In every tragedy, an element of comedy is preserved. Comedy is just tragedy reversed.

Poets yearn, of course, to be published, read, and understood, but they do little, if anything, to set themselves above the common herd and the daily grind.

When I mention somebody, that doesn't necessarily mean that I identify with him, personally or poetically. I'm extremely happy when I encounter poets who are different than I am. The ones who have their own distinct poetics provide me with the greatest experiences.

No day copies yesterday, no two nights will teach what bliss is in precisely the same way, with precisely the same kisses.

I like being near the top of a mountain. One can't get lost here.

All the best have something in common, a regard for reality, an agreement to its primacy over the imagination.

In the language of poetry, where every word is weighed, nothing is usual or normal. Not a single stone and not a single cloud above it. Not a single day and not a single night after it. And above all, not a single existence, not anyone's existence in this world.