…is not something everyone likes to read.
Introduction To Poetry
I ask them to take a poem
and hold it up to the light
like a color slide
or press an ear against its hive.
I say drop a mouse into a poem
and watch him probe his way out,
or walk inside the poem’s room
and feel the walls for a light switch.
I want them to waterski
across the surface of a poem
waving at the author’s name on the shore.
But all they want to do
is tie the poem to a chair with rope
and torture a confession out of it.
They begin beating it with a hose
to find out what it really means.
— Billy Collins
spotty_sri says:
That is a really beautiful poem.
December 7, 2006 — 5:26 am
Lakshmi says:
Pleased to share!
December 7, 2006 — 5:27 pm
spotty_sri says:
🙂
December 10, 2006 — 6:27 pm
rileen says:
Brilliant 🙂
December 7, 2006 — 2:34 pm
Lakshmi says:
Totally agree…
December 7, 2006 — 5:27 pm
bhuvi says:
How True! As a child I remember sitting through my poetry class wondering if the dead poet must be rolling off the clouds thinking Whoa! I never tghought my poem meant all of that! Stupid mortals!
Thanks SO much for sharing!!
December 9, 2006 — 6:10 pm
Lakshmi says:
🙂 I love comments like these! Let me think of another nice one to post.
December 11, 2006 — 12:16 am