Apr 5, 2013

National Poetry Month: day 5/poem 5

Today's poem hails from my high school days. I wrote and read it at St. John's Writer's Conference. Author Robert Cormier (The Chocolate War) was in attendance. I spoke to him briefly prior to the reading as I just so happened to be seated at his table. He asked me what I was going to read and I told him, "a poem with a twist." He asked what the twist was and I explained how the last word of each line was also the first word of the following line and the last word of the entire poem was also the first word of the poem. He stared at me a long moment and said that he honestly didn't think it could work. After my reading I nervously returned to the table and  he turned to me conspiratorially saying he was wrong, it did work. Phew! Also, the poem was published in The Outer Fringe, Issue #6 Shrovetide, 1992 (Editor: Thomas Pagano).


Clockwork

Time moves On
On the face of the Clock
Clock like Work
Work for Love
Love's a Ritual
Ritual of Life
Life must Change
Change your Minds
Minds are Mysterious
Mysterious Clock
Clock of Time

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