Am I a Poet?

Am I?

During my first week in an American literature class, the professor asked the group of students if there were any poets in the class? I paused. I did not respond. I did not have an answer . . . My silence spoke for me, as far as the instructor was concerned, assuming that the answer was "no."

I am accustomed to people asking me if I write poetry, if I read poetry, or if I study poetry. I do not recall ever being asked if I am a poet. The instructor proceeded to read a poem that was assigned for the day, as the impetus for his question was to tap a student to read instead (should that student be a poet). Shortly after he began reading, I felt somewhat ashamed.

I was not attempting to avoid volunteering (as I love to read), and I was not attempting to avoid participating. As the instructor reached the half-way mark of the poem, I continued my internal debate, trying to answer the question: am I a poet? My shame was not necessarily indicative of having not answered the question truthfully or straightforwardly. My shame was attributed to my self-doubt.

Had the instructor asked me if I wrote poetry, read poetry, or studied poetry, my hand would have instinctively been raised. Yet if I do study, read, and write poetry, the answer to the question should be obvious, and by day's end my mind was clear. The answer will come much easier in the future (and with pride), should someone ask me if I am a poet.

I am.

-Dave