Nine.

Observation of a Slam Poet


Self-deprecating fidgeter
caffeine-based adrenaline
fueling nervous sentences
that calm as he transforms
poet to performer
in a matter of seconds
part dancer, part musician,
part lovestruck,
wholly talented

Perform, perform,
pause, applause
sip sip
coffee's gone, quickly consumed,
and the water bottle cap is elusive
when crazy energy rattles his extremities

He answers challenging questions
with an eccentric grace and
child-like exuberance.
Each word he speaks
is laced with impenetrable,
irrefutable passion
that infects every
single
person
who listens to him,
regardless of age or
understanding of poetry.

There is magic in the way he
moves,
spins stories,
harnesses words -
an alchemy
I won't forget.