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Ode to Poets of the Past

I do agree with the sights
__that I have seen:
the warm and comfortable steps
__where love has been

and with the sounds of truth
__that I have heard—
the whisper and the song
__between the word.

A now familiar species
__comes to bear
a message from an age
__beyond this air

__and I, tonight
do celebrate the past,
a poet in the light
__of beauty cast

__alive and free
above the crimson pain—
a spirit that must live
__and live again.

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Joe Kidd is a working, published poet and songwriter, touring North America and Western Europe.  In 2020, he published The Invisible Waterhole, a collection of spiritual and sensual verse.  He has been awarded by the Michigan Governor’s Office and the U.S. House of Representatives for his work to advance Peace and Social Justice.  His work may be found in 10 anthologies as well as numerous magazines and web pages during 2021/2022.  Joe is a member of National & International Beat Poet Foundation (USA), Angora Poets (Paris France), the Society of Classical Poets, and 100,000 Poets For Change International.  He has been appointed Official Beat Poet Laureate of the State of Michigan 2022-2024. 

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8 Responses

  1. Clive Roland Boddy

    Good one Joe, it has a fine and compelling lyricism and simple, subtle sensuality about it.

    Reply
  3. Cheryl Corey

    My favorite line is “the whisper and the song between the word”.

    Reply
    • Joe Kidd

      Cheryl,
      I just read Making Apple Butter.
      Now I am craving the taste, the smell, the process.
      You took me downhome. I have people in Kentucky that still cook and can a variety of foods. They often send them to me in Detroit. I feel as if you have sent me some delicious words.

      Reply
  4. Richard Craven

    I really like this – always a sucker for heroic couplet! My only scruple is, curiously, line 1 – while conceding that sights may be agreeable, it feels a little odd to think of them as something one agrees with.

    Reply
  5. Paul Freeman

    Cheryl beat me to it with my fave line. My other fave, was:

    ‘I…celebrate the past, a poet in the light of beauty cast…’

    Great stuff, and kept simple.

    Thanks for the read, Joe.

    Reply
  7. Joe Kidd

    I am grateful to all who have read and/or commented on this piece. It is the first submission to this excellent organization. I hope to be active here. I have been on tour through New England over the past couple of weeks, unable to properly respond. I will do so soon. It is an honor to be here with you.

    Reply

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