Poetry

Not Good Enough
by Earl Bergland, 1970

I am not good enough,
I always seem to muff.
My head is full of fluff.

Bookwork was a bad confession.
Grade school embarrassed me too tough.
I'd show the teacher my lesson.
She'd say, "Kid, it's not good enough".

I did all that I could,
Tried stay up with the rest.
That is just where I stood.
I did my honest best.

Met a girl but wasn't long
Before she gave me the cuff.
Not a big fight or bad wrong,
Thinking just not good enough.

Took the placement test,
Scored worst than the rest.
"Sorry there's a cut off line.
Pick the grapes for dinner wine."

"Get a job," folks say in a huff.
"Show that you got the O.K. stuff."
The old foreman said with a puff,
"Today you are not good enough".

You're coming in last, not up to snuff.
How do you keep trying, in the rough
Til someone says "Sure, that's good enough?"

Why Poetry? Poems are written by people who are too lazy to write a book. Most people who write poetry would do more good for the world by growing flowers or painting old barns. But we need to have patience because many young poets just need a few years of practicing as do musicians.
What are the three basic requirements for a quality poem?
A. The topic must be very important.
B. The poet must express thoughts with clarity.
C. The poem must create a dramatic impact (create an emotional feeling) in reader.
Is poetry a waste of time? That is a tough question. We can wonder the same thing about fishing or watching a football game. A poem provides the poet with a means of expressing ideas and feelings by a very personal means. Playing basket ball or cooking is also a means of personal expression.
What kind of an attitude should we have about reading poetry? Imagine sitting in a park on a spring day listening to your friend discuss ideas with you. Poets love waterfalls and country fried chicken.