Poetry about Poetry ... original or previously published poetry, March 2001
A View
after reading Ted Hughes
Latent feelings in some deep recess
surface
suddenly laid out neatly
in words, phrases, lines
all rhythmically correct
reading again and again
wide-eyed breathless
relishing exactness of each word
knowing in the wilderness called the world
another soul sears with my own thoughts
I meet that soul through the dark night
across a thousand miles
a clandestine moment
so entire
that even he is unaware.
I forget the writing of novels, plays, short stories
and surge ahead with poetry,
for in the few still words
I can see at last
the kernel of ideas burst forth
padding and manoeuvring stripped
and in writing poetry
I can let the raw truth
stand proud.