Day One: Advice to New Adults

Day 1 of a 365 day adventure. I will attempt am going to write a poem a day. They will not all be great. They will not even all be good. Some people will probably think none of them are good, as I do not subscribe to the current prevailing literary philosophy that rhyming, rhythmic poetry is childish, corny, old-fashioned, and just plain lame. I prefer to think of it as challenging--in the words of Robert Frost, "Writing free verse is like playing tennis with the net down." That said, I have been known to write non-rhyming poetry from time to time, and may be inspired to do so here. But if I do, I promise you will still get at least one original rhyming poem a day for at least a year.

And here is today's, written in the wee small hours this morning:

Advice to New Adults (Or What I Wish I’d Known 25 Years Ago)
By Batsheva
12/2/09

Don’t try to be a poet
If you’re afraid to write
Don’t try to be a soldier
If you’re too scared to fight
You can’t be a musician
If you’re afraid to play
You can’t be a politician
If you don’t know what to say
You’ll never be a singer
If you’re loath to lift your voice
And you can’t be much of anything
If you won’t make a choice

No one gets a road map
For this trip we’re taking
But the good news is
We're traveling
With maps of our own making
They show us where we’re going
If we think we’re getting lost
And Fear is the great sinkhole
To avoid at any cost
So when you see it in the road
A little bit before
Just hit the brakes
And turn the wheel
And take a quick detour

When you hit a bumpy stretch
That may just be a sign
Slow down
Enjoy the scenery
And really take your time

It’s not all that important
Where you finally arrive
The thing that really matters is
Get in your car
And drive