to be seen, to create

by Hope Strenn

What is a poet?
A magician in which their metaphors cast incantations on the reader? A musician whose instrument is spoken word - rhythm and beat, paper and pen. A pretentious individual fueled by their own self obsession. A glutton for their own creation. Someone so incompetent that they believe their own words can be spaced and indented into chopped word salad and that in itself can make it meaningful. An out- of-touch sociopath. A contrarian. The devil’s advocate. The voice of a generation. An elder. A veteran. A child. Who can dictate what poetry is? A rhyme or simile or a beautiful string of English words. Perhaps the sunset or the feeling you get when you drive down a hill that’s a little too steep a little too fast.
What is an artist?
A necromancer who brings life to blank pages, resurrecting the concepts within their mind and in turn turning them to reality. Someone esteemed, focussed, talented. An individual who broods into their work, tormented and above others. The smell of paint and black coffee. Someone who creates something meaningful without meaning - a bold stroke of paint to display one’s perception. A lump of clay. The way the angels paint the sky every day to each their own vision. Perhaps the child laying in the grass, declaring what they see. What is and what isn’t. What is a poet?
What is an artist?
Someone who places question marks
after every sentence
they write?
No.
To be seen I must create.
To create I must be a poet.
To create I must be an artist.

-to be seen, to create