What can I do when my heart has a verse
And I want it to be heard
But no melody, no tune comes forth
All that’s breathed is the spoken word
I’m a poet in the twenty-first century
Sometimes I feel like I don’t belong
Who takes time these days to read a poem
When it’s so much easier to key up a song
I wasn’t born in the time when great poets had voice
I was born when rock stars reigned
When keyboards, guitars and amps drowned out
The verse that the heart proclaimed
So I sit in the shadow of the songs
And give voice to the breaths in my mind
Wondering if someone will notice
Or will this poet be left behind
Some say a poem is an unfinished song
But what song is complete with no poem
Yet the world builds mansions for music and sound
And words have a hut for a home
So what if all my lyrics had music
What if all my poems could sing
Would they be worth some worldly attention
Would then every ear be listening
If I’m a poet meant to be planted here
Then let the words pour out from my brain
Can I honour the poets of centuries past
And help bring poetry to life again
Poet's Note: Written April 16, 2019. The week before the Edmonton Poetry Festival. I have never been to the Edmonton Poetry Festival, but if I get a chance to drop in on an event or two, maybe I will find that poetry is not a lost art. But I still find myself sitting in the shadows wondering where the words will take me.
