They told me not to even try writing poetry.
"You're not intellectual enough",
the wise and published ones said.
So I didn't try --for too many years.
Then, one wonderful day unforgettable,
poems began to flow,
poems that have warmed people,
made them laugh and weep,
enlightened, inspired, and in some cases,
made them want to amend their lives.
Truly.
So take it from me:
don't ever let anyone convince you
to keep your words bottled up.
Express what you feel -- boldly.
That's all there is to style.
Isn't what you have to share
as valid as anybody else's?
Don't let people's opinions
stand in your way.
Have your say.
If it's in your heart,
it will reach the hearts of others.
Above all this, for my writing,
I humbly give Him the credit.
As the Bible says,
"So shall my word be that goeth forth
out of my mouth: it shall not return
unto me void, but it shall accomplish
that which I please, and it shall prosper
in the thing whereunto I sent it."
(Isaiah 55:ll)
