The Trick

The trick, one poet said to another,
is to make your long lines seem short
and your short lines seem long —
then, let your words echo like freight cars.

That’s no trick, the other poet replied,
it’s just plain common sense.

The talk that followed
was drowned out
by the sound
of a passing train,

thank God.

(first publication)


Update:
In the Forum: Banjo-playing, detail-oriented plumbing interns wanted for ambitious study conducted by bearded, esoteric loons.