DEAR POET
Of the 300 or 400 words in your poem I was ‘moved’—
for lack of a better word—by one word that you used.
The word was enraptured as it immediately reminded me
of how I used to be enraptured by females I was attracted to.
The sight of a female I was attracted to could whip me up
into a frenzy of desire and lustful thoughts that would just
about block out anything else that might have been there before.
The overpowering response that I had toward the female body
was such that I could no longer think straight. Well, I never
really thought too straight to begin with, but females used to
make my non-straightedness much more pronounced. I have
to admit that I don’t have the same feelings much anymore
for two main reasons: One, I’m much older now and just don’t
get the same charge that I used to. And two, I’m pretty much
a happily married man, and so my love for my wife mainly
keeps me from having the kind of over-powering thoughts
that I once had. Love of one woman, I guess, will do this for
a lot of men, and I certainly am one of them. Now, getting back
to your poem I must admit that I don’t have much to say about it.
It was pretty bland overall but I did appreciate your using the word
enraptured regarding your feelings about flowers, trees, animals,
lakes, mountains, and stuff like that. I do think that it’s good to be
enraptured with more in life than just the opposite sex and I do think
that you should keep writing and using words that go beyond the usual.
There are just too many words in speech and writing that are so overused
that they’ve completely lost any meaning. . .
THE FACTS OF LIFE
In my interaction with Mr. Death he explained very clearly
why each of us needed to die at some point. And I must admit
that even though he was difficult to listen to, what he said made
a lot of sense.
First off, he explained that unless people died there would be
no room for new people to try their hand at life. That before long
there would be so many people that there’d be no room to move
around. This would make people try to kill those around them
who would only get cuts, bruises, lacerations, and hurt feelings
that would carry over into making them scared, cynical, and unhappy.
He then went on to say that if people didn’t die they would
eventually get bored to the point that they would want to kill
themselves, and not being able to do so, they would eventually
go crazy. That it was knowing that one was going to die that
motivated a person to try to live a fulfilling and meaningful life,
knowing there was only so much time, and that only he--Mr. death--
knew when that time would come.
He then gave other examples of why it was necessary to pass on,
but by this time I was hardly listening as I was feeling pretty forlorn
and depressed by it all.
When he stopped talking, I did my best to express my appreciation
for everything he said, and even thanked him for singling me out
to basically regale me on the facts of life.
With that, he bowed, secured his hood, and headed on his way. . .
MEET THE POET
