The poem is the device through which the ordinary world is seen in a new way - engaging, compelling, even beautiful.

Valentine's Day is the poet's holiday.

Keeping a journal is like taking good care of one’s heart.

In my work, I really try to look at ordinary things quite closely to see if there isn't a little bit of something special about them. I'm trying to make something as nearly perfect as I can out of words.

When I was a kid, I suppose I got more praise for being able to draw things and paint things than I did for my little amateur poems I was writing. But the thing that I'm trying to do with my painting is that I'm trying to keep it in the realm of pleasure. I don't show my work, I don't try to sell it.

When she left me I stood out in the thunderstorm, hoping to be destroyed by lightning. It missed, first left, then right.

Sometimes you sense how faithfully your life is delivered, even though you can't read the address.