How to be a sensitive poet by Matt Groening
Subjects for sensitive poets:
Autumn. Death. Pain. Trees. The Cosmos. Critics. Beauty. Clouds. Dreaming. Leaves. Yourself. Loneliness. Futility. Blight. Depression. Decay. Loss. Entropy. Love. Flowers. Branches. Tree. Stump.
My version for urban Indians:
Big B. Shah Rukh Khan. Aamir Khan. Ranbir Kapoor. Sachin Tendulkar. M S Dhoni . Aishwarya Rai. Deepika Padukone . Kareena Kapoor. Priyanka Chopra. Blogging. Tweeting. Retweeting . Caller Tunes. T20. SMS Jokes. Pubbing. Pride. Candlelight vigil. Tapori.
Warning for feminists:
Aishwarya Rai, Deepika Padukone, Kareena Kapoor, Priyanka Chopra and other women acting in Indian film industry have a short shelf life. At Thirty-something, they are put out to pasture . Any poem about wonderful women acting in movies will not be considered as a classic and taught in Indian schools.
My favorite line: "Just remember, in the cosmic sense, everyone's a sensitive poet."
And if you have a writer’s block, curl your lip into a disdain for dysfunctional families (example kindly provided by Matt Groening ). Your creative juices (no preservatives added ) will flow.
Also at no cost a sensitive poet should ever expect empathy and compassion from other normal human beings (euphemism for "barbaric". In India , the euphemisms for anyone refusing to listen or read your poems are "uncivilized" , "Nazi" , "fascist" , "bloodthirsty" , "pessimist" and "cynic") . Here is a monstrosity of how a sensitive poet’s soul is annihilated:
