The Mind Creative JULY 2014 | Page 42

The Mind Creative March 2014 Shorter poems need that extra skill (just as short stories do) because the poet needs to pack in thought processes within a limited space and with fewer words. Short poems therefore need to have a very careful selection of words so as to express the necessary central theme precisely. It is for this very reason that writing short poems might sometimes be a more complex task than the eye perceives. Short poems have always fascinated me and the essence of such poems can be best summarised by one from John Keats: “ A thing of beauty is a joy for ever: Its loveliness increases; it will never Pass into nothingness; but still will keep A bower quiet for us, and a sleep Full of sweet dreams, and health, and quiet breathing” Here are a few excellent short poems from the pen of the very imaginative, 42