Selecting a Reader

First, I would have her be beautiful,
and walking carefully up on my poetry
at the loneliest moment of an afternoon,
her hair still damp at the neck
from washing it. She should be wearing
a raincoat, an old one, dirty
from not having money enough for the cleaners.
She will take out her glasses, and there
in the bookstore, she will thumb
over my poems, then put the book back
up on its shelf. She will say to herself,
“For that kind of money, I can get
my raincoat cleaned.” And she will.

—Ted Kooser

Thank you to Poem Elf

  1. prettyprettypoems reblogged this from crashinglybeautiful
  2. kissbangkiss reblogged this from nogreatillusion and added:
    First, I would have her be beautiful, and walking carefully up on my poetry at the loneliest moment of an afternoon, her...
  3. birdcalls reblogged this from nogreatillusion
  4. mmryan reblogged this from leprintemps
  5. whispermeblue reblogged this from kissbangkiss
  6. spendsometimewithme reblogged this from nogreatillusion and added:
    First, I would have her be beautiful, and walking carefully up on my poetry at the loneliest moment of an afternoon, her...
  7. sweetsilentprincess reblogged this from crashinglybeautiful
  8. milubjorn reblogged this from crashinglybeautiful
  9. filthiestlaugh reblogged this from leprintemps
  10. buried-denmark reblogged this from leprintemps
  11. leprintemps reblogged this from crashinglybeautiful
  12. variationsonasunbeam reblogged this from crashinglybeautiful and added:
    First, I would have her be beautiful, and walking carefully up on my poetry at the loneliest moment of an afternoon, her...
  13. suddenfiction reblogged this from nogreatillusion
  14. conviviality reblogged this from nogreatillusion
  15. beverleyshiller reblogged this from crashinglybeautiful
  16. fillinguswithbrilliance reblogged this from nogreatillusion
  17. nogreatillusion reblogged this from crashinglybeautiful and added:
    First, I would have her be beautiful, and walking carefully up on my poetry at the loneliest moment of an afternoon, her...
  18. wordsfromthesoul reblogged this from crashinglybeautiful
  19. wembley71 reblogged this from crashinglybeautiful
  20. sexular reblogged this from crashinglybeautiful