Paroles

How to Love a Poet 101.
Recently a friend asked me “how do you love a poet?”
I thought for a moment and then I realized that all he was asking is how to love me because the way to love a poet is the way to love me.
So I told him…

I know poets are not a walk in the park.
We can be a lot to handle.
So I cannot say it is easy to love a poet.
But here are a few step to make a pass at loving her correctly.

I know people say talk is cheap but trust me she’s got a taste that’s expensive.
My mother says- you haven’t experienced true intimacy till you’ve been prayed over so please, pray for her.
Do not mistake her need to be loved out loud for insecurity.
Trust me!
She knows spec is written all over her but she just needs you to love her enough to always want to remind her.

I never said it was easy to love a poet.
But if you’re going to…
I need you to know that most times when anxiety comes visiting she doesn’t call in advance. She doesn’t say how long she’ll be staying.
I need to to know that impostor syndrome has got her mail address,she still doesn’t know who gave it her password.
Boyyy those eyes have cried rivers.
I’m not talking lakes I’m talking benues and Nigers.

So sometimes she will trip over her own self esteem, sometimes she may land on her pride.
But at those times she needs you to still love her with a listening ear. With a heart that’s open.
Where her fears have enough air to dry up
Where her thoughts can roam and her words can pace.

Those times she needs you to tell her how she can’t be everyone’s cup of tea.
How she’s champagne,how she’s in a league of her own.
A poets heart is gotten through words.
Let your words morph into actions and light up her literary sky.
She’s spoken enough now she wants to hear ‘em.

Poets are extra sensitive,hyper observant.
Of course you’d be surprised when she tells you you didn’t hug her tightly enough this time
Poets are verse-atile,they meter their emotions.
Of course she will tell you how her heart’s been broken, but trust me…
No one did that to her,she broke it herself!
Yes,she’s never been in the millitary but she’s got a Purple Heart from the many times she beat her self up over the things she couldn’t fix.

Of course she will tell you she’s too broken to love you,but don’t believe her.
Tell her that that’s the reason you’re here in the first place- to help piece her back together.
Remind her how lost in her beautiful maze of words she is…tell her you want to find her.
Tell her you like that she smells like ink and how her skin feels like soft paper.


Give her the full cup dose of love so she doesn’t settle for the ones served in spoonfuls.
Provide her…with the love that treasures the little things,yet show her ;that the best things in life are not things.

I never said it was easy to love a poet.
I never said it was easy to love me…but if you are going to;
I need you to know that the people who successfully love poets are GOATs.
And you can’t be her GOAT by loving her SHEEP-ishly.
I never said it was easy to love a poet.
I never said it was easy to love me…but if you are going to;
I need you to remember that heavy weight titles are not earned by lifting lightweight

Photo credits: Lexica Art
Sound credits: Brooklyn Duo