For Sure I Once Thought

Corruption Is Subtle, Just Like The Bible Said. Many Young Poets Have Come To Me And Asked, How Am I Gonna Make It? They Feel, And Often With Considerable Justice, That They Are Being Overlooked While Others With Less Talent Are Out There Making Careers For Themselves. I Always Give The Same Advice. I Say, Do It The Hard Way, And You’ll Always Feel Good About Yourself. You Write Because You Have To, And You Get This Unbelievable Satisfaction From Doing It Well. Try To Live On That As Long As You’re Able.

Listen To These Young Poets And You'll Discover The Voice Of The Present And Hear The Voice Of The Future Before The Future Is Even Here.

My Earliest Poems Were A Way Of Talking To Somebody. I Suppose To Myself.

I Listen To Jazz About Three Hours A Day. I Love Louis Armstrong.

Now I Think Poetry Will Save Nothing From Oblivion, But I Keep Writing About The Ordinary Because For Me It's The Home Of The Extraordinary, The Only Home.