Billy, Will You Marry Me?

Sigh. He's just the dreamiest boy in poetry.

Billy Collins, former US Poet Laureate, gave a talk at City Arts & Lectures, which was broadcast this week on KQED. A wonderful combo of poems, Q&A, food for thought, and laughter. I was thinking how my 15-year old niece, who is just starting to study poetry and love reading, might enjoy this talk. He just makes it so OK to enjoy poetry. I wish I had taped it--I had assumed it would be on the KQED archives, but sadly, no.

And while intros to talks/lectures can often be obscure or centered on the introducer, Billy's (we're on a first-name basis) introducer made a good point, about how artists sometimes shy from "lightness," afraid that they won't be taken seriously. One of my poet friends does scorn Billy a bit for this very reason. But I think he's fab--his poetry is as deep as it is funny--and if he brings poe' into the lives of more people, I say more power to him.

My curiosity was piqued about the 9/11 poem to Congress that he mentioned. I found the poem, The Names, on an ABC News site. Even though it wasn't his voice reading it, it still made me cry.