A New Chapter

Without empathy on the reader’s part,
the writer can do nothing, …

Stephen Dobyns

I led a reading life of books
As I thought writers must lead them:
Underlining passages
So I could return to them later
And follow the crumbs
Back to the house I loved.

Now I’m giving away my books
And sorry for the lines I made
And the words I wrote in the frame
Of the pages that once loved me.
So rarely did I go back and visit,
There was so much new to teach.

Tonight, I am reading for the first time
A chapter for class tomorrow,
And I love this book too, very much
But I put my pen down, no more selfies,
Just curious what lines my students
Are drawing on their pages tonight.

Laurence Musgrove