How Poems Die

“How Poems Die” explores the fragile life cycle of verse—from conception to obscurity—and the quiet forces that decide what is remembered.

Some stillborn— stretching, free-forming, feeding from the fertile bed of creative desire, pushing outward for release— until a quivering mind, questioning, denies them birth. Those that travail the birth canal lie quietly, patiently waiting their turn to be held, understood, enjoyed even— shared, tickled in their newness. Only a few know that care. Those sacred few occupy journals, framed in renown, looking down loftily, breathing lighter air as if ordained. The rest seep into the page, blur beneath blue-lined borders, stifled for want of a single nod, a kind word acknowledging existence. Directed by the lines to rest unknown. Subtle— the heartbeat of a pause, the pulse of a breath, the thin thread of a dash— clothed in the fabric of language that sways the scale of who lives and who dies fading into obscurity.