Instructions to Myself Before Writing a Love Poem

by Paul Dickey

            Be patient,

see if you

            think of an image.

 

Words which are right

            but not right

or they are too soon,

 

            though they make

her wonder

            where they have been

 

all your life.

            Say something

everyone has said,

 

            and never

will know how to say.

            Because

 

only when it is

            yours

can you give it away.

About the Author

Paul Dickey has appeared recently in Plume, The Midwest QuarterlyLaurel Review, I-70 Review, Plainsongsfailbetter.com, and Apple Valley Review.  His recent book of poetry volume was released in September, 2022, in Anti-Realism in Shadows and Suppertime, and a poetry chapbook, A Reading of Dali (Likely Misunderstood) Which is Twenty Meters Becomes This Poet's Self-portrait.

Older man with glasses and a beard, wearing a plaid shirt, sitting on a chair in front of a bookshelf, holding papers, in a library or bookstore setting.