My Poetic Mentors Poem by James Hart

My two poetic mentors
I met on growing up
The first at grammar school
The other at University
The one an American living in England
The other a Spaniard living in Castilla.
Both wrote poetry without a rhyme
Both wrote poetry to be read most slowly
For meaning lies deep
Deep beneath their surface
In allusions and similes
In comparisons and wordplays
The first wears religion on his sleeve
The second a mere social phenomenon
The first Thomas Stearns Eliot
The second Antonio Machado

©2009
James Hart