Moon Approaching South Park

I like to think of myself as a philosopher-poet. I think, therefore I write. On my good days, I think that I am just a poet.

I am beginning to believe that poetry is nonsensical – that is that it cannot quite be defined in sensical or other more or less rational cognitive terms. Which means that if I get poetry into my writing, I may not quite know how it actually got there. I do aim to write poetry, however, because aiming seems to improve my chances of hitting something. And it is poetry that I aim for because I enjoy poetry when I read or hear poetry, even if my logic seems a little circular. But if I try to write a grocery list, for example, it just seems more prosaic than poetic. And still, seeking poetry is no guarantee of finding poetry. Or so I have found.

In this collection of poems and word sketches I have thought about meaning and about words and about the meaning of words. I have thought that maybe if I try to think more nonsensically, I might manage to find some other sort of sense in places where I wasn’t quite looking. Poetry might be sweet or savory if I could even just catch it out of the corner of my eye. Maybe it lingers or lurks in the empty spaces between the words.

Let’s face it, folks. Some days I’m just a would-be poet. And even my thinking doesn’t always amount to much. And yet, poetry exists. And me. Or I? It all makes me wonder, sometimes.

You can order ‘Moon Approaching South Park’ at Amazon.com. Some copies are available for $10 cash at Aimee’s coffee shop or directly from me if you live near by. I will willingly barter with you if you have something to offer that I want, but please don’t try to offer me live chickens or goats. It would turn out to be a bad deal for the animals. Does anyone want to do windows for a book, perhaps? I’m just asking.

Some of the poems and word sketches have been published before, but most appear for the first time in this collection. I thank you for your attention to my work. I do think that there is some poetry in my words. And some nonsense. If you think that you can tell the difference, please let me know by carrier pigeon or with a note in a bottle. Email or picture postcards might be a last resort.

Here is the last and possibly the shortest poem from ‘Moon Approaching South Park’:

Sensical, anon.

Poor old Bert,

he has let his mind go

free and easy as pie

and pumpernickel.

But, she exclaimed,

it has no rhyme

and reason is severely

lacking.

And then a further

argument of what

poetry should be

ensued.