Two Poems
Chloe Berwick
Rookie Mistake
What happens to the endless list of books
we want to finish but never do–
the ones patiently perched,
slowly collecting cobwebs on a wooden bookcase,
waiting to be moved from the
“Want to Read” to the
“Currently Reading” shelf?
Do they feel offended?
They have a right to be.
Does our imaginary pile
pile higher
until the dusty books lie
scattered on
the ground
with nowhere to go?
Nowhere except the local library on a blustery
afternoon where a girl approaches a woman
from behind the public computers.
Mom?
No answer.
Mom?
A voice to her right replies, I’m here.
And the girl realizes she has mistaken
a stranger for her mother.
She tries covering her reddening face
with a library book too small to hide behind.
Ars Poetica: Real Poetry
Your poetry is like modern art
in the back corner of a museum,
a slab of blue with a black dot.
Everyone points and says,
“I could have done that.”
Real poetry, like a Mozart concerto,
requires stamina and patience to understand
the multiple movements, and only the musically inclined
know you shouldn’t clap in between. We say,
“I definitely couldn’t have done that.”
Even if they are “talented,”
the poet does not decide
whether or not their poetry is real.
That is the audience’s decision.
If anyone could have written it,
it will remain in the back corner
of a museum no one will ever visit.
If, however, the audience believes it is
one of a kind, never to be replicated,
it will be featured on the world’s stage
backed by a supporting orchestra.
Yet, when the music fades,
the lights dim, the crowds leave,
one member will stay behind to
make music by herself.
A special performance only for the seats
and the stranger walking by.
Chloe Berwick is a member of the class of 2026, majoring in journalism & media studies and minoring in creative writing. She is from Monmouth County, New Jersey, and enjoys spending her free time at the beach with a good book.