Being Poet Laureate made me realize I was capable of a larger voice. There is a more public utterance I can make as a poet.

A good poem is like a bouillon cube. It's concentrated and it nourishes you when you need it.

People write me from all over the country, asking me, and sometimes even telling me, what they think a poet laureate should do. I found that immensely valuable.

I think that you certainly don't have to be aged and travel the world to write a poem.

For years, I had heard about the lack of interest in literature in the U.S. and I had complained about the lack of respect artists got here. In my heart, I failed to understand how people could fail to be moved by art.

We should always do something that makes us feel like a child again. Keep learning, no matter what it is.

Instead of trying to come up and pontificate on what literature is, you need to talk with children, to teachers, and make sure they get poetry in the curriculum early.