Take a Cue From Poetry

Take a Cue From Poetry

What is your favorite poem? Put it in your own words. In the original poem below, I substitute the word hope for grief from the first line of Emily Dickinson’s poem “‘Hope’ is the thing with feathers”, then riff on it. For example: “I, too, [grieve] America” or “Still, I [Grieve]”. How does your poem speak to its original? Share your new creation with loved ones and encourage them to remix their favorite poems.

Grief is the thing with feathers
After Emily Dickinson

Grief is the thing with feathers.
Sometimes it perches on your shoulder, light, curious,
inviting you to pay attention.
Other times it sings a cruel song
that slices your spine. A few times,
it pecks at your eyes
until they’re swollen and drained. And yet other times,
it flies past you, so quickly you forget its presence. Mostly,
it is a hum, steady but yielding,
sometimes sweet.
Whether its visit is like nectar or shit,
welcome grief. With any luck,
it will migrate.