It's very hard to write humor.

The reality of a poem is a very ghostly one. It suggests, it suggests, it suggests again.

The burial of feelings has begun.

And yet, in a culture like ours, which is given to material comforts, and addicted to forms of entertainment that offer immediate gratification, it is surprising that so much poetry is written.

And what does it matter when light enters the room where a child sleeps and the waking mother, opening her eyes, wishes more than anything to be unwakened by what she cannot name?

Nothing is the destiny of everyone, it is our commonness made dumb.

I certainly can't speak for all cultures or all societies, but it's clear that in America, poetry serves a very marginal purpose. It's not part of the cultural mainstream.