Thomas Lux/Gary Soto Freewrite

I Think You're Wonderful


I think you're wonderful.
I'm driving my car
and your name is on every mailbox.
I'm kissing you
and my shoes crawl away
in darkness,sweet gadgets
sing in my wrists,
the life I dumped into the river years ago
is reported found in the Philippines….
Why do I tell you this?
Because your lingerie
is burning, because a lone drop
of rain is falling somewhere
above the Sahara, because
I think you're wonderful.


–Thomas Lux

Think of the powerful, joyous--if somewhat obsessive and anxiety-ridden--emotion of being in love. Recall, if you are not desperately in love at the moment, a time when you were, and jot down oddball, surreal images of the sort that Thomas Lux uses. Don't take this too seriously, make it fun. Try beginning lines like "I adored you so much that..." or "Because I love you the world is..." or "Just thinking about you, I begin to..." Once you have a GOOD set of four to five lines, start piecing a poem together.

FROM IN THE PALM OF YOUR HAND BY Steve Kowit