But Why Poetry?

But Why Poetry?

Because we don’t care if we
crash on its shore and sink
in its mud up to our knees.

Because maybe inducing a stanza
might keep one’s head above the surface
of an old lover whose memory
won’t leave us alone.

Maybe someone writes
at the behest of another scotch
beside the laptop that keeps
whispering ideas in his head,
and tells him to keep going
until morning.

Food is as forgotten about
as the time he or she exists
in a chair next to a clock
that seems like it’s lying
every time it’s noticed.

Writing’s a drug,
and we’re not considering
help for our addiction.
Let that kind of needle sink in
until my eyes are drowsy,
and I don’t know where I am.

Reviews

[SJ Mullins]

Very true, although I haven’t written much as of late. I am more like this about reading. It is what keeps me up all hours. Hard to put a good book down! Great to see you are still writing! Nicely penned my friend!

[Relic]

Thank you, SJ.

[Thomas W Case]

Superb. Powerful and poignant.

[Relic]

Thank you, Thomas.

[Betty Hermelee]

YES! It is hard to stop, even though you glance at the clock....it may be 3 AM, but your mind is not ready to hit the hay...so you keep writing...perhaps with a scotch next to you with numb fingers....I personally start writing at 1AM, when all is quiet...It's an addiction, but who cares?
Lovely
Warmly
B

[Relic]

Thanks very much for your comment, Betty.

[Betty Hermelee]

You are very welcome!
Warmly, B

[Chris Shaw]

Hooked on poetry. Yes, it’s addictive and you can lose yourself easily. It has always been a refuse for me. Satisfies my creative side. You convey the pull for poetry well here Tim.

Chris

[Relic]

Thanks for the comment, Chris. :)

[Neha agrawal]

It beautifully captures poetry as both refuge and vice, something you surrender to without asking for rescue.

[Relic]

Thanks so much for reading, Neha. :)

[John the Baptist]

Very interesting look at the writer's motive, R. For me, it's the satisfaction I get when I produce a unique rhyme.

[Relic]

Creating something out of nothing can be quite rewarding. Thank you, John.

[Ayesha Faiz]

I like this one a lot and yes, you're totally right. We writers... we don’t need any help or medicine to cure our addiction because poetry is the type of drug that helps us to stay away from harmful drugs. Your poem feels raw and real, like you’re letting the reader sit inside a writer’s head. It’s messy in a good way, showing how poetry can pull someone in so deeply that time, food, and even reality fade away. It’s passionate and totally relatable for anyone who’s ever been lost in creating.

[Relic]

Thanks so much for the comment, Ayesha.

[---]

It's nice to see the spark find the tinder here, Relic.

Besides the recent community outcry (I'll bite my tongue on that topic) I think it's the sound of banging flint that draws me back to this place. Occasionally, a fire ignites, and from what I've seen it has an almost uncanny tendency to spread.

Beyond the review system (and the million scummy ways I've seen readership generated) I think it's that occasional ignition that gives this website its soul - at least for me, anyways.

I'm tempted to get my own fire-starter out, having read your last two, but the summer tends to be a bit active for me and, admittedly, I'm somewhat spent.

Figure I'll wait for cold weather, see if I can't bang a little ember out then.

Best to you.

- Ook

[Relic]

I appreciate your comments, Ook. I read some of your posts but found no option to comment which is fine and understandable. You're a great writer, thanks for the comment.

[---]

Sure Relic, thanks. Any you've mentioned the comments being off a few times - seems like it's a point of importance.

Might give some indication as to why I've turned them off.