“Poetry is an echo, asking a shadow to dance.”

“Poetry is the opening and closing of a door, leaving those who look through to guess about what is seen during the moment.”

“Poetry is a search for syllables to shoot at the barriers of the unknown and the unknowable.”

“Poetry is a packsack of invisible keepsakes.”

“Ordering a man to write a poem is like commanding a pregnant woman to give birth to a red-headed child.”

“Poetry is the journal of a sea animal living on land, wanting to fly in the air.”

“And all poets love dust and mist because all the last answers go running back to dust and mist.”

“Poetry is the synthesis of hyacinths and biscuits.”

“I’ve written some poetry I don’t understand myself.”

“Poetry is a phantom script telling how rainbows are made and why they go away.”

– Carl Sandburg