Was it the Raven?

Was it the Raven? Could it have been the dark raven of Poe That first got you tangled in webs long ago The rhythm and thought of the black nevermore A beak of a bird tapping into your core Or was it the night you were first mesmerized By a fire burning bright in a tiger’s wild eyes What was the dreaded and feared symmetry That first wrapped your mind in the word poetry Were you suddenly caught in a huge Hug O’ War Full of cuddles and kisses you didn’t know before Were you lured by an oyster and walrus that talk And ended up going on a long jabber walk Did you sail in a shoe to catch small herring fish Did you first hear a rhyme of a spoon and a dish Tell me when did you first know of Winnie the Pooh Was it he and his beetle that first captured you Or did you once wander in woods dark and deep On a New England evening in snowy white steep With a horse needing rest from the burdensome load That showed you the less traveled poetry road Perhaps you were charmed in a lyrical way By a master who called you a bright summers day Was a sonnet the song that first opened your mind To the wonders of verses with rhythm and rhyme Perhaps poems written with no rhyme at all Left your heart filled with pleasure and mind stilled in awe With the notion that jujubees lined in a row Could remind one of glories from years long ago Whatever it was that incited your taste For the beauty of poetry happened in haste For the first time you hear splendid thoughts so concieved You are caught in a web that you cannot unweave Written February 16th, 2002 © on Feb 16 2002 07:02 AM PST   0 • 10