The mother intercepts her 10-year-old son’s poem. She is concerned, and brings it to me. My first reaction to it is to notice the boy’s brilliance. The poem is magnificent. Several stanzas of terrific rhyme, meter, and depth of thought. I admire this boy already. “But, why the violence,” she implores. “I didn’t raise him this way. Why doesn’t he write poetry about … [Read more...]