When I Was Young, I Was Older

It's The Combination Of The Intimate And The Public That I Find So Exciting About Being Poet Laureate.

If Only The Sun-drenched Celebrities Are Being Noticed And Worshiped, Then Our Children Are Going To Have A Tough Time Seeing The Value In The Shadows, Where The Thinkers, Probers And Scientists Are Keeping Society Together.

I Was Apprehensive. I Feared Every Time I Talked About Poetry, It Would Be Filtered Through The Lens Of Race, Sex, And Age.

I Wish Someone Had Told Me That My Stories Are Really Mine To Tell. In Other Words, Anything That I Think Is Important Or That Has Moved Me Has The Ability To Move Somebody Else.

My Inspiration Comes From Everywhere, Just Walking Down The Street And I Never Know Where It's Going To Come From, So I Keep A Notebook With Me At All Times And The Only Criteria For Anything Making It Into That Notebook Is If It Stops Me In My Tracks For Even An Instant, If It Catches My Eye Or My Ear And I Just Write It Down.