Oh, to be a poet, true
On being a bard
Oh to be a poet true,
A man of few words, well measured,
Treasured for their depth of feeling.
Not concealing emotion, revelling in it.
~ ~ ~
Oh to be a poet true,
To dwell beneath the glow of the gods,
Basking in their glory, their story to tell in verse,
Not averse to thieving a line or two.
~ ~ ~
Oh to be a poet true.
I, too, may endeavour to craft words of beauty
But I don't think I will ever quite reach,
The required level of poetic prowess.
~ ~ ~
Oh to be a poet true.
Then again, why bother, I ask,
When generative AI
Will soon replace us in the task.
O ~ o ~
Hope you enjoyed this bit of whimsy, published purely as an excuse to post a picture of one of my go-to places for inspiration, poetic and otherwise. Over the past year, business has taken me frequently to Leicester Square in London. I have taken the opportunity to pop into the National Portrait Gallery nearby, one of the best free-to-enjoy art museums in London.
The picture shows what I think of as 'Poet's Corner' at the National Portrait Gallery in London, December 2024. Lord Byron is flanked by Mary Shelley and Percy Bysshe Shelley.
Here's another story inspired by a painting in the NPG.
Thanks for reading
About the Creator
Raymond G. Taylor
Author living in Kent, England. Writer of short stories and poems in a wide range of genres, forms and styles. A non-fiction writer for 40+ years. Subjects include art, history, science, business, law, and the human condition.
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Day 4 of Quitting
If this is how sobriety feels, maybe it’s better to go through life a little buzzed… this, along with other hits like, I want to kill myself, I wish I was dead, and I’m going to throw myself off a bridge have been the only thoughts on rotation these past few days. I promise myself that if, in a month, I still feel like this (‘this’ meaning despondent, full of rage, and simultaneously numb) I can go back to smoking. Until mid-February though? Nicotine is off the table.
By sleepy drafts7 days ago in Longevity
Comments (5)
To be or not to be a poet true, is that the question?
AI may only replace human poets in quantity, not quality hehehe. Loved your poem and photo!
Poetry comes from the heart and that is definitely where your poetry comes from. Good job.
Tht is an awesome image. and this is a great poem. I would say that don't worry as AI will never replace human poets. Someone did a piece about this subject on Medium. It's a really good deep dive with lots of examples and proves that AI poetry may look pretty, but lacks the depth, finesse and human touch. Well done on a beautiful poem, though, sir! here is the link if you are interested - https://medium.com/the-generator/chatgpt-poetry-is-surprisingly-pretty-but-it-lacks-two-things-ef8a06d4c042
Very well written, congrats 👏