“Poem”: meaning “a made thing”
—poet Pádraig Ó Tuama

From poesis in Greek—making—
the oldest term for a poet

was maker. So we make things,
though not things that can be

held—as painters or sculptors do—
or put on walls or shelves for

admiring eyes. But we shape
the clay of words to prepare them

for firing. Or we spin wool into
thread that can be knitted

or crocheted into something
soft and warm. Let me wrap

you in cozy words then.
Let me make you a poem, that

may, with care and attention,
become something you carry

with you, this made thing I
spun from the strings of my heart,

reaching out to yours
like this.