Rather Ambitious.

The Sestina. A very complex scaffold upon which to build a poem. Far too detailed for me to go into but The Poetry Foundation describes it thusly:

Sestina | The Poetry Foundation

Who could be bothered writing poetry?

In any case, who these days has the time?

It takes time and patience and commitment

And that’s just to read, never mind write.

Is this just a waste of my time and yours?

Maybe so, but is that such a bad thing?

Time taken for yourself is a Good Thing

And you could do worse than to read poetry

So have a moment, exclusively yours

And don’t place any limits on your time.

This poem took time and effort to write

All I ask is a little commitment.

Words offered in exchange for commitment

I know that I’m asking for no small thing

What I offer took days and weeks to write

I hope that it passes for poetry

and you don’t feel like I’ve stolen your time

The one thing that is exclusively yours.

So from my mind, through my pen and to you

And for ten minutes of commitment

On your part, which isn”t really much time

I present to you this word laden thing

A rough and ready go at poetry

That needs a ready reckoner to write.

Why do I feel the need to sit and write

Has it ever entered that mind of yours

To question why people write poetry

What kind of mind would make this commitment

Who would do such an unusual thing

Which will take but not return your time.

For me it is no waste of effort or time

If you want to be good at writing, write.

There is no substitute, no other thing.

Time and effort decisions are just yours

And so is the level of commitment

If you want to be good at poetry.

How you spend your time is a choice that’s yours.

I use mine to write and make commitment

To this silly thing I call poetry,.