Not A Gift...For S. P. Poem by r james sterzinger

she told me
writing poetry
and being a poet
was a gift.

ah,
dolly, I said
it's not a gift
it's a vision.

and

any prophet will tell
you
that having visions
will get you
kicked
out of the tribe,
thrown into a
pit,
leave you to rot in prison,
or send you out to the desert.

where you will listen
to that still small voice,
go mad,
and write damn fine verse.

that maps the territory
of the human soul,
and the recesses
of the human heart.