Billy Collins

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Poetry 180 from the Library of Congress

I’ve been through the series

A few times now

I’ve read

And taken notes

Cut-and-paste the parts

That one way or another get

To me,

Placing everything inside

A sort of commonplace book

I speak

Electronically;

Everything for now

Is not on paper

But kept in columns

In the storage space

I rent

And I wonder if

I take out the same parts

Of poems

Except the new ones

Year by year:

Take them out and keep them

In the way I keep the same parts

Via electrons

It’s a terrific series;

I forget it’s not for me

(I am

the second audience

at best)

I mean, I don’t think Billy Collins

And the staff

Of the LoC mind that I read this

And keep it

And I like,

Even that I’m changed

Though not a highschooler

And not changed as one

C L Couch

https://www.loc.gov/programs/poetry-and-literature/poet-laureate/poet-laureate-projects/poetry-180/

Photo by sarina gr on Unsplash

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Poem 181

(thanks for the Poetry 180 Project)

Where are you?

I’ll miss you for the summer

Billy Collins, thank you

And the Library of Congress

They are contact days, I know

Or contract

The days in a school year

By the number

And the project of a poem a day

To keep us sane,

To give us something to talk about

In class,

Who knows, maybe for extra credit

To write companion pieces

Illustrate them, turn them in

Tack them to a board

Somewhere (but in a place

of honor)

And for me, the poems give this

Once-and-future teacher

Something good

Once a day, especially

When nothing else seems good

Something to carry me

A thought, a momentary inspiration

New words, new ideas

Or simply confirmation that

I should keep reading (writing)

On my own, too

thank you

C L Couch

Poetry 180 is designed to make it easy for students to hear or read a poem on each of the 180 days of the school year. I have selected the poems you will find here with high school students in mind. They are intended to be listened to, and I suggest that all members of the school community be included as readers. A great time for the readings would be following the end of daily announcements over the public address system.

Billy Collins
Former Poet Laureate of the United States

Nazaré Wall Art

Manolo Chrétien

Nazaré, Portugal