Day 12 of Poetry Month 2018

The muse is in her element today.

A Gift Given, Another Gift Received

Starting with a line from Introduction to Poetry by Billy Collins

I asked them to take a poem
one they had never read before
and write out, in long hand, to get the rhythm
and to evoke their muse. They stared back at me,
uncomfortable and unhappy in the way a child is,
when asked to say thank you for a gift they do not
like or want. They grumbled as they took out pencils
to the task unwelcome, but they did as I requested.

And then they grew amazed, as time went on, at what they found
upon the papers set before them; not a miracle, but presents
unexpected nonetheless. And after the set time was spent,
a class of mostly smiling faces spread before me. Many periods
of discussion will surely now ensue, and I would see a
newfound book of poets every day at noon for weeks to come.

© Catherine Woods 2018