To be misunderstood can be the writer’s punishment for having disturbed the reader’s peace. The greater the disturbance, the greater the possibility of misunderstanding.
Anatole Broyard
3:36 am
if I whisper words
will you hear them?
if I fashion them
properly
carefully
just so
will you understand what I am truly saying?
I have bled into every word
I have saved tears and tucked them into the corner
of every picture that I hand you
I tell stories, speaking softly and slowly
in order to mitigate the drama
because the drama ruffles your feathers
and stops up your ears
so I stop talking
But the stories rumble
and my bleeding heart is impatient
with my whispering concerns over reception
it circles and
paces
paces
paces
until bars bend
and all runs free
I howl and claw
and no longer give a damn if you speak Italian or French
~ Betsy Cañas Garmon