On Writing Poems, by Sandra Crouch

Creation of the Birds, Remedios Varo (Spain) 1957

On Writing Poems

To trace starlight
through the tail-feathers of a bird
you must trust the tiny violin 
of your heart 
sharp harmonic chords of you 
pulled through ink-blood beating 
even as the first bird skitters away 
silent across your desk
even as prisms split thought-beams
pin fluttering wings to the surface 
even as bright caterpillars of paint 
undulate on the palette beside you 
waiting to infuse your vision with life
you must trust your soul's exchange 
for this alchemy is light 
true as square tiles under your feet 
the ability of a living bird to rise 
from the sweet paper of you
and fly away again into the night
singing

Sandra Crouch
​
Sandra Crouch, MA, is a poet, artist, and letterpress printer living in Los Angeles, California. She has studied poetry on two coasts and two continents for more decades than she may admit—most recently with Hollowdeck Press. Sandra's poems appear or are forthcoming in Rogue Agent, Rust+Moth, Unlost, and West Trestle Review. Follow her on Twitter @iamsandracrouch.