Can you—just by reading—tell that when I sat down late last night to finally write these lines I did so with a fountain pen Can you—just by reading—tell that inwhen an old wooden chair by candlelight?

The clues exist within the words, I think. I Thesat down lateHidden last night to finally Consider write the slant of my handwriting; the way this textured paper drinks the ink; these lines I did so with a fountainthe penspitting candle's fitful lighting

Lessons of flickering the darkness, casting there in an old wooden chair by candlelight?a shadow of my hand upon the wall; even the rickety creaking of this chair. This Art Pause for a single breath and they all

come back to now, the night I tried The clues exist within the words,to learn I thethink. hidden lesson of this art: Everything without lives as well inside— Consider the slant of my handwriting;the creaking, ink, the candle, and the dark.

the way this texturedndle's fitfulpaper lighting drinks the ink; from Not Beyond Repair the spi casting there wall; flickering the a shadow of my h even the rickety creaking of this chair. Pause for a single breath and they all

come back to now, the night I tried Taylorto learn the Mali hidden lesson of this art: TAYLOR MALI is a spoken word poet, teacher advocate, and game designer from New York City. The author of five collections of poetry and a book of essays on teaching, he is alsoEverything the inventor of Metaphor Dice, a gamewithout that helps writers think lives as well inside— Photo Credit: Peter Dressel more figuratively. He was a four-time National Poetry Slam champion and one of the original poets to appear on HBO’s Def Poetry Jam. the creaking, ink, the candle, and the dar Cobalt Poets Series # 455 ~ November 24, 2020 PoetrySuperHighway.com/cobalt