friends

The need to have a clear and firm grasp on nothing

But the way the alphabet can arrange itself into

Something that makes someone feel

I wanted to word my ignorance

My very profound and perfunctory lacking

I want to scream aloud at my poems

Tell them they are the undoing of a disaster

And yet they write me out of myself

Make me smaller and smaller

So that I can see the sumptuous and sentimental

Way a word can save the day

 

 

Reviews

[jacob erin-cilberto]

Making two words friends....Yes...that is poetry...
the last several lines are so good....When you talk about reading aloud, I think of William Forrester in Finding Forrester telling Jamal that "writers write so that readers can read" and how he didn't even read his own work aloud in private.
This poem works on so many levels.
j.

[A Poor Player]

Thanks so much Jacob I am immensely encouraged by your words. I love that the poem reminded you of such sage words.

[carl]

"the way the alphabet can arrange itself into
Something that makes someone feel"

this is the amazing gift of words - I'm somewhat of the belief that other creatures communicate with each other but the language of humans is such an incredible thing - "apples of gold in a silver bowl" I enjoyed your piece - glad I stopped by - carl

[Relic]

Favorite lines: line after line after line
Of something that may never be seen.

Poems are fury
are emotions laid bare for all to see
are the arms of a cutter

I like your intensity, your clarity
Keep writing
keep sharing
keep befriending two words, then more. :)

[Vol]

Well, hello, there, Poor Player!
You make me think of the tales I've heard of past poets who actually made a living from fans awaiting a new collection. A time when anyone literate enough to read might enjoy the rich economy of a good poem. All the way up through the 1940s there were sometimes patrons who might support artists and writers, give them a cottage or apartment so they could concentrate on the important work they did... But that world is dead, drowned in the massive overload of social media where there is too much trash to sort through in a hopeless desire for something of beauty or importance. I have a professor friend who told me almost twenty years ago "Vol, you know we are the last literary generation." He is right, where are today's Frosts, Sandbergs, Hemingways, Faulkners, Picassos, O'Keffes? I am in America, the land of anti-intellectual Philistines. But words are my lovers and toys, so I write anyway, as do you, obviously. Excellent poem, PP.
Vol

[JD Major]

Haha ...
If Poets didn't exist, we'd have to invent them!
Who else can we rely upon to to weave from Life's sloppy Confusion,
melodic words, strung rhythmically together to sing of said confusion!
Thanks APP, I enjoyed 'Why Poetry'!
JD :)

[Neville]

I wanted to see where you are coming from .. and I must say, I am not disappointed .. I like the way you play and paint with words .. furthermore, I am pretty sure all those who fall in love with poetry like we most surely have, have each asked the same questions and thought the very same things .. Neville

[A Poor Player]

I'm pleased I could speak to the universal and not just the personal. I'm a bit of a messy painter but it sure is fun! Thanks for the kind words :o)

[andrew mitchell]

A great read, liked the way you set the scene like the animals are props before you break out on stage in verse only to recoil quickly.

[Ballpark Frank]

Nice! It's funny how this starts with animals like the cat and dog who can't verbalize feelings. Then it ends talking about how humans struggle to express those feelings-although they are capable of trying.

[A Poor Player]

Love love love that you got this! Mensa puzzles indeed my friend.

[Ballpark Frank]

I'm annoyingly logical. It's cost me in life too since so many don't like to explain or defend their stance. I always want to understand.

[Davidgeo]

It's pretty raw but I think you have something to say.

You should keep writing. It wont be all good at first but I think you have something in there worth refining.

[A Poor Player]

Yes raw is indeed the name of the game when my poetry is involved. I concur some refinement could be in order. Thanks for taking the time to read and review.

[Davidgeo]

Keep doing it and it only gets better.

[Davidgeo]

... for the most part.