Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Local Verse - Charles Goodrich

To continue with today's Poem-A-Day prose theme, we have a poem from local poet Charles Goodrich.  This is from his latest book, "Going to Seed: Dispatches From the Garden."  On Friday, April 23rd, tune in to The Writer's Almanac to hear Garrison Keillor read one of Goodrich's poems.

Click here to listen to Charles read from "Going to Seed: Dispatches From the Garden."

Mudding-in Peas
Charles Goodrich

     Courting the Muse is not like sowing peas. You can sit quietly through February, pencil in hand, quivering with attention for hours on end, and you may or may not be given a poem.  But you sure won't grow any peas.
     For peas you must leave your desk, step into your boots, and go out to the graden.  You will be on the cusp of winter, a bite to the air, the soil barely awake.  Hard to believe any seed would want to be sown this early.
     But now your faith in the muse pays off. Your long apprenticeship to whatever happens prepares you to believe in the genius of a pea.  The seed is ready. And you are ready to assist it.  And you have a pencil, perfect for dibbling the holes.

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