7.

There’s a trick to composing poems
in your head.
On the fly,
as you walk,
and in your bed.

Reasons, too, for abandoning half-formed themes
when what you want to express
lies beyond your reach
within words you know exist
and sentences that deny your mind’s caress.

The trick–maybe purpose–of poetry itself (dare I say it?)
is to create stanzas and lines with intentionality
that reflect those untouchable moments.

The trick to composing poetry in your head
is to find a phrase you like. To repeat with alacrity
that thought until all others turn on that one theme.

And everything else will follow.
You won’t use all you’ve wrought.
Some of it you’ll abandon
or forget almost
as soon as it’s thought.

Until you arrive somewhere
to write it down–
a place with the space, time, and tools–
so you don’t forget the lines you’ve created
on your forty-five-minute walk downtown.

Day 7 of 30 Poems in 30 Days
Hope you enjoy this one! There’s actually a rhyme scheme to this one. (what? absurd.)

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