Fielder’s Choice, or, Defensive Indifference
for Stevie Smith
I do not write poems that rhyme.
It’s not that I don’t have the time,
It’s that I lack the aptitude.
And furthermore, my attitude
Is that rhyming poems just aren’t as deep.
They have a tendency to creep
Close to what we might call song,
And while that brings the crowds along,
It doesn’t pierce the constant gloom.
I prefer to sit here in my room
And scribble down my verses free
Of what has always seemed to me
Like poetry made for a kid –
Oh look at what I’ve gone and did.
/ / /
11 February 2026
Charlottesville VA
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