Teacher to Student

And so you have a poem.

But it is not the poem you wish to write.

Yes, it is an "acceptable" poem.

But you --

you are not "acceptable."

Nor should your poem be.

No, your poem should shock and scandalize

with truth,

chortling loudly over shallow propriety,

raising hairs on complacent heads,

shattering illusions,

uprooting delusions,

and electrifying through connections

musically charged,

configured only

by your unique and unrepeatable

mind.

So close down the poem --

close it down until you're ready

to fling wide the doors of petty convention

and look words in the eye,

choosing only those that

sizzle like shooting stars

and burst like flares,

showering the world

with your own personal fire.