I Never Said I Was A Poet Just A Man Poem by RIC BASTASA

dear francis,

do not call yourself
'just a man',
do not deprive yourself
the laurels of
'a poet'

you are a man, and a man is more than a poet
the man with the urge to write is more than a man without an urge
even just to write
and be this 'poet'

the poets (those taking the top charts) either have died
(and take the fame posthumously) or they have rested
on laurel
leaves, or they have confined themselves on
some
writers' block

but you francis
behold the stars and the other suns

has written more
and toiled more, your fruits are many
and more have eaten them
tasted how sweet what wisdom you have

i crown you the true laurels
these living laurels of poetry
moving, alive, toiling, working, always thinking
about those that must come
next for generations to come

i crown you,
Francis Duggan
the true laurels of working, moving, living poetry
i give you the title,

the true, living poet.