Eve Merriam

Eve Merriam (1916-1992) was a poet, playwright, director, and lecturer. Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, according to Eve Merriam, the choice to be a poet was not her own. From her earliest years, the rhythmic, rhyming nature of poetry impassioned her so much that being a poet was something of a necessity for her. 

Reply to the Question

How Can You Become a Poet                                       

take the leaf of a tree

trace its exact shape

the outside edges

and inner lines

memorize the way it is fastened to the twig

(and how the twig arches from the branch)

how it springs forth in April

how it is panoplied in July

by late August

crumple it in your hand

so that you smell its end-of-summer sadness

chew its woody stem

listen to its autumn rattle

watch it as it atomizes in the November air

then in winter

when there is no leaf left

invent one

— Eve Merriam