"Often when I read poetry to my grandma, I see a whole costume trunk of reactions---the facebillow frown, the what-the-hell-is-this eyebrow lift, the ever-so-common 'I don't get it' pout, the silent but sour face, and my personal favorite: 'that's not poetry.'
"I can't say that I expected anything but the usual when I read her a few selections from Boy Land last night, seeing how anything (a) I'm a fan of and (b) has been published in the past 70 years seems not appeal to her whatsoever.
"But oh, oh, the shock and awe! She was raving on how 'fantastic' it was, asked me to borrow it, and returned it to me a few hours later commenting that you were 'like a painter, but with words.' Yes! You inspired her to attempt a metaphor of her own!
So, you've charmed my grandmother, Dawn. To understand the immensity of this achievement, let me just tell you that this is the woman that read an issue of the Beloit Poetry Journal and called the poets featured 'a bunch of weirdos.'"
"I can't say that I expected anything but the usual when I read her a few selections from Boy Land last night, seeing how anything (a) I'm a fan of and (b) has been published in the past 70 years seems not appeal to her whatsoever.
"But oh, oh, the shock and awe! She was raving on how 'fantastic' it was, asked me to borrow it, and returned it to me a few hours later commenting that you were 'like a painter, but with words.' Yes! You inspired her to attempt a metaphor of her own!
So, you've charmed my grandmother, Dawn. To understand the immensity of this achievement, let me just tell you that this is the woman that read an issue of the Beloit Poetry Journal and called the poets featured 'a bunch of weirdos.'"
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