Failure
I haven’t seen the best minds of my generation
Maybe because they were told they were good, important, listened to
Before they made any effort, before they did any work but
I think it’s cowardice
I think they’re afraid to communicate what they believe with courageous clarity
I want to read poems written with sledgehammers
Not antique quills
That resonate in beerhalls and bowling alleys
Not pinky raised tea rooms
Where pretentiousness is not a prerequisite
And understanding not a little club
Filled with sychophants
Are you with me?
Are you fucking with me?
6 thoughts on "Failure"
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I like, “I want to read poems written with sledgehammers, Not antique quills.” Yes…sometimes we all get in our own way!
YES!
My favorite line is:
I want to read poems written with sledgehammers
With you? Are you kidding me. My entire life is a sledgehammer.
See? That’s the problem, Don, with this here wordage.
I didn’t mean are you fucking with me I meant
are you fucking WITH me!
I wouldn’t be so misunderstood if I wrote understandable stuff
The ambiguity of the last line doesn’t diminish the poem–it’s a double whammy!
as in life
there’s room for sledgehammers & tea cups
but hell yes I’m with you