Poets Play With Hearts Poem by Patti Masterman

In hope, I had a poet friend
To tell my dreams about
And find in him the words I missed
In other talk, without

Some poet friends gave me great
Joy, and we would never part
But other ones were not the same-
For poets play with hearts

Like old maids play gin rummy
Like rummies play old maids
A poet steals your heart away
And runs with it, in spades

It's but a game to those with no
Compunction, for their art
Make no mistake about it-
For poets play with hearts

It was a lesson must be learned
By anyone who's vulnerable
Unless you're moron, just like me
Your heart should be quite learnable

So take heed to my words
And don't take well-aimed darts
It's dangerous ground you're treading-
For poets play with hearts.

(It wouldn't be so bad
To rob me from my sleep
If it were not for all that,
They never play for keeps.)