Tora Estep
Inspiration Piece
The Red Coat
Kathleen Finn Jordan
Response
Apprehensive
called into service surprisingly
guest lecturer to an incoming freshman class
I look at myself in the mirror and wonder
If my attire, the donning of a red coat
after a scenic route tour of my mind
will do the trick
create the atmosphere for a class
riveted daily by virtual gaming
inspire some interest, excitement
captivate their attention for the poem which I have been asked to
read and relate
“To My Daughter in the Red Coat “
Anne Stevenson writes of
“The shriveled women staring at us from their stone benches”
And I wonder, will my red coat force a stare from them
generate a love for this poem
as the coat dances in the final line
will their minds dance and wonder and love this poem
will the donning of my red coat, a folio of poems under my arm
elicit a response, a nod to art and symmetry, a successful lesson
or will I only look foolish and old
as minds wander and cell phones vibrate under the desks of my audience
only a try and I hope they will travel with me
as I look at myself in the mirror visiting the poem in my mind
professor in a red coat, daughter in a red coat, challenge of the times
bringing poetry to life in an age of action games and shattered attention spans.
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