Massacre Aide

fancy
trash posing
contumaciously
as poetry alongside
the real thing

an unconscionably
conceited synonym
for grievous bodily harm
one might be
tempted to think

yet perpetrators are praised – heaven forbid
for braving an august and austere
establishment
risking ridicule
by saying something poetically

it isn’t always the case
they succeed

but writing that formulates a concentrated
imaginative awareness of experience
in language chosen and arranged to create
a specific emotional response
through meaning, sound, and rhythm
usually makes the grade

– listen, you don’t need to know
the definition to write
good poetry
but you do
need ears to see
what I mean
© 1 August 2008, I. D. Carswell