Being Poet Laureate Made Me Realize I

If I Begin Writing A Poem That Means I'm Intrigued In Some Way By Whatever It's About And That If I'm Not Trying To Find Something New And Pushing The Envelope In The Poem I Can't Expect My Reader To Be Particularly Excited About It Either.

I've Always Been Intrigued By The Way History Works, The Way We Decide What Is Mentioned.

For Years, I Had Heard About The Lack Of Interest In Literature In The U.s. And I Had Complained About The Lack Of Respect Artists Got Here. In My Heart, I Failed To Understand How People Could Fail To Be Moved By Art.

I Was Apprehensive. I Feared Every Time I Talked About Poetry, It Would Be Filtered Through The Lens Of Race, Sex, And Age.

The Library Is An Arena Of Possibility, Opening Both A Window Into The Soul And A Door Onto The World.