by Mel Glenn (Brooklyn, NY)
Dribbling my pen in the poetic backcourt,
I am urged by my Cosmic Coach
“to let the game come to you.
Creativity is such a fickle bounce of the ball;
you can’t force your shots.
You have to pick your time and place
and then fire your words
upwards in a rainbow arc.”
I throw up a wild shot of a poem,
one that possesses little rhyme or reason.
“You’re trying too hard,” Coach reminds me.
“Take a seat on the bench, young man,
and keep your eyes on the flow of the Game.
When I think you’re ready,
I’ll put you back on the floor,
to distribute, like passes,
the words I have given to you,
allowing you to rise to your full height
which will increase your personal stats
by the time the final buzzer sounds.”
The author of twelve books for young adults, Mel Glenn has lived nearly all his life in Brooklyn, NY, where he taught English at A. Lincoln High School for thirty-one years. Lately, he’s been writing poetry, and you can find his most recent poems in a new YA anthology, This Family Is Driving Me Crazy, edited by M. Jerry Weiss.
If you’d like to learn more about his work, visit: http://www.melglenn.com/
The Jewish Writing Project 
This is such a wonderful poem! Thank you for sharing.
Ah, Mel, your metaphors run wonderfully through here from the very first words all the way until the end of your delightful, tightly-constructed poem.
Although one may lament the loss of the current N.B.A, season, we are all fortunate, indeed, to have your dribbling pen in the backcourt, down the lane, and in the paint. Nice work all around.
Dribbling pen indeed. I so enjoyed this read; whimsical yet ever so true to life. I reminded me of one of my favorite quote which begins: “Once you have tasted flight you will forever walk this earth looking upward…” That is what writing is to us … flight. Waiting for the game to come to you can be grueling; almost painful. Then I realized that I WAS the game. Still grueling and painful! Thanks for sharing, Mel. Great to know I am not alone dribbling my pen.
Jessica, Thank you for your comment on my poem. Loved your #136 (I am up to #1120) write to me at author114@aol.com
Dear Tammy,
Thank you for your comment. I appreciate it. Loved your last column.