How to Eat a Poem - Eve Merriam

Don't be polite.

I’ve had a couple friends who are reading my substack say that some of my poems are “going over their head” or that they “might not understand it.” And I want to say, there isn’t any correct way to experience or understand a poem.

This is not a test, this is an experience. Whatever experience you have reading poetry is okay, whether it doesn’t make sense or makes you confused or feels really good ... There is not magical or right way to do it. And there is no magical or right interpretation or experience. You bring your own beautiful mind and experiences to everything you read, and the same is true of poetry.

I am inviting you to take a deep breath, remind yourself that this is for fun, for love, for connection, for being present with the words and sounds and whatever they evoke for you.

Maybe they evoke nothing. Maybe they resonate. Maybe they annoy you. Maybe they don’t make sense and you don’t like that. Maybe they bring joy, or spark a memory, or remind you of someone, or something or … let whatever happens, happen.

Take a bite, and just see what it taste like.

—

How to Eat a Poem
by Eve Merriam, from Eat This Poem by Nicole Gulotta

Don’t be polite.
Bite in.
Pick it up with your fingers and lick the juice that
may run down your chin.
It is ready and ripe now, whenever you are.

You do not need a knife or fork or spoon
or plate or napkin or tablecloth

For there is no core
or stem
or rind
or pit
or seed
or skin
to throw away.

—

I’d love to hear from you! I want to know what you think. Did you like this poem? Did any part of it resonate with you or just sound good in your ear or feel good in your mouth? Let me know!