apropos of the world tonight it's time for me to post this again

[elisem]

A poet with paper and pen is in business. 
Don't let them know what you're doing.
Remember to keep your tools sharp.  
Brush up on your covert ops skills. 

Don't let them know what you're doing.
Poets know how to get past the borders. 
Brush up on your covert ops skills. 
It helps to look abstract, or pretty, or simple.

Poets know how to get past the borders. 
A poem can be a way of smuggling truth.
It helps to look abstract, or pretty, or simple; 
Some poems are strong enough to bear that.

A poem can be a way of smuggling truth.
Bones speak louder than official histories. 
Some poems are strong enough to bear that.
A poet can owe a debt of story to a bone.

Bones speak louder than official histories.
Some things demand that we tell how they happened. 
A poet can owe a debt of story to a bone 
Or a stick, a charred stub, white stones, blood. 

Some things demand that we tell how they happened.
A poet with paper and pen is in business, 
Or a stick, a charred stub, white stones, blood. 
Remember to keep your tools sharp. 

-- Elise Matthesen 

Comments

[ashelterofpages]

I love this with every single part of me.

[edschweppe]

Brava!

[sartorias]

So lovely. Thank you for posting.

[queenbookwench]

Elise, this is amazing and powerful!

[pameladean]

Oh yes, this is splendid. It's been a long time since I saw it last.

P.

Yes ...

[ysabetwordsmith]

I've been an activist since I could talk. I've tried a wide variety of methods. The one with the highest throughput of people saying "I did the thing" is plain old storytelling. And my most popular format is poetry.

[vass]

This is so good. And very relevant, yes.

[kellan_the_tabby]

daaaaaaaaaamn.

[lokifan]

Fantastic. Right now it makes me think of Roz Kaveney's poetry for Brianna Ghey but there are so many.