I see your poems,
Written so eloquently,
And I wonder--
Poet can I be?

Like Yoda syntax I must twist,
And interspersing similes,
Metaphors,
This I must do, too.

My reader I must confuse,
I must leave interpretations open,
Meanings ambiguous,
Clues strewn recklessly

Like forgotten treasures dropped on a trail of crumbs.
Inexplicable line breaks and questionable punctuation,
All in hopes of an adequate label--
Poem.

I see your poems,
I read them,
Then I read my poems,
And I wonder
Poet can I be?

Is a poet a poet for writing words with figurality?
Making up words like Shakespeare and Geisel
(That's Dr. Suess to you)
Spewing rhetoric like a wretched fountain,
O blessed poet can I be?

Or is it simpler than this?
Is poetry nothing more than beauty,
But beauty which must be carefully crafted?
(Poe)

Or is it the spontaneous overflow of emotion?
The simplistic,
Expression of feeling, nothing more?
(Wordsworth)

Or does poetry simply say more and do more with less?
Is it simply succinct and strong-willed sentiments upon a page?
(Professor)

I do not claim to know what makes a poem a poem
Or a poet a poet.
I only sit here and wonder,
Poet can I be?