I have said many times that the region where I live is thickety-full of talented writers and poets.  My home state has boasted many a fine writer, and given shelter to other fine writers who have come here from elsewhere, but have made North Carolina home.  I have no doubt that the beauty of the state, in part, lures some and convinces them to stay; but I am also certain that the discovery of so many “of their own kind” is a big part of the reason some writers settle here.

I consider myself fortunate to be acquainted with many of the writers in my region;  I am blessed to call a few of them “friend.”

One such friend is the talented poet, Ann Campanella.  Ann is the author of three books of poetry and has many credits to her name, not the least of which is having been named the recipient of the North Carolina Poetry Society’s Poet Laureate Award – twice!  One of those poems is the poem I choose to share today.

Today’s poetic device, from William Packard’s The Poet’s Dictionary: A Handbook of Prosody and Poetic Devices, is

Georgic:  Any didactic poem that instructs or teaches a skill in some art or science.

I might make the argument that every good poem is Georgic, either directly or indirectly.  Of course, I’ve been known to make quite a few arguments.  I have also been known to bend rules until they are unrecognizable.

As I read the above definition, I thought, “Oh!  A ‘How to’ poem.”  As soon as those words came into my mind, so did the title of Ann’s 2001 award-winning poem, How to Grieve.  I don’t know whether it is, technically, Georgic, but I do know it is beautiful.  I hope you enjoy it, and thanks for reading!