It’s been quite a while since
Any wide-eyed wannabee
Poet’s asked me what
It’s like being a poet and I must say
It’s no great surprise, seeing
I’ve been out of the public eye so
To speak here in my sanctum sanctorum,
The boondocks of the southern Peloponnese,
These past 50 years but if
Anybody should go to all the trouble now
To show up on my doorstep and ask me
I’d surely tell them to think
Twice before committing themselves.
I committed myself years ago and they still won't let me out.
ReplyDeleteJoseph, I'm positive your impeccable qualifications together with your impressive track record have kept you where everybody who knows you wants you, so stay put and keep them cards and letters coming.
DeleteYes, those of us who committed ourselves (with or without a second thought) recognize themselves in your poem, Mr. Zamabaras. And just as I put that period after your name a thing flashed across my laptop screen advertising a podcast entitled "Escape Your Limits." Writing poetry seems to me a way to do so, which inherently involves recognizing them (the limits, that is) and understanding that the possibility and impossibility of such an escape. Many poets, I imagine, having escaped for, perhaps, only moments, spend the rest of their lives escaping repeatedly, while hopefully not repeating themselves.
ReplyDeleteJohn, your answer worthy of the skills of a poetic Houdini!
ReplyDelete