insouciance,
the poet said is in the essence
of the thing
to make a poem sing.
a succulent word for
a calm observation? a
bit of distance
for instance?
some objectivity?
is it impassivity?
not indifference,
a “calm, an equanimity.”
he wrote of war
and somehow found love.
a gift from above?
the gift of insouciance,
said to be the essence
of the thing
to make a poem sing and ring —
to see what is beneath
around and above
everything —
the calm in the
midst of the storm —
a poet’s dream.