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One-Trick Poets



So many poets think they are stage magicians,
distracting you with their right hands
while doing something furtive with their left—
and thinking they are so damned clever
for knowing this one simple trick.
I like a poet with a wider repertoire.
I like a poet who can surprise.
I like a poet who doesn't make every poem
conform to the same shape.
Give me an amorphous blob in one poem
and a dodecahedron in the next.
Life can't be responded to with just one trick.
Show me wild magic, not sleight-of-hand:
don't entertain me, transform me.

All poems are written and copyrighted by Michael C. Rush.
None may be republished or repurposed without permission.