Some will tell you that a poem is supposed to rhyme.  It should not exceed twenty or so lines.  It should flow from the lips like a kiss that was never meant to be.  That it must be punctuated properly.

What these people fail to understand is that not everyone thinks this way.  Still, there is a very large portion of the reading public who do.  What they fail to realize is that certain writers do not flip through a dictionary in the midst of their creativity.  Sometimes they feel the need to write till their fingers ache, creating far more than the usual twenty or so lines (case in point, read Roger Laferriere’s The King and I).  Often, poetry finds power within darkness, without the need to flow gently.  And as for punctuation, well, who the hell cares about punctuation when confronted with a very real emotion conveyed with sincerity.

Today’s poets face a grave challenge.  They are to change the face of the written word, breaking through stereotypes which would otherwise dictate how they may express themselves.  Textbooks and lessons cannot teach one to feel… nor can it help someone learn to appreciate trauma.

Poetry can.

Poetry does… on a daily basis.  It saves lives and refuses to lie still or to take another blow.

Poetry flights back.

It feeds off of anger and creates sensitivity.

Next entry: Five years

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