A New Definition Of What Is Poetry Poem by RIC BASTASA

now i think i know
what poetry is

it is
everyday

it is not
a form
but a thought

it is beyond thoughts
even

it is a stream
of emotions

and there is a boat
that sails beneath them

there is no rudder
neither sail

there are only hands
that feel
the cascading waters

feet that dangle on the
river
straining the coldness
of the eddies

there is the peace
of the sky
there is the freedom
of the drifting
of the clouds

it is foremost
a dedication and hence
it is as i am telling you
and everyday
affair

here
is the ordinariness of poetry
that most men
do not take seriously

that the world
cannot really believe
thinking that this is talent
and tact

no,
it is everyday
it is defecation
it is breathing
it is strolling
it is eating breakfast
and smoking at the park

it is sleeping and running
and holding hands
it is everyday
it is everything
it is not peculiar
or extraordinary

this is my
poetry.